La Rêve at The Wynn in Las Vegas

I just returned to my hotel room at The Wynn after seeing their show La Rêve. What can I say that hasn’t already been said? Probably nothing but as usual I’ll still say it.

I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect and with tickets above $100 a piece it was a bit of work talking myself into it but I figured since I’m in Vegas and don’t gamble I should at least partake in a show! It’s described as a collection of dreams and advertised to be an aerial and aquatic show. It certainly surpassed all my expectations.

I’m not sure if the story line has much to do with it but as far as I could tell it begins with a woman going to sleep. Wait — first let me set the stage for you. The theatre is a theatre in the round so there really is not many bad seats in the house. The stage is set in a pool with one million gallons of water and metal platforms that raise and lower throughout the show. All around the auditorium above and behind the audience are large screens which function as a backdrop to each sequence with subtle lighting and sometimes a background to the set. So this woman goes to sleep on a bed in the middle of the pool and slowly disappears below the surface. Meanwhile performers come down from above suspended and several dreamlike characters push for their turn to act their part in the dream. There are revolving themes of good, evil, light, dark, and humor during the performance. With a crack, rain begins to pour down from the heavens straight into the pool as you smell the moisture in the air. The storm continues for a while with the lightning and thunder drawing you into their world of dreams.

I won’t describe every scene and I couldn’t even if I tried but I’ll just say what I found most remarkable about the entire show. The combination of gymnastics, acrobatics, synchronized swimming and diving were just awesome. Several times the men would come down from above while the women reached for them and either slipped or gained grip for an amazing foot-lock at 40 or 50 feet. Other times there were gymnastics performed on the raised stage — one which resembled a pommel horse but on flat ground. Two men began performing feats of strength and flexibility with a finale of walking off the stage with one inverted on the other’s shoulders and not touching anywhere else but at the shoulders. Hard to describe some of these things so that’s just more reason I suggest you go see it if possible.

One dive was from the very top of the arena which must have been above 50 feet. Incredible. The synchronized swimming just added to the whole artful feel of the show. Something about symmetry just makes me feel all-right! Besides, when they weren’t swimming they were splashing around the water at the edge and just seemed like they were enjoying their time as I did while in the dream.

So there you have my recommendation. Very nice!