Friday night the circus came to town. It wasn't the Ringling Brothers and there were no elephants. However, there were cheetahs, monkeys and zebras. Several students painted their faces for a good cause that allowed them to embody different animals of the jungle. We were able to watch these animals come to life in Jarman on the nights of Friday 11 and Saturday 12 during a performance called Untamed Elements.
Untamed Elements was a collaboration of different organizations including Lancer Productions, Longwood Belly Dancers, B.A.S.I.C Gospel Choir and more. Ashley Russell was the director of the show. The cost of the show was a small fee of five dollars. The fee was a donation for the Southside SPCA or Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The Southside SPCA strives to protect animals and provide good homes for them. All together the production raised $1,000.
The show started at approximately 7 p.m. with an introduction of the cast followed by a performance by three felines. Ashley Russell and Kathleen Whitney were dressed up as a cheetah and a panther. They seemed to be working together as they danced a ballet across the stage. Then a black cat played by Amena Sims pranced onto the stage. Her black exterior matched her personality. To the audience, Sims seemed to challenge the other two at first. Then they all came together to finish the first act. It was a nice way to start the show.
The night continued with several different surprises thrown into the mix. Towards the middle of the show, Sims rejoined the stage as a soloist. Dressed in all white, she gave the audience a cover of the song "Stand By Me." Her voice had a nice tone to it; it was as lovely as her outfit was. It was a different change of pace for the night. This pace picked right back up with a hilarious performance by several energetic monkeys and a baboon. They were jumping around the stage, dancing while the baboon pulled a girl on stage. She sat in the middle of the stage wondering what was going on when the song switched to "Wild Thing." She was serenaded by all of the monkeys who seemed to be fighting for her affection as they rocked on their air guitars.
All of the performers showed their talents and Russell proved once again that she was a girl of many tricks. Russell danced, dazzled us with her hula-hoop act and performed two types of Aerial Acrobatics. She showed us several tricks during a Silk Acrobatic Act which is when she twirled and hung from a suspended fabric. The other type of Acrobatics was Aerial Hoop which is when you spin and such in a dangling hoop. Both of these were nerve-wracking performances for me. They involved great strength and an acceptance of height on Russell's end and she showed no fear. I believe it was that very wondering if she was going to fall that kept everyone on the edge of their seat wanting more.
There were only a few moments when I wondered if they could have done better. I felt as if some of the outfits were slightly inappropriate for anyone younger that may have come. Also, I felt as if the whole night could have been more enjoyable if there was some sort of story involved so that all the acts could have been synched together. They felt too separate from one another; one minute we were watching flips and the next we were watching belly dancers. Also, I felt that if there was a story involved there would have been better transitions between acts.
Despite those few flaws, the night was enjoyable as the audience watched the jungle come to life through dance and song. There were songs that made us sway such as the tender couple dance between Cheryl Hinterleitner and Josh Craft that was filled with manyleaps and lifts that put us all in awe. Other moments had music that had more of a jungle feel to it that made you want to dance. Untamed Elements was a nice way to spend my Friday evening. I hope you were able to catch it.
