The Granada Theatre swings into the new year with the return of the internationally acclaimed Peking Acrobats, 7:30 p.m. Jan. 22.
For the last 32 years, The Peking Acrobats have redefined audience perceptions of Chinese acrobatics. They push the limits of human ability, defying gravity with displays of contortion, flexibility and control.
The Peking Acrobats are accompanied by live musicians playing traditional Chinese instruments; the time-honored Chinese music coalesces with high-tech special effects and acrobatic feats, creating entertainment with the festive pageantry of a Chinese carnival.
Since their founding in 1986, The Peking Acrobats have been featured on television shows and TV specials such as Nickelodeon’s Unfabulous, Ellen’s Really Big Show (hosted by Ellen DeGeneres), The Wayne Brady Show, That’s Incredible, ABC’s Wide World of Sports, and NBC’s Ring In The New Year Holiday Special.
The Peking Acrobats set the world record for the Human Chair Stack on FOX Network’s Guinness Book Primetime television show in 1999: they balanced six people precariously atop six chairs 21 feet in the air without safety lines.
The Peking Acrobats also made their way onto the silver screen with company members featured in Steven Soderbergh’s film “Ocean’s Eleven,” playing alongside Julia Roberts, Brad Pitt and George Clooney. Peking Acrobats’ alumnus Shaobo Qin also appeared in that film’s two sequels “Ocean’s Twelve” and “Ocean’s Thirteen.”
The Peking Acrobats achieved another milestone in fall 2003 when they made their orchestral debut at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, performing as part of the bowl’s Fireworks Season Finale. The company blended its brand of acrobatics with the sound of the 100-piece Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, conducted by John Mauceri.
Since the Hollywood Bowl debut, The Peking Acrobats have performed with such top symphony orchestras as the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra; Ravinia Festival Orchestra (featuring Chicago Symphony Orchestra members); San Diego Symphony Orchestra; Cincinnati Pops Orchestra; and San Francisco Symphony Orchestra.
Tickets range in price from $26-$66, and are available online at granadasb.org or by calling the box office, 805-899-2222. This performance is presented by The Granada Theatre Concert Series.
— Jennifer Zacharias for The Granada Theatre.