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T h e U n o f f i c i a l
C i r q u e d u S o l e i l N e w s l e t t e r
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E X P A N D E D I S S U E
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VOLUME 7, NUMBER 4 JUL/AUG 2007 ISSUE #54e
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I invite you to visit our website for the latest news, rumors and
information about Cirque du Soleil. What you're reading here is only a
collection of what was posted daily on the Fascination website for a
specific period of time (in this case July, August and September.) For
more current information about Cirque du Soleil's activities, please
visit < www.cirquefascination.com >.
And if you're interested in having our daily postings sent directly to
you, don't hesitate to take advantage of our Really Simple Syndication
(RSS) feed! Simply use the following URI with your favorite email/news
program: < http://www.cirquefascination.com/?feed=rss2 >.
/// EXPANDED ISSUE: There's a number of expanded items to explore in
this issue. First, in the CIRQUE BUZZ section, there are five news
items that have been expanded: 1) "The Dizzy Heights" might have began
as a puff piece about Varekai's debut in Adelaide, but the visit to
IHQ by this reporter turns into an interesting exploration of its
business, with a focus on the Social Action group. 2) "Daring Feats
of Engineering Steal the Show" focuses on the technology of LOVE and
LE REVE. 3) "The Years of a Clown" is an older article (from 2003, so
some facts were out of date when this issue was released) featuring a
portrait of longtime Cirque clown Brian Dewhurst. And 4) "Digital
Journal on Koozå" is a fascinating read. Digital Journal is an online
network where professional and citizen journalists cover news and
debate issues and get paid for their work. One such writer, David
Silverberg, dared to debate the question Why Cirque du Soleil's Kooza
Upholds the Company's Promise to Awe and Inspire. Great stuff there.
And then in our FEATURES section this time we have two expanded articles,
which I think speak for themselves: "Cirque and the Future of
Entertainment" (once again from Digital Entertainment) and "Cirque: The
Greatest Canadian Company?" from The Globe and Mail. Everything is
marked with "[EXPANDED]", so please enjoy! ///
- Ricky "Richasi" Russo
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CONTENTS
===========
o) Cirque Buzz -- News, Rumours & Sightings
o) Compartments -- Information on Tour, Online & on-Screen
* Télémagik -- Cirque du Soleil on Television
* Itinéraire -- Tour/Show Information
o) Columns -- Behind the Curtain
* Didyaknow? -- Facts About Cirque
* Historia -- Cirque du Soleil's History
* CirqueTech -- The Technical Side of Cirque
o) Fascination! Features
* "The John-Paul Interview"
By: Keith Johnson - Seattle, Washington (USA)
* "CirqueCon 2007: Orlando Updates (Part 2)"
By: Ricky Russo - Orlando, Florida (USA)
* "Cirque and the Future of Entertainment" [EXPANDED]
By: Christopher Hogg, Digital Journal
* "Cirque: The Greatest Canadian Company?" [EXPANDED]
By: Konrad Yakabuski, The Globe and Mail
o) Copyright & Disclaimer
=======================================================================
CIRQUE BUZZ -- NEWS, RUMOURS & SIGHTINGS
=======================================================================
Cirque at the top Iconic Canadian Brands List
{Jul.04.2007}
----------------------------------------------
CBC News recently quipped, "The top 10 list of iconic brands,
released several days ago in a report, is intended to
demonstrate 'brands that are part of the history, heritage and
culture of Canada: Brands that have shaped Canada's current
landscape.' The report sees brands as another Canadian symbol."
Can you guess where Cirque du Soleil, the star of all things
Quebec, ranked? Why at the top of the list, of course!
Here's the list of 10 iconic brands of Canada:
01. Cirque du Soleil
02. Ski-Doo
03. CBC
04. Roots
05. Toronto Maple Leafs
06. Montreal Canadiens
07. Calgary Stampede
08. IMAX
09. CN Tower
10. Terry Fox
{SOURCE: CBC / Brand Finance Canada}
The Dizzy Heights [EXPANDED]
{Jul.10.2007}
----------------------------
While it might have started out to be a
puff piece about Varekai's debut in Adelaide, Australia, this
visit to IHQ by a reporter turns into an interesting exploration
of its businesses, with a focus on the Social Action group.
CIRQUE du Soleil balances art, business and social action in a
company structure as deft as anything it does under the big top.
SIMON WILKINSON visits its base in Montreal on the eve of the
Adelaide opening of Varekai.
TWO giant wheels rotate in a blur at each end of a common axis.
A man moves frantically inside each cylinder, running and
leaping to keep his footing as it spins. As they move, their
shift in weight causes the whole contraption to swivel, each
wheel swinging from top to bottom, and back up again. At the
top, it is 20m in the air.
Then both men climb to the outside of the wheel, bounding along
as it turns, jumping off and landing as it falls. This is the
Wheel of Death. Exhilarating, exotic, seemingly impossible -
everything that's expected in a performance from Cirque du
Soleil, the Canada-based circus of the world.
