ANIMAL

Cirque Alfonse’s wildly entertaining new show is turning the barn upside down! 

The Cirque Alphones Cast / Photo Credit: Rolline Laporte

The circus is coming to town—but instead of elephants, tigers and bears (oh my!), Cirque Alfonse is bringing the entire farm in their internationally acclaimed show “Animal”. 

This is no ordinary farm either: the chickens have teeth, the ducks are very naughty, the cows run amok and the barn is upside down! The rambunctious “Animal” includes circus performance, theatre, dance and song accompanied by live music—an eclectic mix of traditional Quebec folk music, rock and techno fittingly described as “agricultural funk”. More than just a show, get ready for an experience that will have you grooving along, laughing and eagerly trying to keep up with all the wild antics as they happen on stage.

Having grown up on a farm in the small town of Saint-Alphonse- Rodriguez outside of Montréal, it was only natural that artistic directors (and siblings) Antoine and Julie Carabinier-Lépine would draw inspiration from it. The barn is not just the setting for “Animal”, but also where the troupe, consisting of mostly family and friends, spends 3 months of the year developing their shows before they tour. It’s become a tradition. “We always create our shows in the little barn next to our parent’s place. We spend the day on the farm, our mother cooks for us and we stay with my sister who lives 15 minutes away.” describes Antoine during our interview. “We also incorporate props that are used in everyday farm life in the show, like the wheel barrels, milk churns. We don’t use a trapeze or juggling clubs for example.”

Photo Credit: Rolline Laporte

This stands in stark comparison to the glitzy and meticulously choreographed shows we’ve gotten used to seeing since Cirque de Soleil came onto the scene. Rather, Cirque Alfonse is boisterous, gritty and doesn’t take itself so seriously. “We don’t put on much makeup. When you see us on stage, it’s really us.” Antoine describes frankly. “We like the audience to see that we are sweating, that we are shaking while doing a movement because it is difficult.. Sometimes we miss and that’s ok—it’s part of the show. It shows the audience that we’re not perfect and they get it. We want the audience to connect with us rather than watch something that is too perfect or like something you’d see on TV.” The same goes for all the stunts they do, which are just as authentic and are done without a line.

It is clear that the Carabinier-Lépines along with the rest of the Cirque Alfonse performers know just what they are doing and their collective experience touring with the biggest circus companies in the world helps explain why. Antoine fell in love with the circus as a teenager and studied at the acclaimed École Nationale de Cirque de Montréal before touring with Cirque de Soleil and Cirque Éloize (among others). Julie studied contemporary dance and was part of the Swiss circus company Salto Natale.

In 2006, and to celebrate the 60th birthday of their father (who’d always wanted to perform too), Antoine and Julie put together what they thought would be a one-time show with their friends. They enjoyed it so much that Cirque Alfonse was formed. Now, 16 years later, the troupe is just as tight-knit and tours the world. They had just completed their 100th show at the time of writing this.

Photo Credit: JF Savaria

Photo Credit: JF Savaria

At 76 years young-at-heart, their father still performs too and makes his appearance as the gentleman-farmer in “Animal”. “There aren’t many families in the circus in Quebec anymore. It tends to be more of a production and these companies are always looking for younger performers. On the other hand, we’ve been working with the same group since we started,” Antoine explains, “And normally in a traditional circus, it’s the parents that bring in the children and they grow up in it, but in our case, we brought our parents into the circus.” Now, Antoine’s two young daughters have also joined the family circus, so to speak. His 4-year-old even helped pick the animals that the performers play in the show.

Family-friendly without being just for the kids either, “Animal” will appeal to an audience of all ages. “We alway develop the shows in a way that we, as the adults, would enjoy too. We have fun doing it and we don’t try to be childish with how we do it.” Antoine adds. “The kids laugh at some things that the adults don’t, for example, and then the other way around.. There’s really something for everybody.”

Cirque Alfonse will perform Animal: A Farm Story at Fairfield University’s Quick Center for the Arts on Sunday, April 23 at 7pm. They will also be performing a School Matinee Show on Monday, April 24 at 11am.