For two hours, you can lose yourself in a magical, colorful world where insects of all shapes and sizes will tell a simple story that will make you laugh, all while performing incredible feats that will have you holding your breath.
This is the colorful world of “OVO,” a Cirque du Soleil production nearly two decades in the making. Led by acclaimed Brazilian choreographer Deborah Colker — the first female director in company history — alongside director of creation Chantal Tremblay, the show debuted in Cirque’s home base of Montreal in 2009 before coming to Boston’s Fan Pier a year later in 2010. After visiting more than 30 cities in six different countries under the company’s signature blue and yellow Grand Chapiteau, the company turned “OVO” into a full-fledged arena show in 2016.
A new-look “OVO” comes to Boston University’s Agganis Arena July 19-28, with three new acts added.
“OVO” could be subtitled “a bug’s life” writ large. It is a headlong rush into a colorful ecosystem teeming with life, where insects work, eat, crawl, flutter, play, fight, and look for love in a nonstop riot of energy and movement.
The show follows the quest of one insect — a blue fly called The Foreigner — to regain the egg he has lost and to win the heart of a ladybug. There is no spoken narrative; the insects communicate in their own language.
“OVO” includes a firefly who is amazingly adept at juggling diabolos, which resemble Chinese yo-yos; red ants who perform maneuvers on Chinese poles; and an elegant dragonfly who performs a hand-balancing act on a piece of equipment that is designed to look organic, like something that just might grow in an ecosystem dominated by bugs.
The most dramatic feature of a spectacular set is a 30-foot-high wall set against the rear of the stage. The performers climb on it, disappear into it, and use it as a stage, platform, and launching pad.
Projections are integrated throughout the show. It took 40 days to film a miniature forest — 24 feet by 8 feet — built of real plants. A team of 30 artists helped turn the video into a dynamic background.
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Colker’s Brazilian heritage informs every aspect of the production — most notably the samba-flavored score. She also brought two collaborators from her home country: set and props designer Gringo Cardia and composer and musical director Berna Ceppas. The two worked alongside costume designer Liz Vandal, lighting designer Éric Champoux, sound designer Jonathan Deans, and makeup designer Julie Begin.
Each aspect of the show required careful collaboration between Colker and Tremblay: putting together the casts and designers, training the performers, overseeing the design of costumes, and creating the costumes in Montreal. The two worked together to integrate the acrobats and their skills into Colker’s choreography, which called for constant movement.
It often required negotiation and give and take on both sides. “Don’t worry; we are still friends,” Tremblay said, laughing. “It was a challenge; sometimes you conflict, but we talked about it and worked it out.”
The striving continues. The day-to-day work of making sure “OVO” remains up to Cirque’s exacting standards falls on artistic director Lydia Harper, who travels with a cast of 52 and a party that swells to 100 when everyone involved is included.
Harper said in a phone interview that the pressures of performing are just one aspect of being part of a long tour, which can pull the performers away from their families for an extended time.
“This is a tough gig,” she said. “The performers risk their lives and are always pushing the limits. I try to support and guide them.”
When the athletic insects of “OVO” arrive in Boston in a few days, don’t break out the bug spray. It’s their world and we’ll just be visiting it.
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OVO
Production by Cirque du Soleil. At Agganis Arena, 925 Commonwealth Ave., Boston. July 19-28. Tickets and more information on special events during the run at cirquedusoleil.com/ovo