The words could also describe this extraordinary company, which
in just 23 years has grown from a ragtag band of street
performers into a business with 3500 employees and made its
founder/owner a billionaire.
Cirque has 15 circus and variety shows either touring the world
in the trademark blue-and-yellow tents or playing in purpose-
built theatres. A further five will open by the end of next
year, boosting total annual audiences to more than eight
million.
Then there are the TV shows, the books, the DVDs and CDs, the
fashion lines. And loose plans for Cirque-branded hotels, spas
and nightclubs.
Long-term fans may mourn the loss of Cirque's bohemian spirit,
or its circus tradition being swamped by hi-tech razzle-dazzle,
but no one can argue with the audacity of its creative vision.
The true scope of this vision becomes clear during a tour of
Cirque's International Headquarters, a sprawling building of
metal and glass in the northern suburbs of Montreal. It has been
built on part of a site which had been North America's second-
largest rubbish dump, but is now rapidly taking shape as a park,
a recycling centre and the Tohu theatre.
More than half of Cirque's workforce is based here. It is the
ideas factory, the training centre and the one-stop workshop for
all manner of costumes, staging and props. There are also the
financial, legal and administrative whiz-kids who somehow keep
tabs on it all and turn the energy into a solid business plan.
And there is the global citizenship division, the company's
conscience, which runs an ethical ruler over all business
decisions and oversees programs of social action around the
world. So a casino baron interested in hosting a Cirque show
will be involved in perhaps unfamiliar territory, discussing
values, community liaison, employee welfare etc.
The great strength of Cirque is how the three arms - creative,
financial and social - stay in balance. None of this would be
possible, of course, without the performers whose athleticism,
daring and originality are the raw material at the heart of each
show. A team of 15 scouts travels the world to watch other
shows, check out gymnastic competitions, make contacts and stage
auditions. More talent is sifted from the 100-plus applications
sent in each day.
Once hired, the new recruits will move to the residence across
the road from IHQ and spend at least two months having their act
tweaked and polished.
Serious athletes and acrobats are taught to have a performer's
chutzpah. Characters are developed and costumes perfected.
Everyone must learn to do their own makeup.
It makes an interesting cultural blend at IHQ, with artists from
40 different countries. Sharing the training facilities, or
their lunch table, might be a troupe of Russian acrobats, a
voodoo-practicing shaman from Belize, a geisha tattooed top-to-
toe from Japan and a suave pickpocket from Sweden. They have all
found a place in Cirque shows, says senior talent scout Yves
Sheriff.
"We're not here to play it safe," Sheriff says. "The public know
they will have thrills and chills."
Sheriff says the Wheel of Death, part of Cirque's new show,
Kooza, is performed by two Colombian daredevils, members of an
extended family who are the only ones to perform the act.
"Nobody else could do this. They're crazy. We found these guys
performing in Greece with an Italian circus," Sheriff says.
Queenslander Nathan Dennis, 21, seems very level-headed about
the opportunity he has been given with Cirque. A gymnast and
trampoline competitor, he was spotted in an audition in
Australia in 2005. The next year, a call came from Cirque and,
eight weeks later, Dennis was shivering through a Montreal
winter. He has spent more than six months learning to dance and
act, as well as training for the Russian swing, a giant
contraption that flings an acrobat through the air. He will
perform in Saltimbanco, starting next month in Ontario. He
describes his character, Houpette, who is dressed in yellow-and-
red-striped, baggy breeches, as "crazy, outgoing and
unpredictable".
"You've just got to come in with an open mind," he says.
A team of acrobats from the North Korean military is high on
Cirque's wish list, according to Sheriff, though he acknowledges
the difficulties given that country's frosty international
relations.
Still, Cirque doesn't tend to take no for an answer. Finding
hope when all seems lost, making the wildest of dreams come
true, are themes that recur in the storylines of Cirque shows.
And, given the company's unlikely upbringing, it's an ethos I
hear expressed often as I tour IHQ.
That and an unabashed admiration, bordering on reverence, for
Guy Laliberte, who is rarely mentioned by name but rather
referred to as "The Founder" or "The Guide". Laliberte owns 95
per cent of Cirque and has a net worth estimated at close to $2
billion. He is renowned for his over-the-top, two-day parties,
full of Cirque-style surprises, his love of high-stakes poker
games and Formula One motor racing.
Thirty years ago, Laliberte's circumstances were a little
different. He was a fire-breather and high-wire acrobat with a
small and varying collection of street performers that included
Gilles Sainte Croix, now vice-president for creativity at
Cirque. Their reputation grew as the shows around Quebec became
more sophisticated and theatrical. Their big break came in 1984
when the government of Quebec was looking for a way to celebrate
the 450th anniversary of the discovery of Canada by Frenchman
Jacques Cartier. Laliberte's proposal for a travelling circus
was accepted by organizers and he was given a grant.
Cirque du Soleil started with a travelling band of 75 who did
everything. "I was setting up the tent, driving the truck and on
the stage performing," Gilles Sainte Croix recalls.
Today, the long hair and bohemian get-up of Cirque's founders
has been replaced by shaved heads and black shirts. Their little
troupe has been transformed beyond surely even their wildest
dreams.
