Chouf Ouchouf, Queen Elizabeth Hall

Chouf Ouchouf, Queen Elizabeth Hall | reviews, news & interviews

Chouf Ouchouf, Queen Elizabeth Hall

Acrobatics that seesaw brilliantly between Moroccan street and the surreal

by Ismene BrownSunday, 24 April 2011

'Chouf Ouchouf': Human pyramids are only the start of itImages Chouf Ouchouf

If you’re looking for a surprising and off-the-wall show this school holidays, I’ve no hesitation in hugely recommending Chouf Ouchouf, a brilliantly and theatrically inventive acrobat theatre show performed by the Groupe Acrobatique de Tangier, a troupe of Moroccan acrobats who learned their awesome skills on Tangier Beach. Through the wit and imagination of its Swiss theatre directors, the show manages to retain a lively street smell and yet pull off some deft theatrical effects, blurring the edges between normality and strangeness - one moment you feel you might be walking in a souk, the next you’ve been sucked into a darkling, ghostly world of surreal human balancing acts.

The acrobatics are deceptively rough-finished, as if casually erupting from the pavement, but the timing is as fastidious as fine ballet

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