11:11:58 ... A group of 13 artists perform spectacular sequences of perfectly synchronized acrobatics and human pyramids that showcase the amazing agility of the human body. In addition to standing three and four high on each other’s shoulders, the artists take off, somersault and crisscross in the air on three levels: the ground, a monolith positioned centre-stage, and in the audience.

Last, but certainly not least, is one of Cirque du Soleil’s best acrobatic numbers in my opinion, the Banquine! For those unawares, Banquine is an acrobatic discipline normally executed at ground level by two carries who, using their arms, catapult a flyer to stand on the interlaced hands of the carriers, a position called banquette. The impetus allows the flyer to perform acrobatic leaps and return to the starting point, the ground, or the banquette of a second team of carriers. It seems simple enough but Cirque du Soleil has elevated this discipline into an art form, as seen in Quidam and Journey of Man; Banquine returned to the Cirque fold in ZED and Viva Elvis, and can currently be seen in ZARKANA at Aria in Las Vegas.

Fans of Cirque du Soleil will recognize the names of many of the performers here – Nikolay Astashkin (Russia), Andrii Bondarenko (Ukrane), Ekaterina Evdokimova (Russia), Roman Kenzhayev (Kazakhstan), Elena Kolesnikova (Russia), Sergey Kudryavstev (Russia), Anton Lyapunov (Ukrane), Andrey Nikitin (Russia), Serguei Okhai (Ukrane), Roman Polishchuk (Ukrane), Alexy Starodubtsev (Russia) and Igor Strizhanov (Russia) – as the team that performed in ZED and later Viva Elvis. And perhaps that is why the music and choreography accompanying this act has a somewhat Elvis-slant to it. In either case you can’t go wrong with Banquine no matter what form it’s presented in. It’s a wonderful way to end the show!