Review - Cirque du Soleil's “Love"
Originally published for The Aimless & Andy Show, October 9, 2009
On Friday, October 9, 2009, The Aimless & Andy Show had a chance to head down to Las Vegas and check out Cirque du Soleil's "Love" at the Mirage Hotel & Casino.
Upon walking into The MGM Mirage we were surrounded with the same feelings that The Beatles probably shared as they walked into Abbey Road studios. The sense of excitement cannot truly be explained in written form.
Slot machines rung, lights flashed, floors changed colors, and All You Need Is Love blared from strategically placed speakers, and the staff at The Revolution Lounge greet travelers with a smile.
Enter 1967.
The MGM design and engineering team, alongside Cirque du Soliel, and Apple Corps have done a fantastic job capturing the vision that The Beatles probably saw for the 10 years of their musical career.
Though nobody will ever know what went through the bottle cap eyes of John Lennon or how much of a musical heart George Harrison really had, you can certainly experience a little piece of The Beatles while wandering through the reception lounge and Love gift store.
We took our seats in section L and sunk in for what we didn't know would be a truly visually and musically inspiring experience.
As soon as the lights dimmed, over 6,000 speakers perked up to the echoes of Lennon, Paul, and George as birds chirped happily in the background.
Volkswagens entered without frames, bicycles were directed mysteriously and candles danced brightly as the cast of Love entered the creatively uniquely designed stage.
The amount of fast-paced visual energy is also matched with a high level of human emotion.
When the strings of Eleanor Rigby filled through our headrests, it seemed as if the entire room of over 1,000 plus was nonexistent and to quote a famous saying "You could hear a pin drop".
Within seconds of strings fading from Julia, I Am the Walrus perked up and grabbed the audience’s attention again playing to the mysterious eyes of The Beatles.
By the time we got to While My Guitar Gently Weeps it would seem our neighbors ran out of Kleenex. It's worth noting that the version used in this performance was re-made specifically for the use of "Love" thanks to Sir George Martin.
Sir Martin's composition, matched with the eye-dazzling visuals of Cirque spoke to the heart of Beatles fans and blended well with A Day in the Life.
It was agreed upon that we would need to see the show at least 3 additional times from various aspects to fully appreciate, and grasp the amount of eye candy that Cirque pumped into this show through the use of projectors, video screens, silk screens, and good old fashioned smoke and lights.
After having been covered in confetti and parachutes, and listening to 26 songs and a sampling of 130 Beatles tracks, it was time to leave the love theater.
But not without hearing the most important message shared by The Beatles and the staff of Montreal Based Cirque du Soleil.
"Love is All You Need".
-Av