When Varekai opens its Adelaide season on July 5, other Cirque
travelling troupes will be performing in Paris (Alegria ),
Shanghai (Quidam ), Sendai, Japan (Dralian ) and Denver (Corteo
). The newest production, Kooza, is touring Canada and an arena
show, Delirium will be in Washington, DC.
But it is in the permanent venues attached to the casinos of Las
Vegas in the U.S. that Cirque's full artistic vision - and
financial security - is being realized. The romance of the big
top has been replaced by purpose-built theatres where the
wildest dreams of the creative team can be realized with
spectacular hi-tech sets.
The martial-arts-based Ka is performed on two massive stages
high in the air that tilt from horizontal to vertical. O is a
blend of theatre and synchronized swimming taking place in a 6.8
million-litre pool. Love is a musical tribute to the Beatles,
with hip-hop dancers, acrobats and a soundtrack of remixed
tracks produced by Sir George Martin and his son Giles.
Since 1993, five Cirque shows have been created for theatres
built by Las Vegas casinos whose owners saw the potential in
their drawing power. Another theatre has been built in the
Disney resort in Orlando, Florida. Next year, it's a casino in
Macau and, after that, Dubai.
The circus has become more a brand for high-quality, original,
live entertainment, one which, its guardians say, could be
comfortably expanded to include perhaps hotels, nightclubs, even
their own casinos.
But Cirque's vision goes beyond entertainment. In each community
they visit, they develop ties with local organizations and
activists, focusing on offering support and encouragement to
disadvantaged youths.
"This is a pretty cool place to be an activist," says Gil
Favreau, a director of social action and responsibility in the
50-strong "global citizenship" division at Cirque. "It's part of
our genetic code."
Cirque's commitment begins with a constitution decreeing that 1
per cent of its gross revenue (not profit) goes to its social
work. That's $50 million since Cirque was formed.
The work of this division is as widespread as the talent scouts.
At any time, they might be negotiating with Las Vegas casino
barons, working to help protect the street children of Brazil,
investigating the labour used to make T-shirts in China or
setting up a circus school in Africa. Every business decision is
assessed to check that it meets what Cirque believes are its
social obligations.
Favreau, who had worked with Montreal's street kids, says the
company is not naive about the difficulties inherent in such
decisions. "If you wear white, you will get dirty," he says.
"Yes, it has a cost, and that affects the bottom line. But this
is how we are going to treat folks."
"We live and breathe Cirque every day," senior brand director
Joanne Fillion. "We're tattooed. Cirque is like a tribe and it's
important to pass strong values on to the next generation."
What of the next generation? Can this little circus continue to
prosper?
"We're tiny compared with the entertainment giants such as
Disney, Warner and Sony," says vice-president for marketing
Mario D'amico. "But we have resonated with people in a way few
entertainment companies have. We have more opportunities to
create work than we can do. We just have to find the right
people. But we're a young company. The motivation is still
there. We still want to conquer the world."
Daring Feats of Engineering Steal The Show [EXPANDED]
{Jul.10.2007}
------------------------------------------------------
Focusing on "Love" as well as "Le Reve", this article
focuses on the technology of the shows.
Love, the new Las Vegas Cirque du Soleil show set entirely to
Beatles music, starts quietly, to the acapella strains of
"Because." Then the music begins to come in waves the crashing
guitar chord from "A Hard Day's Night," the drum solo from "The
End" as a section of the stage rises, carrying a bandstand and
Sgt. Pepper himself. Another lift carries four "nowhere men."
Projectors cast computer-generated silhouettes of the Beatles
onto scrims that drop down from the ceiling. Then the downbeat
of "Get Back" hits, hard. The scrims fall away. Four acrobats
dressed as nurses soar up toward the catwalks, twirling, and
four couples bungee into the air and then separate, bouncing
past one another in midflight. The lights go crazy; the crowd
from the 1965 Beatles concert at the Hollywood Bowl screams.
The big screens on the walls light up with airplanes, German
bombers seen from below. Four guys on wire rigs trailing smoke
and wearing streamers on their costumes plummet toward the stage
like bombs. When they disappear into the basement, performers on
the ground blow up a set of fake chimneys, knocking them down
and dumping the foam-rubber bricks into nets and tarps below.
The bandstand and the nowhere men drop back into the basement,
and other lifts emerge slowly, bringing to stage level a giant
deconstructed clock face.
The whole thing takes about a minute and a half. "During that
sequence, we have 18 people flying through the air, all 11 of
our stage lifts are moving, and we have 20 or 25 dancers
onstage," says Mike Anderson, Love's operations production
manager. "The lifts are so big and there's so much scenery, it's
like choreographing a puzzle."
Love plays at the Mirage Hotel twice nightly, five days a week,
and the half hour between shows is a busy time. Support crew and
stagehands scurry about the round, high theater and the stage in
its center, removing giant, empty drink cups from armrest
holders and sweeping up confetti.
It's one of the only moments that the entire stage is visible.
