Quintessence

A Circus Folk Unite! Production

May 2006, Library Lawn

quin·tes·sence (kwin-tess-sense), n. 1. The pure, highly concentrated essence of a thing. 2. The most perfect or typical example of a quality or class. In ancient and medieval philosophy, the fifth and highest essence after the four elements of earth, air, fire, and water, thought to be the substance of the heavenly bodies and latent in all things.

Quizically Quintessent
After the amazing experience that we had creating and performing Bouleversement, Circus Folk Unite knew that there just needed to be another show in the upcoming spring semester. Though we would no longer be able to devote all of our time to developing the new show with classes back in session, we learned from experience, started earlier and produced Quintessence in a slightly more organized fashion than Bouleversement. We had a much larger troupe to work with on our second show, drawing in members that had been away for Jan term as well as some new additions who were intrigued by Bouleversement and our practice sessions. With about three practices a week, even during the crunch time of the end of the year, Circus Folk Unite worked together to produce a show that was more visually and structurally complex, physically demanding, and time consuming than Bouleversement, reflecting the leaps of knowledge that we gained from our experience in January. The plot for Quintessence was based on different creation myths from around the world. Drawing upon stories from many different countries, Circus Folk Unite created our own creation myth chronicling the dramatic events leading up to the birth of the circus. In a world inhabited by mischievous elemental spirits, distant gods, and ambitious humans, forces clash and intersect, tension escalating higher and higher to create a climax of cataclysmic proportions. The story of the circus is told through a mix of clowning, contact juggling, stilting, acrobatics, contortion, stomp, mini- trampoline, club swinging, staff spinning, contact improvisation, juggling, torch juggling, fire poi, fire staff and double staff, and amazing sideshow acts. Quintessence premiered on May 5th, the last day of classes, and was performed again on the 7th outside on the Library Lawn. It began in daylight and ended in dark, spanning the twilight period.