Review: Cirque du Soleil : Corteo

So Amazing Your Child Will Want to Join the Circus!

Wow. I know there are Cirque du Soleil super fans out there but for my ten-year-old daughter Adelaide, this was her first experience of any type at a circus (for a first you can’t do much better than Corteo). At the intermission her first words were, “This is mind blowing! That is a circus?! I want to do that when I grow up!” So I might be losing my daughter to the circus. Time to start looking into a trapeze.

The story line follows a dreamlike funeral procession for Mauro the clown with a celebration of life parade with flying angels, aerial acrobatics and so much more. Beautifully joyous, the show is funny and celebrates a life well-lived with amazing performances throughout. Even feats that might not sound the most exciting like hula-hooping and a whistling performance left us open mouthed. We both marveled at the costumes and the acrobatic feats throughout the whole show. Kids of all ages will love the Bouncing Beds performance that involves six acrobats flying and jumping on an oversized bed. We were engaged and suspended in a lovely childlike disbelief for the whole evening — Cirque du Soleil really puts on a dazzling show.

Corteo is showing at the Moda Center, they have managed to make this giant stadium feel intimate by pure magic, I think. Most of the seats look good, the stadium is divided in half, all with views of a round stage in the middle. The performers engage both sides of the audience equally so you never feel you are missing anything. There is live music, singing and artistry throughout. An overall amazing show that I’m sure is going to leave a lasting impression on Adelaide and she left the show wishing to fly.

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Tips for the show:

  • The Moda Center has a lot of parking garages, expect to pay $20 for parking, spend time seeking street parking or take the Max.
  • Perhaps best for older kids 6+. The show with the intermission runs about 2.5 hours so might be too long if your little one needs to move. There were not many kids at our performance, though it was a school night and it didn’t get out till 10 pm.
  • There is no program, so if you would like a souvenir program they sold those and other trinkets at the Corteo merch table in the lobby.

Corteo takes place March 14-17 at the Moda Center, show times vary each day with two show times on Saturday and Sunday.

For all events sell using ADA enhancements: 4 accessible seat limit, if more seats are needed sell from regular opens as close as possible. Call with accessibility questions. Telephone Number(s):800-745-3000

Review by Rachel Austin. Rachel Austin is a local artist and parent. Her work is on view at the Lan Su Chinese Garden in SW Portland. You can also see her work online by clicking here or follow her on instagram.


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