Gold YEE: Cirque Du Soleil’s Totem

I missed the listing for this when I wrote my review on the Gold Elite event at Cirque Du Soleil’s Totem and posted this review:
. I wanted to write my review in the correct place and express my gratefulness to Unilocal OC, Cirque Du Soleil, and Ryan C for hosting fabulous events for Gold Elites. I truly appreciate it. The show was fantastic and a great introduction to Cirque Du Soleil for me.
Totem was full of acrobatics, humor, fantastic feats and awesomeness. The performers are nothing short of amazing. The Great Park was a nice venue for the show. It’s not so large and you can see all the action well. I think that wherever your seats are, you will have a good view. Totem will be at the Great Park until December 29^th, 2013. Don’t miss it!
Again, a big thank you to Ryan C, Unilocal OC, Cirque Du Soleil and Great Park for giving me and my husband a fun filled night of fantastic entertainment.

The Gold Event at Totem was amazing. To top it off I couldn’t believe that we got to bring a date to such an amazing event. Thank you so much Ryan, if it wasn’t for you my life would be so boring.
Totem is an exceptional show. My favorite were the girls on the unicycles balancing bowls… they were breathtaking. The acrobatics were awe-​inspiring. I recommend the show… but I recommend becoming Gold Elite more…
=)

I gotta love that I have been a dedicated Unilocaler for the past nth year because we really are treated well. Much love and thanks to the Unilocal team, including Ryan C. for this amazing experience. I haven’t been to a Cirque show in a very long time.
The seats were intensely perfect. the show started early but luckily I left work right when I did otherwise I would have missed the first few minutes or so. which already had me in awe.
While the show itself didn’t have much of a fluid flowing storyline, each act separately was amazing. The guys on the rings were particularly fantastic, the two girls and twirling fabrics were intense, and the girls on the unicycles were completely awesome! I loved every minute of it all, everyone is so talented and so worth seeing again and again!
PS: Remember that there is no photography allowed during the show, but I did manage to snap a pic during Intermission of the stage. :) Parking is $ 10, you’re at the Great Park after all.

Thank you Ryan C. for hooking up some of us Unilocalers with tickets to see Totem! I just finished reading the book «Night Circus» a couple months ago so as I turned on to Marine Way and drove up the winding road and all of a sudden out of nowhere the lights and colors of the Cirque tent appeared as if from nowhere I felt like the character Bailey in the book. There’s just something magical about the circus at night set against a black sky and what made this night even more perfect was the drizzly weather.
Getting in and out of Totem was a breeze (probably because this was a dress rehearsal and the event wasn’t sold out). Parking was $ 10 at the Irvine Great Park. I have been to a number of different Cirque shows, La Reve and Absinthe in Las Vegas but this was my first Cirque traveling tent show. I has assumed that the show would be average and wouldn’t have the special effects, talent and wow factor of the stationary shows, but I was wrong. This show had it all, trapeze, roller skaters who do things on a box you wish they would just do on solid ground, uni-​cycling ladies who do things with bowls that I’d never seen done before, trampoline bars that I didn’t even know existed, great music, great special effects and I have to once again give props to Ryan C. because we had awesome tickets in the first section.
I’ve always enjoyed having popcorn and a cocktail or two at Cirque shows but $ 17 for a drink is a tad outrageous by all standards. However I could deal with the price of the cocktail. What I couldn’t deal with was the drunk bigot who spent the intermission shouting about how the bartender hooked her up because «black people love Asians» followed by more loud diatribe about black people, Jews and gays. We also got to hear about how she’s never been to a wedding sober and how she is always wasted. Not a single one of her friends told her to lower her voice, sit down or shut up. If these were real friends they’d take her to AA not the circus! The moral of my rant, if you go see a Cirque show don’t act like you’re at Jonas Brothers concert.
Thanks again Ryan C. This was by far the coolest Unilocal hookup I’ve had in my 7 years as a Unilocaler.

Yes, it really is nice to be Gold Elite!
I posted a review on the Cirque du Soleil page, but I didn’t think to post it here on the Gold YEE page.
Rather than link and trust your fate to the whims of the World Wide Interwebs, I am just excerpting it here… below…on this page.
Thanks again to Ryan C, and to Trina D and Grace C, it was great to see you guys and share the show and some conversation!
The Review:
Spectacular…there really is no other word for it!
From the moment we rounded the corner and saw the huge, multi-​colored tents, all lit up in the black Orange County evening, surrounded by the trailers, posters and trappings of the show, to heading home in the light rain that began falling during the show, the entire evening was spectacular!
Cirque du Soleil puts on spectacular shows and one of the latest offerings, «Totem» is no exception!
As a Gold Elite Treat, our phenomenal CM, Ryan C., got us in to the Dress Rehearsal/​Preview evening last night… and what a treat it was!
We were fortunate enough to get terrific seats and watch what can only be decribed as one of the most creative and clever shows I’ve seen in a long time.
My +1 (the Beautiful Carin… was there even any doubt?) and I were charmed by the comedy and thrilled by the skill, athleticism, beauty and grace of the performances and the performers.
We have been to a number of CDS offerings over the last 15 – 20 years while all the show have all been terrific, this show is certainly one of the most enjoyable we have seen!
Thanks so much to Ryan C. for putting this together… Trina, Grace, Carin and I looked for you last night to thank you in person, but we didn’t find you or you would have been the subject of a giant group hug… which could have been awkward.
Finally, it may have been one of the most expensive free shows I have ever attended… Carin was on the CDS site bright and early this morning and picked up tickets for the family visiting over the holidays!
It only cost about a $ 1,000…and it’s worth every penny.

