In what may be a first for me reviewing Los Angeles theatre is reviewing a dance performance or in this case with The 7 Fingers (also known as Les 7 doigts de la main), a circus troupe that makes their Center Theatre Group debut with Duel Reality, their acrobatic tour-de-force for all ages inspired by the star-crossed tale of Romeo and Juliet. Fusing circus, theatre, illusion, music, and dance, the show was an utterly delightful and breathtaking work of art that cannot be missed with the “cast” that’s mostly comprised of artists of global majority.
Inspired by the Shakespeare tragic love story and competitive sports, the concept of Duel Reality is an interesting one that really does take their time to honor their Bard origins by having a few of their actors recite some of the lines from the play. Unfortunately, this may be the least successful aspect of the show as acting, specifically Shakespearean acting, is..not the troupe’s forte. But we as the audience all know that we are here for the acrobatic feats and in this realm, the show completely delivered as there were so many moments that generated gasps out of me and so many in the audience as the feats were quite extraordinary and some that elicited a “h#2y f*#!” for how daring the stunts were.
Knowing that the circus troupe is an ever-revolving cycle of performers, I must give a shoutout to all the performers and they are Arata Urawa, Michelle Hernandez, Gerardo Gutierrez, Marco Ingaramo, Santiago Rivera, Daniela Corradi, Anton Erik Persson, Ashleigh Roper, Miliève Modin-Brisbois, and Adam Fulick. With the keen direction under Shana Carroll (who is also the artistic director of the 7 Fingers), it was also a delight to see so many global majority talent showing off their incredible talent
To say anything more would ruin the joy of this delightful show. With a short running time of 75 minutes (with no intermission), it’s something to definitely check out to see something unique and jaw-dropping in Los Angeles but because of their extremely short engagement, you have until the 22nd to do so. The Ahmanson Theatre is located at 135 N. Grand Ave., Los Angeles CA 90012. Tickets start at $28.75 (all-in pricing including fees) and can be purchased here. Recommended for everyone ages 6 and up as this production includes stylized depictions of violence (but it’s really not that bad at all).
