Mystere: La Nouba on Steroids #bwe09

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Disclaimer: Cirque du Soleil provided me with a ticket to see Mystere at Treasure Island in Las Vegas.

After a Delta flight that was delayed for two hours and a near miss on the runway (we had nearly touched down when the pilot throttled the engines to get back up and re-enter the landing traffic pattern after nearly landing on a runway with a SouthWest plane on the runway that had not yet exited the landing path), I opened my BlogWorld Expo weekend with a visit to see Mystere by Cirque du Soleil at Treasure Island.

All I can say to start is, “WOW!”  I had to pick my jaw up off the floor, several times!  Human beings should not be able to do the things that they did in this show!  The set design, costumes, and performances were all amazing!  The show lasted nearly two hours and went by in a flash.

After some pre-show antics by this gentleman, the show opens with two baby strollers on stage.  You could hear baby noises coming from the strollers throughout pre-show seating.

You could take pictures of the sets and things prior to the show starting, but once it began, no photography or video was allowed I even noted that the ushers were taking cameras and tagging them for pick-up after the show.  I appreciate this, because I’ve been to many shows where people are taking pictures all through the performance, in spite of many requests not to take photos or video.  I would obviously prefer to be able to take non-flash photos and video, but if you’re going to have the rule, at least enforce it and Mystere did.

Like La Nouba (the only other Cirque show I’ve seen), the stage at Mystere moves up and down and in circles to add to the shows appearance.  You never see props being brought into the stage, as it’s all occurring while the stage is in a “down” position.  They even provide “side shows” — alternate entertainment — to take your attention away from the preparations taking place for the next “scene.”

The stage and set was incredible!  There were so many different areas where the show could be occurring — two platforms high and to the sides, a centered, ceiling level performance area, throughout the audience areas, the main stage, two middle side platforms, and several other performance platforms brought onto the main stage.  I truly didn’t know where to look and how to see it all — you could truly come to the show several times before feeling like you’ve “seen it all before.”

One heads-up warning — you will see a fair amount of the human anatomy in this show.  It’s not risque or an “adult” show, but the nature of the performances and costumes allow for a fair amount of skin exposure, so be prepared if you’re bringing children to the show.

The show provided so many amazing moments that I cannot begin to list them.  Let me just say that you will be stunned!

I have to say that the ending was a bit anti-climatic and I don’t quite get the giant, inflatable snail at the end of the show.  It really had little or no connection to the rest of the show and was just a bit scary-looking.  If you’re looking for a “grand finale” ending, you won’t find it at Mystere — instead, the grand finale’s are spread out throughout the entirety of the show.

The ticket pricing seemed to be pretty similar to La Nouba — starting at $69 and going up from there, but I’d pay much more to see Mystere than La Nouba.  There really wasn’t a bad seat in the house, but if you plan to sit in the lower level, expect to become part of the show — that’s all I have to say about that.

For me, the show started after midnight in my own time zone, after having flying all day.  I didn’t yawn or look at my watch, once.  I was exhausted once I left, but absolutely wide-awake for the show.  I didn’t want to miss a single second.

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