Review
Boston Herald
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Thursday February 8, 2001
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The Flying Karamazov Brothers have their act down to a science
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Abstract:
If you, too, studied all things Swift and Shakespeare, you might not be able to fully wrap your brain around the Flying Karamazov Brothers' latest show, "L'Universe" (pronounced Looneyverse), at the Wilbur Theatre. Of course, juggling is and always has been the core of the Karamazovs' act. And there's plenty of it in "L'Universe." But here, it's all cloaked under the mantle of science: Over the course of five segments, the Karamazovs manage to tackle Newtonian physics, special relativity, general relativity, quantum mechanics and unified field theory.
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BY TAMARA WIEDER
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The Flying Karamazov Brothers' "L'Universe" at the Wilbur Theatre, Boston, through Sunday.
(Full disclosure: This critic was an English major.)
And if you, too, studied all things Swift and Shakespeare, you might not be able to fully wrap your brain around the Flying Karamazov Brothers' latest show, "L'Universe" (pronounced Looneyverse), at the Wilbur Theatre.
But that's the beauty of this show: You don't have to get it to enjoy it.
Sit back and be amazed by the Karamazovs as they perform a series of juggling tricks so complicated that the audience holds its collective breath, wondering just how they're managing to keep all those balls and pins whizzing through the air. (Their disclosure: they're not really brothers and they don't do any flying.)
Or, if you dare, delve a little deeper. Think a little harder. Pay closer attention. Because these guys aren't just about juggling.
Of course, juggling is and always has been the core of the Karamazovs' act. And there's plenty of it in "L'Universe." But here, it's all cloaked under the mantle of science: Over the course of five segments, the Karamazovs manage to tackle Newtonian physics, special relativity, general relativity, quantum mechanics and unified field theory.
Taking on the roles of Aristotle, Sir Isaac Newton, Galileo and Albert Einstein, the four men set out to explore the cosmology of the universe - by rapping on giant pendulums with hammers to create notes that hang in the air; donning sonar transducers and accelerometers that measure their positions on the stage and allow them to create music with their bodies; and juggling pins in front of giant drum kits and keyboards so that their flying objects hit the instruments in a perfectly choreographed song.
The Karamazovs - Paul Magid, Howard Jay Patterson, Mark Ettinger and Roderick Kimball - seem to do it all with ease, even interacting with the audience, turning up the house lights to take a photograph, then projecting the image onto a screen behind them and pointing out various snuggling couples, empty seats and bald heads.
And the Karamazovs have some talent behind the scenes, too: "L'Universe" is the result of the troupe's collaboration with the MIT Media Lab, which helps account for the show's scientific bent.
And then there's the humor. "L'Universe" might have science at its core, but it's genuinely funny stuff. The men tell the audience they're "in pursuit of the theory that explains everything" before explaining that "in the beginning, there was nothing. And the supreme being - Diana Ross - said, 'Let there be light.' And there was still nothing. But at least you could see."
(Full disclosure: This critic still does not fully grasp the Theory of Relativity.)
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