Cirque Italia!

 Now that I am retired, every day is Saturday. There is Monday/Saturday, Tuesday/Saturday, Wednesday/Saturday and so on. Last night I was putzing around my place thinking it was Wednesday/Saturday when my phone gently reminded  me it was Thursday/Saturday and I had tickets to Cirque Italia Water Circus at the Miller Hill Mall. I paid $15 for a ticket in the nose bleed seats. At the time I bought the ticket, only a handful of seats were taken so I expected the place to be half empty. I also expected the circus to be in the Miller Hall Mall. I was confused. How can it be a water circus at a mall? I knew Essentia Health Care had a work out area and I thought they had a pool. But how could there be so many seats? I drove to the mall and parked by Dick's Sporting Goods, my usual place to park. And, as I soon found out, the farthest parking place away from the circus I could possible get. The circus was outside in the Miller Hill Mall parking lot by the JC Penny store. I walked through the mall and many places were locking up for the night meaning I would have to walk around the outside of the mall to get back to my car. I found the circus in a big white tent and showed my ticket to a man in a black suit, white shirt and white fedora. All the swarthy men working at the circus dressed in black suits, white shirts and white fedoras. Were they supposed to look like Mafia? I was shown to my seat which was to the right of the stage. The tent was packed with families and children and people of all ages. People were buying popcorn, cotton candy, swords and other toys that lit up, bottles of water, cups of water that lit up, caramel apples and chicken nuggets. I was wearing a mask. The character made to look like a 11 foot tall bee action figure also wore a  mask but we were amount the 2 percent of people who wore a mask. I suppose the entire tent was swarming with virus. Soon the show started on a round stage. I saw jugglers, I saw acrobats, I saw archery, I saw tight rope walkers, I saw singing, dancing, gymnastics, and dramatic posturing. Eventually the inner part of the stage lifted into the air to reveal some water fountains spouting water in patterns to fit the music. I am pretty sure all the music was recorded. The circus was Italian and in 1950. Elvis was there. Poodle skirts, tight sweaters, and saddle shoes were for the women. Suits, hair greased with Brylcream and shoes with spats for the men. Two men with no shirts on and six pack abs balanced together. One tucked his head forward with the other man balanced shoulder to shoulder with his head tucked forward. One man balanced upside down on top of the other man. The man on the bottom, while balancing the man on his shoulders, sat down. Then he laid down so his knees were higher than his head. And then, can you believe it, he got up on his feet again. I can barely do that with no extra weight and grab bars for assistance. These Italian circus people did such crazy stuff. Sometimes I was sure somebody was going to die and I had to cover my eyes. One man did archery. With an over abundance of machismo posturing he shot the arrow at the balloon on top of his female partner's head. She would return his bow and arrow to him while he posed in manly ways. He shot another arrow. He postured dramatically while she picked up his bow and arrow for him and brought it to him. The sexism was way overboard. He shot two arrows at the same time. She brought them back. He shot three arrows at the same time. She brought them back while the spot light shone on him. In the final act, after much adjusting of eight bows around the ring by both performers, he put a blindfold on her. She stood on stage facing the audience. She had her bow pointed behind her over her left shoulder. He controlled her movements with voice instructions for 90 seconds. Then she let loose of her arrow which triggered the next bow to shoot and boing! boing! boing! All the arrows around the stage went off all hitting their targets. I think she won that round. Later another gymnast was suspended high above the stage on a trapeze bar. Her body held onto the swinging bar with one leg. With her other leg she held a bow and arrow over her head. She looked at the balloon target and shot the arrow with her feet above her head and she hit the target. The eight year old boy in front of me, wearing Spider-Man make up on his face, looked at his Dad and said, "Wow." His Dad smiled. There was a moment I hope they remember forever. Those Italians sure know how to put on a circus! Bravo! Bravo! Bellissimo! Bravo!