Cirque de Glace at Congress Theatre

Olympic standard skating, combined with the magical world of circus, made Cirque de Glace an entertaining spectacle at the Congress Theatre, Eastbourne on Wednesday .

It has been described as Ice Cold Excellence and the opening scenes were stunning.

The Russian Ice Stars were technically brilliant and the world's tallest ice skater Andrey Chuvilyaev, at 6ft 7ins, produced amazing lifts with partner Viktorya Shklover, while three times British Figure Skating champion John Hamer performed a series of exciting triple jumps.

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But, even taking into account space restrictions imposed by performing on an iced-over stage, I expected greater variety of dance moves la Torvill and Dean.

An injection of humour, as has been featured in other Cirque shows, would also have been welcome .

But there were thrilling aerial acrobatics and superb gymnastics on Russian Bars. The antics of Svetlana Golubeva (inside a German wheel), Svetlana Murzak (on a cloud swing) and contortionist Valerie Murzak. plus a fire-on-ice stunt. were other highlights.

This mix of circus and ice dance combined to tell the story of the creation of Earth 4.5 billion years ago, man's evolution and the invention of the wheel!

Some of the music chosen to emphasise the drama unfolding was too heavy for my liking, however, and this theatrical show is more suitable for adults than children.