Cirque Berserk! at Riverside Studios

Cirque Berserk! at Riverside Studios | Theatre review

11^th February 2023

11 February 2023

Celebration is a key word when entering the spectacular, pulse-quickening world of Cirque Berserk!. For starters, the current five-week London season is a celebration for the tenth anniversary of the show. And the show is a 100-minute-long celebration of indisputable talent, impressive circus skills, mesmerising aerials and bravado. It is, truly, berserkus.

Tension and anticipation grow by the minute, spectators don’t even have time to catch their breath. No one is sure what is about to come next – who will swing, twirl, be suspended mid-air, jump through hoops or ride a motorbike inside a cage.

Cirque Berserk! is unique in its madness: circus made for the theatre, with circus-trained performers from all over the world collaborating with a West End creative team. The result is entertainment in its purest form, a full immersion into a world of acrobats, contortionists, stunts and knife-throwers, most of them performing without safety devices.

The Timbuktu Tumblers opened the night, showcasing their acrobatic skills with contagious, joyful energy; they’re fearless. One moment they’re jumping through hoops and the next they’re limbo dancing with a fire-lit pole. The Lucius Team also deserves a special mention, for what was probably the most adrenaline-inducing performance of the night: up to three riders inside a cage, The Globe of Death, reaching speeds of 60 mph. Initially, the crowd was too enthralled even to cheer them on – that is, until the bikers started chasing each other up and down the Globe, then the room erupted in cheers.

Cirque Berserk! promises entertainment, and that’s what it delivers. Without the presence of sad, starving animals, but by marrying over 30 circus skills with the theatre savvy of an amazing creative team, it makes for a night that adults and children will not forget. Perfect escapism, and a perhaps much-needed injection of adrenaline into one’s daily routine. All spectators have to do is sit back, cheer on and let the performers take their breath away.

★★★★★

Benedetta Mancusi
Image: Piet Hein-Out

Cirque Berserk! is at Riverside Studios from 9^th February until 11^th March 2023. For further information or to book visit the theatre’s website here.