During a show, pieces of it rise and fall, disappear to be
replaced by sets, or fold down to allow people to come soaring
out on wires. "Four of our lifts can also retract under the
stage," Anderson says. "Next to those we have our traps. They
can flip down and move in and out." Anderson, a tall, mild-
looking guy dressed all in black with a walkie-talkie on his
belt, points at the seams between the pieces. "Three-eighths of
an inch. That's the tolerance."
A stagehand brushes past Anderson. "The four big ones are going
down in a minute, Mike," he says.
Anderson nods. "We'll ride 'em down."
A voice comes over the theater's sound system: "Gentlemen,
attention on deck. Lifts A, B, C, and D are going down."
There's no jolt or sound; we descend 30+ feet, but it looks like
the theater is moving up instead. On the way, we pass the
biggest set pieces, mounted on rolling platforms the clock
face, a filigree Volkswagen bug, a giant flower. The lift
bottoms out near the rack-and-pinion machinery that raises and
lowers its neighbors.
"Let's come over here," Anderson says, heading into the dark
under the stage, "so we don't get run over by the flower."
In 2005, 40 million people came to Las Vegas. Half of them saw a
big production show, spending more than $100 a person on tickets
that's $2 billion for the casinos that house the theaters.
Shows have gotten bigger and wilder in the past decade, with
Wayne Newton and the Rat Pack replaced by... well, by Cirque du
Soleil. The Montreal-based juggernaut currently has five shows
running in Las Vegas. Love, the newest, opened last summer.
But Cirque has competition. Up the street from the Mirage, the
new Wynn Las Vegas has its own razzle-dazzle show. It's called
Le Rêve, and like Cirque it features acrobats doing impossible-
looking things in the air, onstage, and underwater. Created by
Franco Dragone, a former Cirque stalwart, Le Rêve is casino
impresario Steve Wynn's attempt to work some Cirque-like magic.
Le Rêve and Love don't compete on story neither show really
has one or on the considerable acrobatic skills of the
performers. They battle over spectacle, and in the Vegas
theatrical world that means gigantic, multimillion dollar
theaters packed with astonishing technology. The war for tourist
dollars is waged behind the scenery.
The stage at Le Rêve is a 27-foot-deep circular pool of water.
At three points on its circumference the 12 o'clock, 4
o'clock, and 8 o'clock positions are vomitory lifts (not
vomitory as in "a place where you puke" but vomitory as in the
tunnels that admitted ancient Romans into the Coliseum). The
voms are water-filled tunnels that lead backstage so scenery and
performers can move into the pool. At the ends of the lifts are
c-wrenches, platforms that form a ring in the middle of the
water. Inside that ring there's another ring-shaped lift, the
doughnut. All of these move in, out, up, and down, so sometimes
the show takes place in a vast, deep ocean full of synchronized
swimmers, while other times the water is full of islands and
pathways.
Because the performers spend so much time in the water, the
temperature is a bath-like 86 degrees, and all 1.1 million
gallons get filtered four times a day through massive
purification tanks tucked beneath the theater. Scuba divers
escort the performers as they enter the pool through the voms,
guided by waterproof lighting tracks. Backstage, everything is
wet, including the lacy under-things hanging from the handrail
of the large elevator between the basement and the upper levels
the high grid. Scattered everywhere are laundry carts
underneath signs reading TOWELS ONLY NO COSTUMES.
All those stage fixtures mean some crazy stuff is possible. One
of the finales is aptly called the wedding cake a 17-foot-
high, multi tiered metal tree rises from the pool and rotates as
dancers leap from step to step and dive into the water while
acrobats twist and turn, dangling from wires suspended from the
ceiling. With so much activity, it's almost exhausting to watch.
After the performance, Brian Burke, the show's associate
director, relaxes in the empty theater, watching the stagehands
test the pool's ability to catch fire. It's one of the most
striking effects in the show as the water froths jacuzzi-like,
gouts of flame erupt from the doughnut. The blaze can burn for
only 25 seconds before it sets off fire alarms and the hotel has
to be evacuated.
"The theater is a beast on its own. It limits us, and it gives
us a world of opportunity," Burke says. "We have this dream of
just putting one tableau after another. But sometimes you can't
perform a routine until something else is out of the way." To
seem organic, the machinery has to be woven into the show. One
of the bits performed by Le Rêve's four clowns involves
scampering around the c-wrenches, but it's cut short abruptly
when one sinks beneath the surface of the water. Hilarious
pratfalls into the drink ensue.
Of course, in an environment this complicated, things go wrong.
The bottoms of the c-wrenches and the doughnut are lined with
astragals, tape switches that prevent them from closing on a
person's limb. Occasionally, someone swimming past brushes one,
freezing all the automation for 20 or 30 seconds, until the
techs can ascertain that everyone's OK. The overhead lights have
to operate in constant 85-degree heat and near 100 percent
humidity and 300 lighting fixtures are, frighteningly,
underwater. Wire rigs have to reliably and safely move
performers through 80 vertical feet and in dozens of directions.