Being a Gold Elite defintiely has its perks! I was waitlisted and got in at the last minute (thanks Ryan C!). My friend and I arrived at 7:35 after paying the $ 10 to park (c’mon Great Park, it’s a Dress Rehearsal!). Got our comp tix from the Media booth and had to wait until the act was over until we could be seated. Our seats were amazing: great view of the stage.
I loved these acts: the purple sparkle blanket spinners, the yellow trapeze couple, the unicyclists (how do they do that?), and the rollerskaters. There were the usual clowns where they speak an undetermined language, and I liked the theme a lot. Costumes were absolutely stunning.
We had a wonderful time and hope others get to enjoy this as well. This was my 2^nd Cirque show in a week (was at Beatles Love in Vegas over the weekend) and liked how this was more «traditional» than the Love show. Definitley a must see for the awesome acts.

Thanks to Trina D. for letting me be her plus one after I was waitlisted for this event.
Thanks to Ryan C. and Cirque du Soleil for this great opportunity to see this new show.
As usual — this Cirque show was filled with quite a few amazing acrobatic acts themed together with a central theme. O in Vegas still has my heart, but this was a great show to watch locally.
We missed a bit of the beginning because we thought it started at 8, but it was okay, we still saw most of the show and it was free for me. I can’t complain.
Parking was $ 10 and since it was the Great Park, there is only one way in and out, but they were pretty diligent about directing traffic so it didn’t seem too bad.

All that glitters is not gold, but not in the case of my badge! Gold Elites struck gold boulders this past week.
I have not been to a Cirque show in years and every time I see one they remind me of how fantastic live shows like these are. Each performance seemed to compound the awesomeness of the last. I kept thinking in my head how they could this performer get any better!
My +1 and I had a spectacular time and the experience lingered in our minds for days. Thank you Ryan C. and the folks from Cirque. I like to show up early to pretty much everything, so I didn’t miss a beat of the show.
This Gold YEE is one for the Unilocal history books.

I hadn’t been to a Cirque show in years so this was a real treat! I’m always amazed by the artistry and athleticism of these shows – so much meticulous planning goes into the sets, costumes, music, and performances. I was sitting in the very last row center so I was able to peek into the control booth and see on their screens how they control the timing of the projections and lights on to the stage – it’s like mission control. Even though I was in the way back I still felt like I had a very good view of the action. And what action! I always wonder how they can top themselves but every performance I see there’s something new and amazing, from the two ladies spinning cloth squares with all of their limbs, the girls on the unicycles, the acrobats jumping and balancing on poles (and much more), it was all thrilling and amazing. Thank you Ryan C and Cirque du Soleil for hooking us up with these tickets; I had a fantastic time! Once again, it’s good to be gold :)

omfg, wtf, seriously, sjkalfj;asklf, *gasp*, wtfffffff.
yes, you read correctly, that was my thought process when i was watching totem. completely mind blown.
let me count the reasons why i would totally watch totem again:
1) venue: all my previous cirque shows were watched in vegas (zumanity, o, & ka). i’ve never watched any shows outside of vegas and wasn’t sure what to expect from a tent in the great park. turned out to be an intimate venue, no such thing as nose bleeds because all the seats in the theater were good. i would try to avoid seats behind stage /​spot lights because there are some obstructions.
2) human (im)possibility: the impossibility has been proven possible with the totem team. i mean, wow. the strength and beauty from all the acts were yes, mind blowing.
3) music: i really enjoyed all the music with the acts, i’m listening to the soundtrack on spotify as we speak :)
4) acts: the totem show doesn’t really have a story line like ka but regardless, every single act topped the previous and i was seriously at the edge of my seat going «THIS. IS. AMAZING».
5) production: i wasn’t sure what to expect with the stage/​lighting set up in a tent in a park, but i was so blown away by the lighting effects, stage, aerial capabilities.
i really don’t want to ruin the show for you but they do have the official trailer on youtube for your preview pleasure.
having practiced acro yoga before, cirque seriously took aerial acro and acro yoga to a whole new level. it’s like acro yoga on steroids. if you have any doubts about watching totem, don’t, just go watch it. you won’t regret it!
this was SUCH a nice treat from ryan c. & cirque to preview totem before it’s available to the public. thank you for taking us out for an amazing show!

