Sun. March 18 

Cirque Eloize's "Rain" wraps up today, Sunday March 18 at Cutler Majestic Theatre. It certainly  owes something to its older, much larger brother, Cirque du Soleil. Both, of course, are Montreal-based and both shuffle acrobatics, juggling, comedy and music. But Cirque Eloize, started 13 years ago by artistic director Jennot Painchaud, "has really chosen a different path," says performer Jonas Woolverton (in photo), "a path that's more subtle and human and intimate. We choose to work in theaters, and there are different expacteations there. You're moved emotionally, like a theater piece. You're going to see amazing acrobatics, but they also choose artists that are able to act. There's not so much bombast. You get time to know each person on stage and allow them to shine. This show, 'Rain,' is very romantic, very funny. It's very nostalgic and deals with memory and childhood - not always the pleasant memories of childhood, such as  your grandmother who passed away or your best friend at 10 who moved away and you're never going to see again. It's a beautiful, poetic show, on the edge between humor and nostalgia."

"Rain" is based upon writer-director Daniele Finiz Pasca's recollections of his own childhood. (His parents were both visual artists.) The story-line of "Rain" is that it takes place where a circus show is in rehearsal. Pasca's inspiration for the plot came from old photographs. "I think of the show as an old family album," says Wooverton, who juggles, acts, sings and specializes in something called the Cyr Wheel. "You turn the page and a different circus act opens up. You imagine your family as a troupe of circus artists."

What kind of training does one get for this gig? Woolverton says most performers start training very young. "I didn't start circus 'til I was 25," he says. "The route was circuitous. I studied film-making and got a degree from Vassar College. I was an actor, dancer, rocker as a kid, I worked as an assistant producer for documentary films. I lived in San Francisco at the time and I enrolled in a clown conservatory. I jumped at the opportunity to audition. My favorite film-makers were Chaplin and Keaton."As one of Cirque Eloize's 11 members, Woolverton says their goal is to "get into a rhythm and get a feel for the crowd. We're all multi-talented, meaning we're all acrobats, comedic actors, we all play an instrument, sing and dance. My main role in 'Rain' is I'm in a Cyr Wheel - it's a six-foot tall wheel made out of aluminum My arms and legs are outstretched - it's like that DaVinci painting. I'm pulling on the spokes inside going around and around, twisting, diving, jumping, rolling. It's for six minutes. In my head, it's kind of a trance. I'm not 'spotting.' I'm focused on my center of gravity at any given moment. It's got a very mystical feel to it. Like a surfer riding a wave, you're constantly aware of everything around you. It's a duo - I'm showing off against Krin Haglund and we're two kids fighting over one wheel and then there are two wheels. We were the first to figure out how to get two people inside one wheel."

Woolverton, 29, was born in New York, but moved with his family to Lexington at 12, where he went to school with Dresden Dolls singer-pianist Amanda Palmer. He performed with the Dolls on their 2005 North American tour.

Are there concerns about aging and physicality? "Yes and no," says Woolverton. "There's a point where it forces you to be more creative, but there are circus performers in their 60s and 70s. It's about taking care of your body, eating right. I see myself performing into my retirement. What I love about it is, it's a multi-faceted, very complete performance. I go from the wheel act to operatic  singing, then juggling. It's a two-hour whirlwind, where we're constantly running around."

According to Woolverton, one reason Cirque Eloize, which has five full-length shows in production, is successful with audiences is this: "If anything, people are craving this physicality of the arts. People are disconected - with cable, the internet - they crave this human connection. You see someone live bending in half, and you say, 'Wow, how cool is that?.'" Tickets: $60-$35. Sunday, the final show, is at 3 p.m.

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