Co-presented with The Cultch
Duck Pond
January 22-25, 2025 | 8pm
January 25, 2025 | 2pm
Vancouver Playhouse (600 Hamilton Street)
Running time: 70 minutes (no intermission)
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Circa (Australia)
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, along comes Duck Pond, Circa’s irreverent take on the timeworn classic Swan Lake. Throw out any preconceived notions of balletic preciousness, tutus and frou-frou, and embrace the exquisitely controlled chaos that is Australia’s preeminent dance-circus company.
Under the visionary direction of choreographer Yaron Lifschitz, Circa mixes it up, throwing in burlesque, heart-in-throat acrobatics, romance, and more than a little madness and mayhem to create a fully feathered concoction.
In Duck Pond, elements of Tchaikovsky’s iconic ballet and Hans Christian Andersen’s beloved parable The Ugly Duckling leap headlong into the pool together. Performers leap, tumble, and proffer topsy-turvy takes on the roles of pining prince, black swan, and an army of yellow billed duck-dancers in sequinned flippers. The result is a circus marvel, glittering with theatrical magic and laughter, all cued up by the words “Once upon a time.”
Introducing new family & youth (under 18) pricing for matinee performances. Learn more at dancehouse.ca/tickets
Circa acknowledges the assistance of the Australian Government through Creative Australia, its principal arts investment and advisory body and the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland.
Duck Pond is co-commissioned by QPAC and The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi, The Art House Wyong, Frankston Arts Centre, HOTA – Home of the Arts, Merrigong Theatre Company and Orange Civic Theatre.
“Boldly dramatic in its chaos and charmingly magical in its whimsy.” – Blue Curtains Brisbane
“Duck Pond may just be one of the most exhilarating and thought-provoking shows you will see this year.” - ARTS HUB
“Hugely entertaining and impressive” – Limelight
Yaron Lifschitz
Yaron Lifschitz is a graduate of the University of New South Wales, University of Queensland, and National Institute of Dramatic Arts (NIDA), where he was the youngest director ever accepted into its prestigious graduate director’s course. Since graduating, Yaron has directed over 60 productions including large-scale events, opera, theatre, physical theatre, and circus.
His work has been seen in more than 40 countries and across six continents by over 1.5 million people and has won numerous awards including six Helpmann awards and the Australia Council Theatre Award. His productions have been presented at major festivals and venues around the world including Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Barbican, Les Nuits de Fourvière, Chamaleon and all the major Australian festivals. His film work was selected for the Berlin and Melbourne Film Festivals. He was founding Artistic Director of the Australian Museum’s Theatre Unit, Head Tutor in Directing at Australian Theatre for Young People and has been a regular guest tutor in directing at NIDA.
He is currently Artistic Director and CEO of Circa, and was Creative Director of Festival 2018: the arts and cultural program of the 21st Commonwealth Games.
Circa Contemporary Circus is one of the world’s leading performance companies. Since 2004, from its base in Brisbane, Australia, Circa has toured the world – performing in more than 40 countries to over 1.5 million people. Circa’s works have been greeted with standing ovations, rave reviews and sold-out houses across six continents.
Circa is at the forefront of the new wave of contemporary Australian circus – pioneering how extreme physicality can create powerful and moving performances. It continues to push the boundaries of the art form, blurring the lines between movement, dance, theatre and circus. Compelled by the question ‘what is possible in circus?’ Circa is leading the way with a diverse range of thrilling creations that ‘redraw the limits to which circus can aspire.’ (The Age).
Top image: Circa, Duck Pond © Pia Johnson
