Kimiko

Beautiful demonstration of Japanese cultural arts combined with a compelling and deeply personal story. Very moving and worth watching!

A beautiful and graceful performance showcasing a young woman's incredible skillset centred around Japanese art culture. The balancing of impossible objects were so much a symbolism of Kimiko's life as a person of mixed Japanese and non Japanese heritage. It was a wonderful heartfelt performance of discovery and enlightenment.

I loved the traditional Japanese Art performance. Kimiko was so graceful and fluid with her movements. Kimiko brought warmth and sincerity to her performance. I would highly recommend her.

I loved the flow and the balance between the story and the physical performance. Some parts felt like a meditation, where I was in a complete trance. I was in awe at how graceful it was, and completely blown away by the talent.

Incredible show! The ability to do such gorgeous and tricky circus tricks combined with comprehensive storytelling of her life really made this show unique and a phenomenal watch. So sad she's already gone so there's no shows left, I would have watched again! Amazing raw talent and a lovely human to be in the company of.

Beautiful movement and so much talent!! Loved the different prop work, projection and heartwarming stories.

Balance circus elements from traditional Japanese artforms were beautifully woven into personal recollections of Kimiko's own family and their persecution as Japanese Canadians during the Second World War. Education is always best accompanied by entertainment, and Kimiko's graceful and gravity-defying performance was mesmerising and memorable.

There is a moment towards the end of the show where Kaylie bows to the audience while performing a physical feat that would be jaw dropping all on its own. However, the glimmer in her eyes in that moment carried all the history and discovery she's shared with us. It is impossible to watch Kimiko and not see how personal and fulfilling this style of performance is to Kaylie.

Kaylie Kreatrix’s piece is the best mixture of circus and theatre that I’ve ever seen, and I felt like I was finally seeing the melding of these two genres that I’ve been waiting for in Fringe for a long time. Kimiko is taken largely from Kreatrix’s own story of growing up knowing that she had Japanese heritage but feeling distanced from it, both because she is of mixed ancestry, but also because her Japanese relatives had learned from their time being held in prison camps during World War II that their safety hinged on how well they were able to blend in and assimilate to the dominant white culture. Separate from her knowledge of her heritage Kaylie in the piece leaves home and moves next to a circus performer whose work she find fascinating. She is especially drawn to the s-staff or buugeng and the art of object manipulation. We see her using these. They remind me of the way that the jewels move inside those vintage kaleidoscopes, except Kreatrix is moving them just with her hands.

Kreatrix felt drawn to the buugeng, and to the fan dancing and parasol jugging, before she even knew that they had their roots, like her, in Japan. She has learned to manipulate the parasols, spinning them and balancing them on various parts of her body to incredible effect. She is also able to juggle a ball atop the parasols, balance a teapot and cup atop a long thin pole on various parts of her body, and she can also swallow a sword. Swallow a sword. Inter-spliced in between these incredible visual feats is a beautiful story of how circus was the thing that allowed her to reconnect with her cultural and heritage, and how meaningful that is as a descendant of people who were wrongfully imprisoned and accused of being spies during World War II. Her ancestors, as all the Japanese Canadians were, were loyal citizens. Her grandparents were born here. The Japanese Canadians had built a life and community in Canada, and they had their business and their home stolen from them by the government. After surviving humiliation, degradation, racism, and squalor these families were forced to start their lives over from scratch after the end of the war- an end that left two cities in Japan devastated beyond even modern comprehension. Read more at the link!

This is such an amazing show! The tricks are an incredible display of talent, mixed with a beautiful and touching story. Easily my favorite Fringe show I've seen! Best experienced from the front row if possible! Highly, highly, HIGHLY recommended!!

What an amazing show!! Well presented, stunning circus skills framed by a show about ancestry, racism and belonging. Highly recommend!

A visually stunning show, with a heart of gold. The storytelling is poignant and powerful, and the circus/object manipulation/balance work will leave your jaw on the floor. A must-see!

An absolutely gorgeous use of circus coupled with the performer’s powerful stories of family and finding yourself! You do not want to miss this one!