Stage : Cirque du Soleil Takes Costa Mesa by Humor, Theatrical Vitality

What astronaut Neil Armstrong said when he landed on the moon may safely be applied to the touring Cirque du Soleil, which arrived in Costa Mesa over the weekend: “That’s one small step for a clown, one giant step for clownkind.�

This hypnotic, dazzling, one-ring “circus of the sun� touched down for the first time ever in Orange County with an inspired display of theatrical vitality, the likes of which are rarely to be seen under any Big Top tent.

The show, titled “Nouvelle Experience,� not only combines acrobatic grandeur, picturesque beauty and ingenious humor but keeps all of it on an intimate scale and still manages to tell an epic fairy tale symbolizing human conflict and renewal.

Mime soloist Geoff Hoyle--replacing David Shiner but not mentioned in the official program--plays a lone traveler who inexplicably finds himself in alien territory occupied by all sorts of devils and angels and especially by the Flounes, a delicately bizarre species of gibbering clowns who are the most endearing characters of the production.

The Flounes, together with Hoyle, serve as a touchstone to the evening’s varied entertainment. In his role as a sly Mr. Sniff, moreover, Hoyle brings to the performance a satirical sense of smell that puts the crowd in stitches, along with a three-legged dance number that Fred Astaire might have admired if not envied.

There are many other acts, all of them breathtaking--from contortionists, aerialists and tumblers to tight-wire walkers and balance artists. But everyone--even the trapeze fliers who soar between the two peaks of the blue-and-yellow Big Top--performs to a compelling jazz-rock score that unifies the action.

So fluid and assertive is the music, alternating from catchy to propulsive to haunting, that it determines the rhythm and mood of virtually every moment in the production. In fact, this is one stylish circus you can leave humming the score.

For all its dazzle, “Nouvelle Experience� is a fresh and youthful show more heartfelt than slick. The daring feats may be wondrously spectacular, but they’re not always perfect. On any given night you are bound to see some unintended misses, which heightens the suspense.

High-tech production values remain top notch, with both costumes and lighting as striking as ever. The company is also up to full-strength again, since the addition of a Chinese juggler and a British wire walker who joined the tour in San Diego.