Young Zoe, ignored by her distant and self-absorbed parents, slips into the surreal world of Quidam: a term for a nameless passer-by; someone swallowed by the crowd. (Credit: Matt Beard)

If Alice’s rabbit hole had been found under a circus tent, she no doubt would have discovered Cirque du Soleil’s Quidam instead of Wonderland.

The Canadian-originated company of performers, founded by Guy Laliberté amidst a street performer revolution of sorts in 1984, describes itself as a “dramatic mix of circus arts and street entertainment.” What really sets the company apart from the shock-and-awe style of most circuses, however, is the presence of a plotline, which is especially evident in the production coming to the Baton Rouge River Center this week.

And my, is it dark.

Quidam is the stylized story of a little girl named Zoe, as she battles feelings of invisibility brought on by her parents’ troubled – and at times, self-absorbed – lives. Zoe falls into a “rabbit hole” of her own – a place called Quidam, which translates to “a nameless passer-by; a solitary figure lingering on a street corner; a person rushing past and swallowed by the crowd.” By definition, it’s less an actual place, and more an area of Zoe’s mind to which she can retreat when things get rough.

Once there, she runs into a host of characters – quidams, themselves – who exist for their own varied reasons. One thing they all have in common, however, is that despite their uniqueness and vivid personalities, they have all ended up in Quidam, like Zoe. As one could infer, this isn’t your average clown car.

Among the more mature moments in the performance is a portrayal of a suicide onstage, which many in the audience admittedly don’t expect to see – comments on www.CirqueDuSoleil.com about Quidam range from praise of the serious nature of the show, to warnings that it is not for children – the latter possibly because the show vaguely references drugs and alcohol, sex, and homicidal thoughts. Within the plotline, these references might fly right over a child’s head.

A circus that isn’t for children, you say? Perhaps it isn’t, but only because it involves a child going through some tough events, and finding her own way of dealing with them. Maybe, in that way, the show was made in homage to children.

“Most of our shows are for five and older, and as for Quidam, people tend to think it’s a little bit darker, as far as emotional depth,” said Jessica LeBoeuf, the publicist for Quidam. “I think there are some moments when you have a thunderstorm, and the blackouts on stage, but if you do bring your kids to the show, maybe introduce it to the kids on the website first, so that they’re familiar with the characters before they see them.”

It might be worth noting that Cirque du Soleil is quite a bit beyond a common circus, and as such, shouldn’t be treated or attended as one – the company is centered in performance art, and was built on a legacy of street performers in Montreal. That said, Quidam isn’t the norm of the many Cirque du Soleil productions, either.

“When you see Quidam, it’s one of the jewels of the company,” said LeBoeuf. “It really embodies what Cirque du Soleil is all about; it’s one of the more human-based shows. A lot of times, we bring you into this fantastical world, whereas Quidam starts in reality, and has very eccentric – but human – characters.”

The characters Zoe meets in the realm of Quidam actually do look a bit larger-than-life, but are fundamentally flawed; with complex character traits that bring them to a strange place between human and metaphor, and each has his or her role in helping Zoe.

For instance, take “The Aviator.” A man in head-to-toe pilot garb, the Aviator wanders Quidam with giant, skeletal wings strapped to his torso, yet he doesn’t fly. “Perhaps he doesn’t know he has wings,” postulated the website’s character profile. “Perhaps he knows, but can’t fly. Perhaps, like Icarus, he has tried and failed or perhaps he simply wants to escape the world and its problems.”

Another near-metaphorical character resides in “Target,” who appears to be the clown of the show. He’s a lot more than that, though…or maybe, a lot less – Target chooses to live in empty space, present and absent at the same time.

“The Ringmaster, John, has a strong personality that I think comes across as harsh to Zoe, and Target is so the opposite,” said LeBoeuf. “He embodies joy and carelessness, and kind of a little puppy almost – he’s kind of just happy to be there. He’s John’s sidekick, so I think she just relates to him, and that’s what she’s looking for – for happiness, and joy, and movement in her life – and he represents all of that.”

Perhaps the creepiest of all the characters, however, is the one known as “Boum-Boum”: “Boum-Boum is aggressive and physically fit, yet lifeless. It is as though his body lives on only because his soul refuses to leave it.”

To say that Quidam is not for children is to exclude the childlike wonder that comes out of anyone who witnesses the acrobatic feats performed onstage in support of the plot. This is what Cirque du Soleil is known for, and in Quidam, expect quite the spectacle: the show involves a contortionist twisting her way into and out of a single silk sash, high above the stage; a display of the Italian acrobatic tradition of Banquine; a fusion of trapeze and Spanish web techniques; hand balancing; diabolos (Chinese yo-yo); and “statue” – in which two performers move “almost imperceptibly, assuming positions impossible without an impeccable sense of balance and control,” according to the website.

While the subject matter may not be wholly understood by all ages, the complex characters and plot are elements that prove Cirque du Soleil as much more than a circus…and if it’s a circus, it is one most definitely worthy of its colossal name.

The Incredible Attention to Detail in Quidam

*Approximately 250 costumes, 500 costume accessories, and 200-300 pairs of shoes; each designed specifically for the performer.

*The costumes of the Banquine acrobats in the first and second part of the show have similar designs, but different colors. The first are more colorful, representing characters in a real world; the second use muted colors, representing life after war and tragedy.

*All shoes are hand-painted to blend in with the colors of the costumes. They are retouched and painted before every performance.

*Eighty percent of the costumes are custom-dyed – the original fabrics are usually white, and are hand-dyed and printed in custom colors in the Montreal costume workshop.

*The crew travels with their own washers and dryers to care for the costumes.

*Six musicians play a wide variety of instruments live at every show, and follow the artists’ movements to ensure the music is in sync with the action.

*The stage floor is made of aluminum decks with a rubber mat, which is perforated to allow light to filter in from below, creating specific visuals. There are more than 200,000 perforations.

Enjoy Cirque du Soleil’s Quidam at one of the Baton Rouge River Center performances from Wednesday, Feb. 22 through Sunday, Feb. 26. For more information, visit www.BRRiverCenter.com or www.CirqueDuSoleil.com.