Stuff breaks. "If you're looking for a technically perfect show,
you won't see one here," Burke says.
Ever since Bugsy Siegel hired Jimmy Durante to perform at the
opening of the Flamingo Hotel in 1946, entertainment has been
part of the Vegas allure. But for most of the city's history,
it's been more about half-naked showgirls and has-been crooners.
Shows were a loss leader for the real money machine: gambling.
"If we could put 3,500 people a night in the casinos, they were
happy," says Alan Hills, Love's company manager. "Even
headliners weren't expected to make money."
That started to change in the early '90s. As the number of
visitors to Las Vegas rose, hotel operators realized they needed
flashy acts to distinguish themselves from all the other joints
on the Strip. "Every single property has a show, and that's
essentially how they position themselves to the public," says
Jennifer Dunne, vice president of entertainment marketing at the
Wynn.
Today in Las Vegas, you can see Céline Dion or Prince, David
Copperfield or Penn & Teller, Blue Man Group or The Producers.
But no single creative organization has come to dominate the
Strip like Cirque du Soleil.
All five of the company's Las Vegas shows are at casino-hotels
owned by MGM Mirage, which spends hundreds of millions of
dollars to outfit each theater. Those shows map to classic
archetypes. "Start with Mystere. It's essentially the circus,"
says Erik Walstead, the technical director of Cirque's Kà. "O is
basically the ballet. Zumanity is cabaret, the smallest of the
shows. I view Kà as opera, and Love is our tribute show."
Two more MGM-Cirque shows on the way will re-imagine old Vegas
standbys. In 2008, the Luxor gets a magic show done in
conjunction with heavy-metal illusionist Criss Angel. And,
inevitably, there's Elvis: In 2009, the new City Center will
have a Cirque project built around the music of the King.
Faced with Cirque's dominance, Le Rêve struggles to compete.
"The Cirque shows are all distinctly different experiences, but
they're all in the same genre, and Le Rêve has fallen into the
same category," Dunne says. She came to the Wynn from Cirque,
and she has to find a way to pry an audience from her old
employer.
One way to make Le Rêve more successful would be to make
creative changes. But the technology in these spectacular
theaters won't accommodate major shifts. The other, more
traditional theater at the Wynn could boot out the Broadway show
Avenue Q for Spamalot without much fuss. But Le Rêve's theater
is a multimillion-dollar investment built with a single show in
mind.
Small tweaks are possible. When Le Rêve opened, it was 90
minutes long; now it's 75. The Dreamer, the main character, was
a man. Now it's a woman in a bright red dress. Some imagery that
audiences found disturbing, like pregnant women plummeting from
the sky, was excised. But fundamentally, Le Rêve is always going
to be a nouveau circus show with a lot of water.
The other way to improve Le Rêve is to focus on the bottom line.
So the theater is undergoing an $8 million renovation to replace
the top two rows with "luxury skyboxes." For $159 $40 more
than the next-best seats in the house but on par with Cirque's
most expensive ticket you'll get a bottle of Perrier-Jouet
champagne, chocolate-covered strawberries, and monitors that
show what's going on backstage and underwater. "The inventory of
tickets in Las Vegas has tripled over the last 10 years, but the
audience hasn't," Dunne says. "When we built Mystere, we had
1,600 seats. Now theaters are in the 2,000-seat range, and
everybody is struggling with that." Dunne won't say how many
seats Le Rêve fills except that the show is "doing fairly well,
and climbing." The renovation will drop her capacity to yes
1,600.
A Beatles-themed show has to absolutely knock one thing out of
the park the music. Love could have ended up like a cross
between Laserium and Up With People, with a bunch of kids
dancing their hearts out to songs that everyone knows. To avoid
that, Cirque wanted to ensure a memorable sonic experience for
everyone in the audience. But the size of the theater meant that
a traditional sound system wouldn't get the job done.
So hundreds of speakers were installed in a rough circle 35 feet
above the stage, along with two speakers in every seat back and
one center channel in front. The theater ended up with 6,341
speakers (including 42 sub woofers that, if you're sitting in
the higher rows, vibrate your pancreas). Beatles producer George
Martin, his son Giles, and the sound designers then spent six
months in the theater moving from seat to seat, listening, and
tweaking the sound levels in the mix.
Then there was the music itself. When the Beatles, their heirs,
and the Martins agreed to participate in the show, one of the
conditions was that the music couldn't be changed. Which meant
that there was no way to cover if something went wrong during an
act.
What they did was build in a set of short music cues that sound
engineers could drop in to stall, stretch out a scene, cover a
transition... anything a live band would do. "We call them
showsavers," head of audio Jason Pritchard says. "Or, when
industry people are here, Åebonus tracks.' On a good night, we
pretty much go top to bottom, but there are a lot of places
where we've been able to program some ins and outs."
Here's how they work: The act set to "Here Comes the Sun" is an
Indian-inflected yoga session lots of sun salutations and
contortions. But the giant, glowing sun that rises from the
center of the stage has to get out of the way for the next
number. So as "Here Comes the Sun" fades, the song transitions
into a few notes of "The Inner Light."A computer stores tiny
bites of the song, granules of noise that Gavin Whiteley, Love's
playback engineer, can loop as the performers exit, adjusting
for any missteps or changes in the act's timing.
