What Happens in Vegas: Zarkana! (A Mini Review)

I've been away from the blog because--for an extremely rare change--I actually went to a Las Vegas show last night. A good friend scored some tickets to Cirque du Soleil's Zarkana at the Aria. I'd never been to Aria or the City Center complex it sits in, so even though The Other Half is under the weather, I took another good friend, and off we went!

My previous Cirque experiences were Mystère (twice) and Michael Jackson Immortal, and I loved both. They're French (Canadian) and weird, but they're amazing spectacles. Zarkana was better than both, to my estimation. It's similar in content to Mystère, but with less of the weird, and more of the marvel. It still has goofy clowns between acts, sure. But I found the whole thing much more relatable, and I loved the stagecraft. The stage and sets are gorgeous, and the organically shaped video screens wrapping around it really add to the experience.

The show includes a very talented juggler lady, some amazing acts of balance and strength, tightrope walking (with fire), flying acrobats, bouncing acrobats, climbing acrobats, and stunning visuals. Most of the time, I was gazing in wonderment, only occasionally cringing in fear that somebody was going to fall! 

These are the guys I was scared for.
Image from DerekLovesShopping.

So, though I can claim to be no expert on these sorts of things, I can heartily recommend Zarkana, if you're looking for a show when you're in Las Vegas. You have seven Cirque du Soleil shows alone to choose from, so you'll surely have options. But I got to thinking about some of the other shows I've seen, and they kind of pale next to the size and scope of a show like this one.

My score: Highly recommended.