"Cirque Dreams Jungle Fantasy," a profuse explosion of rhythm, music and movement ranging from aerial ballet to bungee-jumping, opens Tuesday at the Blaisdell Concert Hall.

With its vivid colors and vaulting action, it might call to mind a Cirque du Soleil spectacle — but hold on. It's not connected to that camp.

So what is it, you ask?

"It's European artistry with Broadway theatrics — with an international cast of contortionists, aerialists, acrobats, jugglers and musicians," said Neil Goldberg, the creator and director of "Cirque Dreams."

"We have the 'Cirque' title, but we have no affiliation (with Cirque du Soleil)," Goldberg said. "Cirque" is French for circus.

"But we're not a new kid," Goldberg said. "We're definitely our own kind of cirque. We've been in business since 1993, and we've stayed true to our humble roots."

Cirque Productions, his producing organization, targets family audiences, Goldberg said.

Speaking on a train as he shuttled from Connecticut, where he was setting up a new show, to New York, where "Cirque Dreams Jungle Fantasy" will make its Broadway debut on June 16, Goldberg said Hawai'i shows were once planned as the last stops on a one-year-plus tour.

But plans changed to include Broadway.

The company, based in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., comes to Honolulu from Anchorage, Alaska, and has two days scheduled on Maui May 15-16 before heading to New York.

Now Hawai'i audiences have the unusual opportunity to see a Broadway-bound show.

INTO THE WILD

The production offers fantasy and stylized visions of a jungle setting.

"When we say 'Jungle Fantasy,' we transport the viewer into a jungle adventure, showing the relationship of human bodies to what is indigenous to the jungle," Goldberg said.

"A tree is transformed into an electric violinist. Aerialists become butterflies with 15-foot-wide wings that flow out into the audience. Our frog characters bounce on bungees, hopping 15 or 16 feet into the air. And there are birds, monkeys, lizards, all kinds of animals."

Goldberg's college degree was in scenic design, he said.

"My vocabulary is visuality," he said. "I transform things using music, movement and narration."

Imagination is essential to the ride. "Narration is left to the eye of the beholder; I want the visual experience to interpret what we're trying to do," he said. "The show is like a movie screen. We fill and use all of the space."

The show was conceived in 2004, but it took two years of pre-production design development to bring it to life.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIR

"Cirque Dreams" boasts 25 artists from seven countries, including the United States. The show features 150 costumes of vibrant colors and vivid textures, with some cast members occasionally resembling "Cats" troupers heading for a day-glow costume party.

With so many aerial feats, spectators need to get into a yo-yo mode.

"Half the show is in the air," Goldberg said. "It starts on the ground and winds up in the air."

And those comparisons with Cirque du Soleil shows? "For those familiar with Cirque, we think they are rewarded and fulfilled with what we do. We (demonstrate) acrobatic audacity, drawing from the artistry of our performers from all over the world," he said. "The bonus is the theater, the choreography, the spectacle."

"'Cirque Dreams' is the brand; the 'Jungle Fantasy' is the 12th title under the brand," he said.

Goldberg is prepping "Cirque Dreams Pandemonia," his 13th show, at the Foxwoods Casino in Connecticut. Earlier productions include "Cirque Ingenieux" at Bally's in Atlantic City, "Imaginique" at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Va., "Cirque Branson" at the Remington Theatre in Branson, Mo., "Christmas Dreams" for a holiday run at the Grand Palace Theatre in Branson, and "Cirque Dreams," at the Palm Springs Pavilion Theatre in California.

"All our shows play to kids, their parents, their grandparents — the family," said Goldberg."

The Honolulu engagement offers $99 four-packs of tickets to encourage family attendance. On Broadway, where the conventional top seats for musicals have reached $120, the pricing for "Cirque Dreams" will be from $25 to $95.

"My passion has always been affordability and accessibility," Goldberg said. "We want to maintain this in New York, too."

'CIRQUE DREAMS JUNGLE FANTASY'

Premieres at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday; repeats at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday; 8 p.m. May 9; 2 and 8 p.m. May 10; 2 and 7 p.m. May 11

Blaisdell Concert Hall

$30-$57.50; also, family four-packs (selective seats), $99 for Tuesday, Wednesday and Sunday night, with additional tickets $24.75

877-750-4400, www.ticketmaster.com; also on sale at Blaisdell box office and Ticketmaster locations

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