Cirque du Soleil has been so consistently spectacular for years that it really competes only with itself. The Canada-based, internationally known postmodern circus conglomerate also can be a bit overwhelming.

Its newest show, "Totem," now setting down in Northern California, recalls the troupe's early ingenuity and freshness.

Written and directed by Canadian theater master Robert Lepage with choreography by Jeffrey Hall, the production's framing story is based on origin and founding myths from across the globe. The narrative also lightly depicts human evolution from amphibians to astronauts.

Carl Fillion's ingenious turtle shell set and Kym Barrett's stunning costumes create the visual palette for a show that is both sexy and funny. Of course, even with its minimal story, Cirque du Soleil is ultimately about its performing acts.

The cast boasts 51 artists from 17 countries, including a live band and vocalists. Louis-David Simoneau and Rosalie Ducharme have a most innocently sensual and exciting trapeze act as they appear to be teenagers on a daring first date.

The ultra-glamorous Marina and Svetlana Tsodikova spin fabric on their feet and hands and even balance on each other while doing it. Two preening beach boys, Yann Arnaud and Olli Torkel, work out on aerial rings with the equally hard-bodied Alya Titarenko. Massimiliano Medini and Denise Garcia-Sorta roller-skate around a small drum while twisting into ever more exotic and erotic poses.

Greg Kennedy's geeky scientist is also an inventive juggler who spins LED balls in a giant Erlenmeyer flask. There's much more, including clever clown episodes and, of course, a really big finish.

8 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays; 4 and 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays; 1 and 5 p.m. on Sundays through Dec. 18. No performance Dec. 13. Tickets are $38.50-$100. Under the Grand Chapiteau at AT&T Park, 74 Mission Rock St., San Francisco, (800) 450-1480, www.cirquedusoleil.com/ totem.

Not dead yet

Brought to the court by Hamlet's manipulative stepfather, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are a sadly comic, clueless pair seeking some sort of meaning in their lives.

There's thematic richness in playwright Tom Stoppard's creation, putting these tangential characters center stage as their questions of existence and purpose concern us all.

Granada Artist-in-Residence Michael Barakiva directs the UC Davis Department of Theatre & Dance production of Stoppard's absurdist classic "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead," which opens this weekend.

"We're using Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Lorca's traveling band of actors as inspiration," Barakiva said. "It's somewhere between Shakespeare and Beckett."

In the Main Theatre, Wright Hall, UC Davis. 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday and Dec. 1-3. Also 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $17 and $19 general admission or $12 and $14 for students, children and seniors. Information: (530) 754-2787, or (866) 754-2787 or www.tickets.mondaviarts, www.theatredance.ucdavis.edu or www.facebook.com/ucdtheatredance.

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