Vegas? I'd Rather Run Away With The Circus

There isn't anything that can be written about Las Vegas that hasn't been written already.  Except maybe this - I hate Las Vegas.  I don't just hate Las Vegas, I loathe it.  Crowds that aimlessly mill about staring gape mouthed at the Eiffel Tower, the statue of Liberty and the Great Pyramid of Giza all in a one square block; blue haired ladies with red lipstick and a cigarette dangling from their lips as they play the penny slots; and the constant assualt of bells ringing, machines beeping and horns honking on my ears are only part of the problem.  Apparently, I no longer consider losing money a form of entertainment.  And really?  I've seen some Vegas shows that have left me totally underwhelmed.  That is, until I saw Cirque Du Soliel's "KA." 

Holy Schnikees!  As you may recall, we were there to see Jason Zulauf perform in the show and take a backstage tour.  Well, if it weren't for bad luck, the Coltman's would have no luck at all.  The weekend we were there was the weekend of the Oscars which equals a theater with no celebrities.  Ok, I can handle that, I'm really there to see the show not see celebrities see the show.  Then, we get a call from Jason's father.  Jason is ill, he hasn't missed a show in 5 years but he is not going to be appearing.  However, he arranged for his girlfriend Cheri, another artist and one of the main stars of the show, to meet us and give us a tour.

The show itself is beyond any discription I can offer.   To try would render it just adequate. The stage is mobile and is often set vertical, perpendicular to the floor and the performers flip, dance and fly up and down the thing.  There is a story that is sometimes difficult to follow only because I was so mesmerized by the action, I lost myself in the moment.  If Vegas is sensory overload in the worst way, KA is sensory orgasm ( yeah, I said it.)

Afterward, we met Cheri and her sister at the door and she took us backstage.  Cheri plays one of the main characters in KA and is tiny.  I mean so tiny that if I were a few inches shorter and weighed alot less I would still look like an oaf next to her.  What she may lack in stature is made up in incredible talent, vast backstage knowledge and kindness.  Cheri explained how the stage moved, how the costumes are stored and how much the wigs cost ( 5 digits.)  She explained some of the moves that Jason performs and showed us the dressing rooms.  She did all of this at 11:30 p.m. while all of the other performers were changing and rushing home to begin their "weekends."  I'd say our bad luck was really GREAT luck!

And that, the whole Cirque experience, erased the fact that I smoked 2 packs of cigarettes just by breathing, collected a card decks worth of call girl cards on the street, and lost $20 in a slot machine. Cirque Du Soliel?  YES!  Vegas?  Meh.