When: Evenings on 4,5,6,7 Dec at 7.30pm, school matinée on Wed 4 Dec at 1.00pm and Saturday matinée 7 Dec at 1.30pm

Where: NICA National Circus Centre 39 – 59 Green Street, Prahran

Cost: Adult $30 / Conc $25 / Child U16 $20, family (2 adults & 2 children) $80.  Bookings: www.nica.com.au

The music is pumping, the costumes colourful and fun, the feats daring and the skills impressive.  There are moments of pure dance and also moments that could almost qualify as “installation art”, plus a couple of slow, yet incredibly physically demanding, performances.  I would hesitate to suggest that this showcase is suitable for young children – I am not sure that the slower performances would hold their attention, at least I am pretty sure my 5-year-old would be getting fidgety at those points, and there was one performance which involved the two artists completing most of their act with their lips locked (it was completely non-sexual, but could raise eyebrows and result in curious questions).  Everyone knows their kids best but at a guess I would suggest that this showcase would suit children in grade 3 or above.

Commercial Disclosure: I was invited to the opening night performance of Circus Showcase 2013.  There was never an expectation that I would publish a review in exchange for the tickets. All views are my own.