From the monitor room, where a 10- by 12-foot projection-screen
TV displays a live feed from a remotely controlled camera in the
theater, Whiteley watches the action intently. At just the right
moment, he speaks into his headset on a radio channel monitored
by all of the techs and a few per formers. "Stand by for 'Come
Together,' " he says, lightly touching the keys of one of the
several piano keyboards piled on the desk in front of him. A
computer screen displays the words "exiting vamp."
"'Come Together' in five... four... three... two... one,"
Whiteley says, hitting another key to trigger the song. The
familiar shoop! that opens the number rings through the theater,
and a bright spotlight picks out a gymnast mid-tumble.
For the audience, the effect of all this unseen coordination is
dazzling. Watching Love is like being inside a Beatles song. And
that, after all, is what we paid for.
The Years of a Clown [EXPANDED]
{Jul.10.2007}
-------------------------------
Brian Dewhurst was raised in a happy, well-adjusted English
household where he and his sister learned to balance on wires
and his father threw knives at his mom for fun. This was not the
norm in drab, industrial Manchester in the 1930s, but his
family's habits seemed as natural to Dewhurst as those of a
Border collie who could count to sevenwhich, for the record,
the Dewhursts' collie could.
Like his father before him, Dewhurst's dad made his living as a
traveling performer in circuses and roving variety shows. He was
nimble on stilts and a dexterous juggler. He rarely missed the
target when tossing wood-handled daggers, though his wife, the
knife thrower's assistant, had nicks on her arms from when he
did.
By age 13, Brian Dewhurst already felt the pull to perform and
joined his parents on the road. He swapped his school clothes
for the shoes and baggy jacket of a clown's assistant and soon
worked up a clever mix of circus talents. Greatest among them:
wire walking.
Dewhurst's wizardry on the wire would eventually earn him a
place in the Guinness Book of World Records, two appearances on
The Ed Sullivan Show, and several stints as a television and
movie stuntman. But the course of his career would be less a
tightrope walk than a tumbling run. It would send him
somersaulting across dozens of countries in countless
productions and into the forefront of the "alternative" circus
innovative, non-animal shows that revolutionized the industry.
More than 50 years after his first performance, at an age when
many of his peers were collecting pensions, Dewhurst landed
feet-first on the most prestigious circus stage of allas a
leading figure in Cirque du Soleil.
Today Dewhurst is known to thousands of Las Vegas visitors as
Brian Le Petit, the mischievous clown in the permanent
engagement of Cirque's Mystère at the Treasure Island Hotel &
Casino. (Cirque's other permanent Vegas show, O, currently plays
at the Bellagio.) Five nights a week, two shows a night, Le
Petit takes center stageneedling the audience and exasperating
the show's ringmaster, a pink-clad puppeteer who, in keeping
with family tradition, also happens to be Dewhurst's son.
"To have the kind of career Brian has had is unusual," says
Stewart McGill, a theater director in Warwickshire, England, who
covers the circus industry for a number of entertainment
magazines, including Dance Expression and Spectacle. "To have
done it for as long as Brian has, and to still be doing it at
the highest level at his age, is pretty much unheard of."
Fifteen minutes before Mystère begins, Brian Le Petit appears in
the aisles, his face whitened with makeup, his hair whipped up
in an electric frizz. He snatches tickets from befuddled show-
goers and leads them on a long and comically futile search for
their seats. He tears up tickets. He spills popcorn on patrons.
When he comes across a man with his arm around a wife or
girlfriend, he sternly pulls the man's arm away.
Then the theater goes dark and Nicky Dewhurst appears on stage
as ringmaster, a long, snaking puppet around his neck. He speaks
in gibberish, ventriloquist style, and Brian Le Petit taunts
him. "We can see your lips moving!" the elder clown calls from
the audience, before vanishing.
As Mystère unfolds, a collage of trapeze and trampoline and
superhuman hand-balancing acts amaze and beguile the crowd, but
it's Le Petit who makes them laugh. He steals Nicky's puppet. He
dances briefly to disco. He drags a man onstage, locks him in a
box, then retreats to the audience for some candlelit romance
with the man's date.
Some of Cirque's most gifted acrobats are barely out of their
teens, already skilled spinners of aerial confection. But the
performer who gives the show a wry, human face is the 70-year-
old clown, the veteran whose career began long before the Strip
ever glittered, before anyone under the big top ever imagined a
production as gleaming and dreamy as Cirque du Soleil.
Even by the standards of the circus worlda culture famously
abundant in family actsBrian Dewhurst's pedigree is unusually
rich. Starting with his grandfather, his family tree branches
into so many juggling uncles and stilt-walking aunts that
Dewhurst can't recall all their names.
