Hipster Chic Meets Circus Flare In Cirque Alfonse's 'Barbu'

Everything old is new again. If the sight of French-Canadian outfit Cirque Alfonse's top-knotted men with flourishing beards and bellies screams trendy lumbersexual hipster to you, then it's worth pointing out that the look is just as redolent of circus strongmen of old. Making their Sydney Opera House debut with new show Barbu, which literally means bearded man in French, Cirque Alfonse's impressively swirly, twirly, muscularly thrilling act is a perfect fusion of late 19th century Quebecois circus and contemporary quirk.

With more than a decade of wowing audiences, the beer keg-juggling, roller skating and hula hooping troupe, with the more full-figured men contrasted by athletically toned women, had its origins when co-founder Antoine Carabinier-Lepine and his sister Julie planned a circus celebration for their father Alain Carabinier's 60th birthday. Their dad got involved too. "So my dad started circus when he was 60 years old," chuckles Antoine.

"So my dad started circus when he was 60 years old."

That joyous celebration sparked a family business, beginning in 2005. His mother Louise Lepine manages the touring troupe. Julie usually performs alongside Antoine, but is on a time out at the moment following the birth of her second child. Her husband Jonathan Casaubon is in on the act too. Carabinier-Lepine first fell in love with the art form as a 14-year-old when his parents took him to see the Ecole Nationale de Cirque de Montreal's end of year show. "I was always pretty sporty, playing lots of soccer when I was young, but when they took me to the national circus school I couldn't believe what I saw," he says. "I fell in love with circus and said to my parents, 'that's what I want to do with my life.'"

He signed up the following year, graduating at 18. Twenty years on, including a stint in Cirque du Soleil and more than a decade in Cirque Alfonse, having brought the family along for the ride, Carabinier-Lepine's passion remains undimmed. That includes his dedication to Quebecois culture. A live band fronted by Andre Gagne and David Simard produce a sexy, pulsing electro soundtrack that draws on traditional folk music. "That's really integral to the show," Carabinier-Lepine says. "It gives it something special. They're really, really good. They could do a show by themselves."

Tradition is also represented in Frederic Barrette's impressive videography, showcasing the striking natural beauty of the region in Barbu's dazzlingly acrobatic first half before switching over to intimate close-ups of the occasionally nudity flashing performers in its wilder, outrageously silly and funny second act. "The second part of the show is really cheeky," Carabinier-Lepine reveals. "We wanted it to be a really fun atmosphere for the audience."

Part of the wow factor lies in the bigger, bolder physiques of the main performers, helping Cirque Alfonse stand out from the more usually lithe circus crowd and adding extra weight to the death-defying tricks, performed without a safety net. Audiences are already caught off guard by what they're seeing even before the magic begins, Carabinier-Lepine says. "We're so looking forward to showing Sydney what we can do. It's unexpected."