ILLKIRCH-GRAFFENSTADEN. - With a title likeTempus Fugit (Latin: time flies), spectators might expect a sad ode to life’sinexorable passing. Not so! “Out of these 30 years of desire, joy, sorrow, and life, we have created a festive show,” notes anintroduction released at the launching of Cirque Plume’s tenth creation. Tempus Fugit is at once cheerful and sparkling, intense and light. A poetic show about time, alternating between gentle lengths and bright movement. Rife with artistic nods to everything from cinema to literature to pictorial art, Tempus Fugit is set to jazz and blues music (by Benoît Schick) that accompanies the acrobatic rituals of circus. It’s worth knowing that this show was written, staged, and directed by Bernard Kudlak and that all of the performers took part in the creation ofthe piece’s characters and, ultimately, in its success. The choreography, lighting, and sound constitute a formidable composite of know-how. The famous troupe is more than aware of the time gone by since the creation of Cirque Plume. In turn, a beautifulanniversary gift is offered to the audience.