Race Horse Company bring their humour, comradery and chaos to London with Petit Mal
Most recently performed at Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre, Petit Mal can only be described as choreographed insanity. Its practitioners, Race Horse Company (three circus pioneers from Finland), favour a lack of specificity and a fluid, meandering structure to their work. In fact, they'd probably frown at my use of the word 'structure'.
Petit Mal – meaning a type of seizure – is the label slapped on this variety show of the most unexpected nature. It's a good description of the unpredictable character of the show. In no way does the first half prepare you for the second half and you can forget about any kind of conclusion.
The show begins with the three comrades in worn, anti-Gap muted casuals to-ing and fro-ing in a skilled altercation, a type of gentle violence, if such a thing exists. People are dropped from heights, poles are climbed and tyres thrown along a set that sticks two fingers up at health and safety. What looks like a bent out of shape, rusty bird-cage hangs from the ceiling. It provides the sense of impending doom that one might feel on entering a torture chamber. But there's also a trampoline and giant, cheerful bouncy balls lying in wait for the upbeat havoc that ensues.
What proceeds is an hour and fifteen minutes of rule-breaking entertainment for entertainment's sake. When there's room for a narrative, however short and ludicrous, there'll be one. Expect MC Hammer, a fat Elvis, a Canadian mountie and a pantomime horse to feature in the second half. This unexpected burst of glitter jars with the initial purist sensibilities on show and seems like clowning for a different audience.
The pinnacle of the show is a stunning performance on a trampoline by Rauli Kosonen, whose movements manage to seem both care-free and highly precise amidst an onslaught of flashing strobe lights.
What comes across through their antics is the humour and personalities of the performers. These guys like to crash, they like to bang, they like to rub each other the wrong way and cause glorious chaos with feathers, leaf blowers and a multitude of unexpected items. And they do it with mesmerising skill.
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