DUBAI – The world-renowned Cirque de Glace brought its theatrical ice show “Evolution” to Jordan for the first time to sold out audiences in the capital Amman. The show premiered on Thursday, Feb. 14 in the Cultural Palace in The Hussein Youth City and was scheduled to be performed over the course of three days. Friends of Jordan Festivals, a non-profit organization founded in March 2010 aimed to promote Jordan as a cultural destination, invited the famous troupe to perform in the country as part of its world tour. Souha Bawab, Executive Director of Friends of Jordan Festivals, said that hosting events such as the Cirque de Glace show would help promote the country as a tourist as well as a cultural destination. “Jordan has many wonderful historical sites, and it would be great if people start heading to our country to see world-class events and at the same time visit touristic locations. This is our goal and what we are trying to achieve,” she explained. “Also, another important factor, is that we are used to always traveling abroad to watch events and shows, so now we want people to travel to us, and to have everything available in the country,” she added. Bawab pointed out the show would be performed by professional Russian ice skaters, many of whom have held prestigious European and international ice-skating accolades. “Evolution” brought to life the story of the creation of our planet, man's evolution and a journey to the limits of technology. The experience was filled with music, magnificent costumes and jaw-dropping acrobatics. Julian Deplidge, Creative and Tour Director of Cirque de Glace, said the response on the show was overwhelmingly positive. “We've had a fantastic reaction, as you can see its packed house every day. We've pretty much sold out here in Jordan. We had a fantastic time in Kuwait. It was very very busy, standing ovations pretty much every night,” he said. All equipment for the show had to be transported to Jordan, and large ice chillers were used to freeze the water to create the solid ice-rink for the performances, said the organizer. The Cirque de Glace team welcomed the members of the Jordan Gymnastics Federation, as well as a group of young Jordanian artists and prominent figures in show business to their rehearsals in an effort to share their technical expertise. Cirque de Glace was scheduled to travel to Mumbai, India after concluding their performances in Jordan. – Al Arabiya
