There are terrific circus acts packed into "Ovo," the new Cirque du Soleil confection that opened Friday outside AT&T Park for its U.S. premiere. Death-defying Butterflies, foot-juggling Ants, contortionist Spiders, high-bounding Crickets and other bountifully talented human insects keep saving a beautifully designed show from its mind-boggling misconception and ear-punishing music.

Keep your eyes on the Butterflies, Vladimir Hrynchenko's sinuous hand-balancing, Ryo Yabe's wondrous Diabolo routine, Li Wei's deft slackwire dancing or Svetlana Belova and Nantel's anatomy-defying contortions, though, and all is well. No, the egg story never pays off. But the flying Scarabs - a trapeze act without trapezes - is a feat of aerial acrobatics you won't soon forget.

The lithe, acrobatic form of Marjorie Nantel strains seductively to emerge from a long cocoon of shimmering silk high above the stage - then bursts through, spreading her arms to form butterfly wings. And the stage is set for the Butterflies, the remarkable Inna Mayorova and Maxim Kozlov performing breathtaking acts of balletic contortions, hand-balancing, leaps, plummets, spins and aerial acrobatics in an erotic pas de deux on a rope descending from the murky void above.

Fortunately, there's a good deal more astonishing skill on display than there is of the desultory clowning that forms the connective tissue. Perhaps best of all is the Creatura of Lee Brearley, a comically athletic creation that looks like five conjoined giant hairy caterpillars, forming four limbs and a torso, each of which expands, contracts and contorts like a Slinky as he performs a remarkable samba. Any act that good, and there are many that come close, can make up for a lot of missteps.

Source:  http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/11/30/DDLD1APC77.DTL