Press commentaries

International Review (US) in „Quick Culture“

There are many options for entertainment in Berlin, but Barbara and
I were up for what is uniquely Berlin Visions of performance art like the aforementioned techno club or a Bertolt Brecht play or the Berlin Philharmonic came to mind. But after much research and a yen for being completely entertained, we selected the show at the Friedrichstadt-Palast (Europe’s Show Palace) called Yma. It didn’t let us down. What a spectacle! The best way to describe the show is to say it’s part Cabaret, Cirque du Soleil, Vaudeville and Chippendales with a soupcon of the Rockettes – a gender-bending dream that is a completely unpredictable feast for the eyes and ears. I recently saw Cirque’s Iris show at the Kodak Theater and I enjoyed the Yma show way more. Why? There was no redundancy to it and even when they sang and did routines reminiscent
of the 70s and 80s it was fresh and presented in an innovative way.
I can’t say the same for Cirque. Yma is a must see experience!

Fortunately I was able to interview one of the dancers for the show, Willow, a 20-something Canadian who has been with the Palast for 9 Years. It was fascinating to learn of her artistic journey and what inspired her to move from her home to Berlin Willow shared that at 5’ 9’’ she is considered on the short side for a dancer. Europe provided a better opportunity. Working on the largest stage in the world (yes, world!) allows for some pretty tricky routines that range from complicated aerial acrobatics to loooong synchronized-with-precision chorus lines. I’m sure her training at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School serves her well in mastering intricate moves and needed stamina to perform 7-8 shows per week. Meeting Willow and seeing the human side of the show was in stark contrast to what we were going to experience.

Click onto http://vimeo.com/23154239 to see the 1 ½ minute trailer
of the show.

Beyond the unreal reality that is Yma is a clear message. Centering on a fictitious beautiful woman, the show draws us into her internal world. We are voyeurs that peek into the illusion-filled psyche that begs us to be tolerant – and we become completely captured by Yma’s elegance sensuality and humor. What a surprise it was to later read in the program that Yma is played by a man! As in Magritte’s “Treachery of Images” the art of Yma allowed us, even just for an evening, to suspend our preconceptions and accept alternative perceptions.

Reviews in German Press

BILD
The show of records! More beautiful, better, more spectacular!
A spectacular mix of glitter, dance, acrobatics, and eroticism like never seen before in Berlin.

Why travel to Las Vegas? A short trip to Friedrichstraße gets you to the world’s biggest show.

Yma at Friedrichstadt-Palast – a revue full of superlatives and eroticism.

ZDF Morgenmagazin
A new feeling of Las Vegas along the Spree river. Over 100 dancers, singers, and acrobats: more than in any production in the gambling metropolis Las Vegas.

Plenty of hot dancing performances. Sensational costumes by fashion designer Michael Michalsky.

Berlin&I
Bigger than Vegas

rbb Abendschau
Yma, the biggest show of its kind in the world, bigger than any similar show in Las Vegas. Water, fire, special effects, world class acrobatics, and sizzling eroticism.

Der Tagesspiegel
Las Vegas is located on Friedrichstraße