STAGE REVIEW : Moscow Circus: Dazzling Acts With Just One Ring

A single ring is all you really need, according to the Moscow Circus, at the Forum through Sunday. One ring, the European tradition, allows kids of all ages to focus on the performance--and there are stunning performances to be seen in this brief Los Angeles stay by the best circus in the U.S.S.R.

All of the standard acts are here, but each offers something dazzling. Most startling is Alexander Hertz’s company, a flying act that boggles the eye and the imagination. The 11-member team has a balletic grace that fools the audience into not expecting the flying wizardry to come. Early on, one of the performers executes a triple somersault flying up from a trapeze to be caught at a platform high above the Forum’s floor. It’s breathtaking, but in retrospect simple compared to their final stunt, called “The Torch.”

Almost 72 feet separate two trapezes at each side of the ring, the distance a young flyer covers in a high arc from catcher to catcher. He misses twice, presumably to make it look more difficult, then calmly climbs aloft and brings thunderous cheers from the audience by the apparent ease of his final accomplishment. It’s an unforgettable moment.

Equally memorable are Tamerlan Nugzarov’s troupe of Djigits, eight “daredevil horsemen” whose trick riding conjures images of other eras when life wasn’t as valuable as it is today. They perform in the slight framework of a story from folklore, but the riders and their amazing horses are the whole act and they make a stunning finale.

There’s a very funny ringmaster (one of two) named Alexander Frish--called Sasha--whose eccentric movement and jubilant style are topped by his talents as an expert juggler. He brings ringside kids into the action more effectively than most circuses, particularly with W.C. Fields’ cigar-box routine, which the kids help him keep organized. Juggling is also represented by the Gibadulin Jugglers, the “fastest in the world,” but as effective as they are they don’t seem quiet as fast, or as inventive, as the Flying Karamazov Brothers.

The famous Russian bears, under the guidance of Raisa and Grant Ibragimov, amuse the kids with their dancing--yes, they even do the Twist--and the tigers of Olga Denisova and Sarwat Begbudi are gorgeous, dangerous and hypnotic as they work their way through one of the most intricate and thrilling tiger acts around. A couple of the younger big cats were a little edgy on opening night. Or were they just acting?

This is a fast show. Not a moment is wasted as equipment is hauled into the ring and taken away. Doveyko, an amazing acrobatic teeterboard act, and the Agaev Family, on a tightrope high above the floor, have their own thrills but the gold ring goes to the fliers and trick riders. Their indelible impression lingers on.

Grab a kid and catch this all too brief visit of the Moscow Circus. The kid I took was 68--and on the edge of his seat through it all.

At the Forum, Inglewood; today, 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, 11 a.m., 3:30 and 8 p.m.; Sunday, 1 and 5 p.m.; $12.50-$17.50 (213) 480-3232 or (714) 740-2000.