War and Peace at the Circus, Giffords Circus | reviews, news & interviews
War and Peace at the Circus, Giffords Circus
War and Peace at the Circus, Giffords Circus
Tolstoy's epic in a little big top is a ridiculously innocent delight
Monday, 04 July 2011
The Battle of Borodino: The French, with two horses, beat the Russians, with one
A village green, a little big top - and War and Peace. Sometimes large ambitions come in the smallest packages, and one can only take one’s hat off to the ambitious, pocket-sized Giffords Circus for setting out to squish Tolstoy’s four-volume epic of love and internecine war into a very small sawdust ring, with horses, jugglers, aerialists, clowns and gymnasts. And as you park your car on the green and wander over under the quiet afternoon sky to the cute white tent where a rackety little brass band is parping and blaring from inside (and check out the “War and Pizza” trailer for the interval), you are in for a ridiculously good time.
A village green, a little big top - and War and Peace. Sometimes large ambitions come in the smallest packages, and one can only take one’s hat off to the ambitious, pocket-sized Giffords Circus for setting out to squish Tolstoy’s four-volume epic of love and internecine war into a very small sawdust ring, with horses, jugglers, aerialists, clowns and gymnasts. And as you park your car on the green and wander over under the quiet afternoon sky to the cute white tent where a rackety little brass band is parping and blaring from inside (and check out the “War and Pizza” trailer for the interval), you are in for a ridiculously good time.
Napoleon is a maniacal knife-thrower, peppering the map of Russia with daggers flipped from his mouth
Share this article
Add comment
Subscribe to theartsdesk.com
Thank you for continuing to read our work on theartsdesk.com. For unlimited access to every article in its entirety, including our archive of more than 15,000 pieces, we're asking for £5 per month or £40 per year. We feel it's a very good deal, and hope you do too.
To take a subscription now simply click here.
And if you're looking for that extra gift for a friend or family member, why not treat them to a theartsdesk.com gift subscription?
more Theatre
The Band Back Together, Arcola Theatre review - three is a dangerous number
The second album is still tough, even if you never recorded the first
Kim's Convenience, Riverside Studios review - KC and the sunshine vibe
The play that inspired a Netflix series is heartwarming, but needs more spice to bite
The Real Ones, Bush Theatre review - engrossing, enjoyable and quietly inspiring
Waleed Akhtar’s new play is about platonic love in a contemporary context
Our Country's Good, Lyric Hammersmith review - lively but patchy revival
Timberlake Wertenbaker's updated version takes particular aim at colonialism
Why Am I So Single?, Garrick Theatre review - superb songs in Zeitgeist surfing show
Marlow and Moss are back with deeply personal exploration of how lives are lived today
The Silver Cord, Finborough Theatre review - Sophie Ward is compellingly repellent
Beautifully staged and acted revival of Sidney Howard’s century-old black comedy
Art, Theatre Royal Bath review - Yasmina Reza's smash hit back on tour 30 years after Paris premiere
Male friendships buckle as egos clash, with a resonance for today's culture wars
The Real Thing, Old Vic review - Stoppard classic keeps on giving
James McArdle is immense as Stoppard’s true romantic
G, Royal Court review - everyday realism blitzed by urban myth
Award-winning new writing is full of mystery and metaphor, but a bit too literary
A Night with Janis Joplin: The Musical, Peacock Theatre review - belting Blues singing in an oddly sanitised format
A wealth of musical talent keeps this gig musical afloat
Edinburgh Fringe 2024 reviews: L'Addition / Long Distance / The Sun, the Mountain and Me
From meta-theatrical mayhem to dreams of freedom and escape in three shows from the Fringe's closing days
Shifters, Duke of York's Theatre review - star-crossed lovers shine in intelligent rom-com
Only the third West End written play by a black woman will not be the last
Comments
...