Toronto’s Luminato festival closes this evening with a finale by Cirque du Soleil, but Cirque’s participation actually spanned the weekend, since Friday evening.

It was then that the Nas (characters from the natural world) found themselves in the shadows of the condos and Queen’s Quay Terminal, while the Bans (characters from the urban) found themselves in the (relatively) more natural Music Garden.

In between now and then, they were apparently doing some shows throughout the weekend afternoons, and some ad lib sidewalk performances, like the buskers they had been 25 years ago.

Given the sad lapse into minor disappointment the previous night had been, we decided to wander down*, and at least get a decent walk with Jon and Photon out of it.

Personally, I didn’t think we’d see much, especially Jon, but a walk’s a walk, and on a late spring day, it’s better than TV or computer. Another adventure!

Jon’s visual comprehension slowly improves, but it will never be strong. Cirque du Soleil is an amazing combination of strong visuals, complex designs and acrobatics that amaze those with strong sight and a firm grasp of theatre and the limits of the human body. Not quite Jon’s strong suit. This is why he stayed, by choice, with Grandma and Auntie Pam when we went to Cirque’s La Nouba.

So I was very delighted when we came upon this pair:

and Jon was able, with a descriptive word or two, to get an idea that he was with a lady riding an ostrich. Though only “street performers”, they were in incredibly conceived costumes and personae.

She was regal and composed whilst riding an inquisitive wandering ostrich that choked on imaginary things it found or was given—though she was actually walking on stilts while single-handedly puppeteering this “headstrong animal”.

He was a curious, well, courtier of sorts, clearing the way for the ostrich and assisting the regal character, but on occasion studying a tourist’s camera—intently and confusedly—or trying to figure out what Photon was or how she walked on all fours.

The ostrich chokes on something imaginary it took out of someone’s hand

The ostrich visited select people, and it did come to Jon, who touched it gently, with a big smile.

We were right at a show, but it was insanely crowded, and exactly the sort of thing that would have taken a lot out of Jon. We proceeded down the street to find a Na storyteller telling a tale of the Nas and the Bans in chalk.

Eventually joined by his female compatriot:

Farther east, we found a similar—but very differently costumed—pair of Bans doing the same thing, though the male of the pair was having a bit of trouble. Having requested the assistance of some children to draw his map with him, they instead endeavoured to trap his feet within chalk circles, which was broken by someone pulling him out. Wonderfully improv’ed with a handful of excited little ones. Jon had just worked up the gumption to help when the teen in front of him did it, and pulled the Ban out.

I’m sorry I missed the finale, it would have been wonderful I’m sure. Still, needs must, and all-in-all, a good two-hour family walk! And Jon (who’s now telling select folk that he met an ostrich) got his first taste of Cirque!

* Actually, “wander” is becoming a bit of a misnomer; it can no longer be so casual. As he grows, Jon is getting harder and harder to push, not to mention load in and load out of cars, etc. Our neck of Toronto hasn’t been particularly good at keeping its sidewalks smooth and curb cuts, well, existent. While Jon can wheel himself at school on level, well-kept floors, he’s not strong (or strong-willed enough) to do it outdoors yet (not to mention with the fun of visual disability added in). More on this another day…Back ↩