He and his sister mastered wire walking by sprinting back and
forth 200 times a day across a length of wire stretched a few
feet above the ground. Gradually he embellished the basic
maneuvers, adding juggling, skipping, and somersaults. On
January 9, 1949, London's Sunday Mail gushed with the
announcement: "Young Boy Staggers Tight Wire Experts, Achieving
the Impossible." An accompanying photo showed the 16-year-old
Dewhurst executing what was thought to be the first-ever back
handspring on a tightrope.
After a brief stint in the army (where his official duties
included clowning for the troops and climbing high to repair
aerial antennae), the gifted wire walker had to scrape around
for work in the 1950s, traveling "anywhere for anything," he
says, "as long as it paid." Circus work was scarce, and being an
entertainer meant being versatile, Dewhurst told himself.
"Always keep more than one ball in the air." This jugglers'
instruction became his motto.
In London, he met a young pianist and singer named Julie Dey,
whom he teamed with in a variety show. The two married in
Copenhagen in 1959 and had two childrenson Nicky and daughter
Sallythereby doubling the number of entertainers in the home.
Following family tradition, the Dewhursts slung a tightrope
across their backyard in London. Soon the kids were practicing
wire walking, too, their heads poking above the hedges. "I guess
I realized it was a little weird," Sally says, "when I noticed
that my dad was the only one in the neighborhood who trimmed the
hedges on stilts."
At the time, the English idea of circus was still trapped in
tradition, constrained by tired images of elephants and
unicycles. Although Chinese circuses had long performed without
animals, all-human shows were rare in the West. But television,
which had already killed variety shows and vaudeville, was
threatening to do away with the circus. The industry was in sore
need of fresh turns.
In 1979, Dewhurst helped found a London show called Circus
Senso, a non-animal production that combined dance, music, and
the eclectic skills of street performers, including the wire act
that Dewhurst had developed with his kids. The innovative
production caught the eye of two Canadian travelers named Guy
Laliberté and Gilles Ste-Croix, who, back in Quebec, had been
busy raising money from the Canadian government and others to
assemble their own band of street performers into a grand troupe
they called Cirque du Soleil.
"Gilles and Guy saw Circus Senso and it inspired them," says
Stewart McGill. "In some ways Senso can be seen as a smaller
model of what they went on to do with Cirque."
Circus observers say it's hard to overestimate Cirque du
Soleil's impact throughout the industry. McGill simply says it
"helped save the circus." Certainly, it expanded audience
expectations, clearing away the sawdust and seediness while
preserving the sense of spectacle that traditional circus
conveys. It also broke from the "here today, gone tomorrow"
carnival image, allowing performers who have families a more
nested life, thanks to permanent shows in Las Vegas and at Walt
Disney World in Orlando, Fla.
Cirque's entrenchment on the Strip (the company also plans to
open new shows at New York-New York and the MGM Grand within the
next two years) has gone hand in hand with the broader evolution
of Las Vegas. Just as the Rat Pack represented the old Las
Vegas, the city of lounge lizards, mob bosses, and greasy-palmed
mâitre d's, Cirque has come to symbolize the new, sophisticated
Vegasa place where you can still get married by Elvis but also
see masterpieces by Monet.
"There was a lot of talk about Las Vegas becoming more family
friendly, but that was smoke and mirrors," says Anthony Curtis,
publisher of the Las Vegas Advisor, a local consumer guide. "The
city has really been trying to become more sexy and
sophisticated and cool. Cirque is part of that. Everyone equates
it with posh elegance."
If Mystère has the luster of spectacle, the atmosphere backstage
is even more surreal. Amid the narrow rows of dressing rooms and
workout stations equipped with Pilates machines, a costumed
trapeze artist surfs the Internet. Teams of performers train on
a teeterboard, bouncing up and down, somersaulting through the
air, and landing in a human tower on the shoulders of a
strongman. Russian acrobats, faces already painted, play
dominoes.
The backstage lounge is set up like a high-end fraternity house.
There are Ping-Pong, pool, and foosball tables that give rise to
playful rivalriesthe Chinese against the Russians, the English
against the Poles.
Most nights before shows, Nicky plays Ping-Pong. Brian reclines
on a couch or reels off 100 sit-ups while watching TV. The elder
Dewhurst stands a shade under six feet and has an athletic
build. Aside from his knees, which are banged up and bulbous
from years of wear on the wire, he shows little sign of physical
declinea fact he punctuates by doing a back handspring once a
year. "Each time, it does get a little bit harder," he admits.
Less than an hour before the stage lights go on, Dewhurst slips
away to put on his makeup and an oversize suit. He ambles down
the hallways in this getup, rolling his head side to side like a
boxer. He leaps up to do a set of chin-ups and watches the news.
He chats with stagehands. But when his cue comes up, the change
is instantaneous. With a wicked grin, Brian Dewhurst is suddenly
Brian Le Petit.
It was Cirque's first Las Vegas showNouvelle Expérience at the
Miragethat brought Dewhurst and his family wire act to Las
Vegas in 1992. He spent about two years with the show, then went
on to tour with Cirque before returning to the Strip as artistic
coordinator, first for Mystère and later for O, the spectacle at
the Bellagio that unfolds over a watery stage.
