25 September, 2019
‘You & I’ is a great concept, and an excellent piece of theatre.
The premise of the show is deceptively simple.
It’s raining, which means that plans to go out are abandoned, and you’re stuck at home with your husband.
Fortunately, this is not a day for household chores, as this particular couple spend a loving and tender hour tumbling, hooping, lifting, spinning, dancing and playing together.
Circus certainly lends itself to providing a window into a loving relationship — particularly if you are a married couple and are two of the co-founders of Casus Circus.
Jesse Scott and Lachlan McAulay’s ‘You & I’ is intimate and loving, with powerful strength, great tumbling and control, funny moments, amazing and memorable trapeze, and a very special twist on the stacking chairs.
This is a highly personal piece, as it is co-created by the two performers in every sense of the phrase.
From lighting and soundtrack choices through to trick selection and set design, Scott and McAulay are in control—delivering a show that is jam-packed with tricks.
Drawing gasps of delight, amazement and even incomprehension from the audience (look out for Scott’s walking on ‘top-toe’—a whole new spin on the traditional tip-toes), it’s difficult to choose just one high-point, but I’m certain that everyone went away talking about the trapeze duet that culminated in McAulay’s exceptionally fast spin below Scott.
Serious circus is a welcome trend, moving away from the ‘trick—ta-dah—applause’ model, to storytelling through circus.
In the last few years, I have seen some very serious circus pieces that have been used to consider many challenging subjects.
It’s refreshing to see how McAulay and Scott push the boundaries by creating a story that is positive, loving, and full of hope.
Just make sure you get to see ‘You & I’ during this short 2019 Brisbane Festival run.