Thanks Ryan C, Unilocal and Cirque Du Soleil for allowing all us gold badge elites to sit in on Totem’s dress rehearsal before it officially opened up to the public! this was such an awesome opportunity and was so glad to be a part of it. me and justin b. had some pretty good seats at the back center of the stage and luckily got in just in time to watch the performance start at 730!
speaking of the performance — OMG! my favorite acts were the trapeze couple, roller skaters, fabric twirlers, and oh man the beach buff ring guys! while there was a dropped bowl here and there, im glad that the performers got any nerves out of the way during this dress rehearsal so that the paying public will get an amazing show! i was thoroughly entertained from start to finish and during some of the acrobatic performances, i was so stressed out for them and just hoping that they wouldn’t fall haha… and that made me appreciate all the comedic elements to the show even more so it gave me a chance to catch my breath and relax haha. Highly recommend seeing Totem while it’s in Irvine!
notes for any show goers:
— parking is $ 10 at the great park.
— they do sell snacks and alcohol at the concession stands. we paid $ 6.50 for a regular popcorn and $ 9 for beer and wine.
— there really is no bad seat in the house. the performance is in the round and the theater isnt too big. we were seated in section 200 in Row P and could see everything just fine.
— oh and as for the restrooms, they are essentially port-​o-​potties but nice ones at that haha.

Ah the perks of being an Unilocal Elite. Thanks again Ryan C for the tix and thanks again for checking us in so quickly. I think we only missed about 5 minutes. This show to me can be summed up in one word:
Whimsical
*Spoiler*
There’s lots of acts and scenes within scenes in totem.
The monkey, gorilla, business man scene was hilarious!
My favorite was the two guys in rings. I’ve always admired anyone who can hold a pose on rings. I’ve tried it. No go.
The two girls with the twirling blankets were fun to see.
The couple on the swing moving from one side to another kept my eyes wide open
The couple on skates was amazing, I was dazed just watching them.
The acrobats at the end jumping from one flexi stick to another was out of this world.
You’ll have to see this for yourself to be amazed.
There are tons of parts during the act where they will throw a joke here and there. Thus, making this production fun to watch for the whole family.
One bad thing if I could make would be I feel that there’s no connection with all the artists. I mean, I can’t relate the the girls on the unicycles to the show. (funniest thing was I’ve seen these same girls at the OC fair). So I do feel that this show is just one big traveling circus. Sure enough, if you come out of the tent, you’ll notice that this is pretty much a traveling circus setup with the enclosed tents and outside bathrooms.
But I want to take a moment to compliment some people that you don’t recognize behind the scenes. I think the wardrobe for the cast was excellent. They fit accordingly to the scenes. The lighting was excellent as well as the sound guy. I think we sat 3 rows behind him. I’m assuming he was the sound guy because I saw a soundboard in his reach. BTW, we had seats 14 & 15 and it was dead center. We were in row P which was 3 rows before the last row. We were still able to see it very well.
Oh speaking of seats, they will feel like airplane seats. You must really like your neighbor because you will be trapped with him a long time. Some guy in front of me had the worst breath. I was trapped and there was not much I could do. Thank goodness for intermission.
During intermission we went and bought some items. The guy who was selling the items did not know the prices. First he told us the keychains were $ 3. Then he told us it was $ 12. WTF?! So we ended up just buying a $ 6 magnet.
As for parking, yes it’s $ 10. Yes, it’s a little rediculous but it’s the great park and they probably could get away with it. The best place to park, IMO, would be park on the left side as you enter. So when you are leaving, you don’t encounter much people behind you. There is only maybe 20 spots. The parking guy had mentioned these were «preferred parking». I have no idea because I just followed the guy in front of me.
So there you have it, a fun night out on the town with the circus having a laugh here and there. Amazed at the lighting, the costumes, the sound, and the amazing human acrobatic skills. It was so past my bedtime but it was worth it!

It’s nice to be Gold elite. Thanks to Unilocal,Ryan C., and Cirque du Soleil for giving us tickets to the dress rehearsal for Totem. The show officially starts on November 21^st but we got to see it in Irvine before the general public. It was great to run into Donald S. and the lovely Carin S. We had nice seats but moved down to sit in some empty ones by Carin and Donald, after intermission, which were even better seats.
The show was amazing as most Cirque shows are and I have seen a few. Fantastic acrobatics and aerial stunts. I loved the closing dance number and the rollerskating couple. This show had a native American theme and storyline. I wonder how many lawsuits that’s going to spur.
NOTE:
I was super bummed that we missed the first few minutes of it because we were misinformed about what time the show began (7:30 instead of 8 pm because it was a dress rehearsal) but hey it was free, no complaints here. I heard that some people could not be seated for 20 minutes because they were waiting for the scene to end. It took us about 10 minutes to be seated and the ushers were really diligent. Thanks again to Unilocal OC for a wonderful experience! I feel incredibly fortunate to be part of this so thank you.