Let’s start by saying that if you are going to Cabanons by the BurenCirque expecting to see great circus acts, you will be disappointed.It does have its moment of angst and offers visual poetry — a sensational high-wire act viewed through a giant flimsy mosquito net, and an aerial silk act also seen through a tube-like net, that brings to mind the cocoon of a yet to be born butterfly — but it is essentially an introverted art “performance,” a return to a more ‘raw’ circus without any of the glitz and ra-ra of modern shows.The premise of having the performers in three small tents, created by French conceptual artist Daniel Buren, and with the viewers rotating to another tent every 20 minutes, is interesting. But the shuffling around does breaks the rhythm of the overall performance, even if the proximity of the viewer to the performer does create a very intimate experience.Daniel Buren, renowned for his experimentation with space, designed the block-colored tents and some of the visuals and concepts offered inside are quintessential Burens: acrobats performing in front of white striped plywood doors playing with shadows, performers inside nets and at times only partly visible, a Cyr wheel performer deftly navigating in between rotating mirrors thus occasionally disappearing from view.But for a public used to seeing great acrobatics — and given the S$80 ticket price — one is only left feeling one would want more acrobatics and a bit less “art.’’Cabanons is running until Sep 6 at Tan Quee Lan Street.
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