There is no worse insult a balletomane can fling at a ballet than to designate it “circus.” But Duck Pond—which owes a debt of gratitude to Swan Lake, among other illustrious tales of waterfowl—is a circus. It is cirque nouveau, to be precise, a 1960s French invention that dispenses with the three rings and the captive animals for graceful, shapeshifting acrobats and very human comedy. According to new circus, you do not have to choose between stunts and artistry; you can have both (balletomanes bedamned)! The troupe responsible for Duck Pond is Circa, the internationally renowned, ever-touring brainchild of Yaron Lifschitz, who has conceived and directed this Australian outfit’s proliferation of productions since the company’s inception, in 2004. Turning to the classics is nothing new for Lifschitz. He has spun Orpheus and Eurydice on its head, tied Beethoven’s Ninth in knots, and this month takes on Dido and Aeneas. Duck Pond is in good company. —Apollinaire Scherr