My first introduction to the show Se Prendre came as a pleasant surprise. Se Prendre means ‘To Take’ in French, which feels like a significant hint about the show. Right after a double helping of shows at Montréal Complètement Cirque two years ago, while chatting in the lobby, Vincent Messager approached me and my colleagues and said, “Hey, do you want to go to a secret apartment show?”

Even after a day of circus conversations at the conference and days of back to back shows, we were intrigued. Who doesn’t want to know about something secret? Created by Claudel Doucet (director and performer) and  Cooper Lee Smith (performer), Félix-Antoine Boutin and space designer Étienne René-Contant, Se Prendre is now no longer a secret but a touring show (with upcoming performances in Prague). Why the big secret then? Because it was groundbreaking in a spatial way, as it all took place in a private dwelling. It turns out apartment shows have their spatial limit, and this one was eight or nine people, so  our colleague probably shouldn’t have invited us to it. Nonetheless, his invite was honored and three extra bodies wedged in to Claudel Dou...