Cirque du Soleil: Spotlight on “skipper” Adrienn Banhegyi

Cirque du Soleil’s Quidam opens Thursday at Verizon Arena. Moody Mom and I (Arkie Mama) will be going. Moody Mom has never seen a Cirque performance. I’ve seen a few now and loved them.

First, a little about Cirque, which describes its performances as a “dramatic mix of circus arts and street entertainment. It was founded in Canada in 1984.

I like to call it a circus for grownups. Cirque weaves music, choreography and daring stunts into shows that have a storyline.

In Quidam, which runs through March 3 in North Little Rock, focuses on a young girl named Zoe.

Zoe is bored. Her parents are distant. So eventually, she slips into the imaginary world of Quidam, where she meets various characters who urge her to experience different types of freedom. Acts include the Aeriel Contortion in Silk, Cloud Swing, German Wheel, Spanish Web and Skipping Ropes.

Awhile back, I interviewed Adrienn “Kata” Banhegyi, a Hungarian who performs as a skipping soloist. Adrienn started skipping at age 6, encouraged by her father, who was a physical education teacher. Eventually, she joined the National Skipping Team, and won the World Championships three times, and the European Championships five times.

“It’s a really fun sport, and you can be really creative and develop your own tricks and style,” says Adrienn, now 28, explaining why she continued to skip even after leaving childhood behind. “You just need a rope and good shoes.”

Adrienn first saw a Cirque du Soleil performance on television. In 2005, she sent a video of her act to Cirque and landed an audition in France. She was invited to attend a general formation at the Montreal training studios. In 2010, Adrienn joined her first Cirque show, Wintuk, in New York City.

In Quidam, she performs both as a soloist and as part of a group skipping act.

Adrienn loves her job, even though it requires staying in good shape at all times. “I like to travel, and with this I’m changing cities every week.”

For showtimes and tickets, go here.