North Korea - Part 2

Since crossing the North Korean border took longer than expected, our course for the mountain had to be altered so we were able to get to the acrobatics show on time. Our intended path for the mountain, was a well paced, medium incline, trek. The course we switched to was straight up the mountain on rock and metal stairs (sound familiar?). The course took less than 3 hours up and back leaving more than enough time to make the show.

The Kumgangsan Culture Hall, which houses the Pyeongyang Moranbong Circus, looks like a modern permanent circus tent. Upon entering the Hall, however, you soon get the feeling that time has stopped. The wooden stage was covered with two thin looking gym mats and the trapezes (is that even a word?) that hung from the ceiling looked like they might fall down at any minute. The acrobats were also accompanied by a live band perched to the right of the stage and the background was created by projections of nature scenes.

The show began with a parade of the performers and the MC (a female in a large fuschia hanbok) telling us to applaud very loudly for the performers so they know we are enjoying the performance. The women were clad in garish bodysuits with sequins everywhere and the man were in strange green pirate pants with funny red boots.

For the entire performance I was on the edge of my seat. This was due not only to the acrobatic feats but also to the fact that the equipment looked like it had come second-hand from Russia. The safety harnesses looked like nothing more than a glorified telephone cords and the safety net for the final act looked as if it had been pulled from some fisherman's shack a few hours earlier. I had sweaty palms for the whole show and prayed for every performers safety. Despite these 'minor' technicalities, the performance was quite enjoyable.

My favorite act came towards the middle of the show with a single male acrobat and two long sheets of white material drapped from the ceiling. I had seen acts similar to this in other shows where the performer wraps himself in cloth to suspend himself and then orbits around the stage. This acrobat did just that but then finished the act by 'climbing' (looping the cloth around his arms) to the top of the rope/cloth and then 'falling' (controlled by the cloth unwinding) back to the stage. It all sounds quite ridiculous in written form but on stage it was quite spectacular.