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35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Performances are unbelievable as usual......, November 5, 2004
While the performances cannot be critiqued in the least and thus my rating of 5 stars, it should be noted that the editing is less than perfect. In fact, this is my only disappointment with the DVD, and I am surprised as I had assumed they would get it right after the beautiful job they did on Alegria. Some of the camera shots are literally two second shots followed by another, and then another; while at other times the camera is simply so far away from the acts I could get a better view by being there. It is a frustrating thing when you are trying to focus on the acts being performed. CdS had the trampoline act in their television show "Solstrom" and it was amazing to watch; here I was struggling to see exactly what they were doing. I am giving this 5 stars because of the amazing performances, but people should know in advance that this is not up to the standards of some other CdS DVD's.
It also should be noted that this is a 2 DVD set with special features, something other shows did not have.....glad they are getting this part right.
Even with my word of caution, this is a highly recommended DVD, a must-have for any CdS fan.
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20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
La Nouba is my second favorite Cirque show, March 17, 2005
I just finished viewing "La Nouba" and I have to say that it displaces "O" as my second favorite Cirque du Soleil show. "Quidam" remains my favorite and the gold standard against which all other shows must be measured. In addition to these three, I've seen "Mystere", "Zumanity", "KA", "Varekai", "Alegria", "Saltimbanco", and "Dralion". It's no coincidence that my top three picks are all creations of Franco Dragone, who unfortunately, has left the company. All three also feature the music of Benoit Jutras. The artistry, surrealism, visual imagery, and music are all earmarks of a Dragone/Jutras show. There are some similarities between Quidam and La Nouba which might be the reason they are my favorites. They share some of the same acts such as the "German Wheel" and "Diabolos". The German Wheel acts are a bit different because in Quidam, there is only one wheel whereas in La Nouba, there are two. The result is that the single performer in Quidam maintains a faster, more acrobatic, pace where the duo in La Nouba act in sync. The Diabolos acts are virtually identical in both shows, except that Quidam's version has a spectacular ending that is lacking in La Nouba's. In both shows, the finale is the main event of the show - "Banquine" in Quidam and "Power Track (PT)/Trampoline" in La Nouba. Although "PT/Trampoline" is absolutely superb, "Banquine" remains my favorite of any act in any Cirque show. The combination of artistry, music, costumes, and unbelievable acrobatic ability in Banquine is sheer perfection. The weakest acts are the "Cloud Swing" in Quidam and "Cycles" in La Nouba. I've never really liked the clown acts in any of the Cirque shows and these two are no exception. Most Cirque shows have one or possibly two acts that are good enough to be the main event. La Nouba has two - "PT/Trampoline" and "Flying Trapeze". Quidam has three - "Banquine", "Skipping Ropes", and "Statue". Most main event acts feature large casts of at least 8-10 people and usually more. "Statue" is perhaps the only main event-quality act that has only two people. The one other advantage that Quidam has over La Nouba, at least on DVD, is the singing voice of Audrey Brisson-Jutras who is the daughter of musical composer Jutras. The lead vocalist in La Nouba is amazing, but there is something magical and haunting about Audrey's voice that sends chills up my spine every time I view Quidam. The reason that "O" drops to third place is that, as wonderful a show as it is artistically, the acrobatics are weak compared to most other shows. "O" does not contain a main event-quality acrobatic act. One other difference between Quidam and La Nouba is that La Nouba, with acts such as "High Wire", "Balancing on Chairs", and "Flying Trapeze" more closely resembles a traditional circus than Quidam. Both Quidam and La Nouba are "must have" DVDs for anyone who enjoys the Cirque du Soleil.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
good show, not so good quality dvd, March 22, 2006
There is no way you can compare a Cirque du Soleil live show and one on DVD, so I cannot say anything critical about the content of this video. If you have ever seen a show live, you know that there is far too much going on at one time for a camera to take in, and that the music and acts can only be truly appreciated when heard and seen in person. However, the quality of the sound and picture of this DVD is a really big letdown. I have seen Varekai on DVD and the colors are vibrant, the sound clear and wonderful. La Nouba looks like someone filmed it with a camcorder. The colors are dull, the picture fuzzy, and the sound less than impressive. I am thoroughly disappointed. I'm not particularly picky about picture & sound quality (I don't expect everything to be state of the art) but this is just not good. Unless maybe I just got a bad DVD (is that possible?), this is not really what it should be.
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