But Dewhurst missed performing. In 1999, he was asked to step in
for Wayne Hronek, who was retiring from his role as Benny Le
Grand, the original disruptive clown in Mystère. In a half-
joking reference to the size of the shoes he was filling,
Dewhurst dubbed himself Brian Le Petit. "I told them I'd try,
and see if I still had it in me," he says. "Of course I wanted
to do it. I'm still a ham."
Away from the stage, there is very little ham in Brian Dewhurst,
and no clown. He is not a man given to horns or hand buzzers or
to showy accounts of his career.
"Oh, right," he says while thumbing through an old photo album,
"that was the year I spent traveling on a train, doing a show in
South Africa." Or, "Ah, that's from the summer I performed on a
raft in the middle of a municipal swimming pool."
He has two places in Las Vegas, one a nondescript condominium
near the Strip, the other a cabin on Mount Charleston. It is the
cabin that Dewhurst regards as home. Old stilts hang on a wall
near the entrance and a cluster of his father's old throwing
knives are stuck in a board on the back deck.
Brian's grandkids are all talented gymnasts, and at least one is
a natural showman. Not that Dewhurst is pushing a stage career.
"There is," he notes, "something to be said for having a proper
job."
Whether or not Brian Dewhurst will still be performing in
Mystère at age 75 is an open question. He has no plans to
retire, but show business is uncertain. A man has to keep his
options open. And lately he's been thinking about his dog Alfa,
a well-trained golden retriever. He's been thinking about
teaching her to count to seven. "You know," he says, "it never
hurts to have another act."
CORTEO Nominated for EMMYS
{Jul.20.2007}
---------------------------
Earlier this morning the Academy of television Arts & Sciences
announced a list of nominees for the 59th annual Primetime Emmy
Awards and Cirque du Soleil's CORTEO on Bravo has been nominated
in two categories!
o) Category 6: Art Direction for a Variety, Music Program
or Special
o) Category 28: Picture Editing for a Special (Single or
Multi-Camera)
So, who is the competition?
In Category 6 - Art Direction for a Variety, Music Program or
Special:
- 79th Annual Academy Awards, ABC
- Cirque du Soleil: Corteo, Bravo
- Desperate Crossing: The Untold Story of the Mayflower,
The History Channel
- Engineering an Empire: Egypt, The History Channel
- Hell's Kitchen: Episode 210, Fox
- MADtv: Episode 1209, Fox
- Tony Bennett: An American Classic, NBC
And in Category 28 - Picture Editing for a Special:
- 79th Annual Academy Awards, ABC
- Cirque du Soleil: Corteo, Bravo
- Lewis Black: Red, White & Screwed, HBO
- Tony Bennett: An American Classic, NBC
- A Tribute to James Taylor (Great Performances), PBS
The Primetime Emmy Awards will be presented on the evening of
Sunday, September 16th from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles
and telecast on the FOX Network at 8:00pm Eastern Time.
Good Luck Cirque du Soleil!
Venetian Macao Set to Open
{Aug.02.2007}
---------------------------
Just in case you missed it, the Venetian Macao Resort Hotel will
open its doors for the first time on August 28, 2007. What makes
this significant is that the resort also holds a 1,800-seat
Cirque du Soleil theater.
Saltimbanco Media Opportunities in St. John
{Aug.16.2007}
--------------------------------------------
A press release from CNW Telbec regarding a media day at
Saltimbanco in St. John:
WHO: Cirque du Soleil prepares for the August 23-26 St.John's
performances of Saltimbanco, its first "classic" Cirque du
Soleil touring show to be presented in arenas, at Mile One
Centre. You are invited behind-the-scenes to see the artistry
and creativity first hand.
WHEN: Thursday, August 23 from 1 to 4:30 PM. - Media are invited
to capture images and interviews.
WHAT: Cirque du Soleil photo and filming opportunities include:
From 1 to 2 PM - Technical set-up of the stage, interviews
possible with Saltimbanco crew member. (possibility of
coming to venue before 1 PM upon request)
Between 2 to 4:30 PM, interviews with Saltimbanco
performers and staff as well as rehearsal and training
sessions held on-stage and/or inside the arena;
WHERE: Mile One Centre - Media Entrance
RSVP: Media must RSVP to Sylvie Brunetta at this address
sbrunetta@brunettaetc.com before Monday, August 20.
{SOURCE: CNW Telbec}
Digital Journal on Koozå [EXPANDED]
{Aug.17.2007}
-----------------------------------
Digital Journal is an online network where professional and
citizen journalists cover news and debate issues and get paid
for their work. One such writer, David Silverberg, dared to
debate the question Why Cirque du Soleil's Kooza Upholds the
Company's Promise to Awe and Inspire. It's fascinating and I
encourage all of you to read it.
# # #
After 23 years of bringing circus arts to the world, the Quebec-
based Cirque du Soleil continues to be worth the buzz and ticket
price. The Toronto show of Kooza displays the troupes trademark
acrobatics and clowning, but also creates a beautiful language
of movement.
Im holding my breath as acrobats fling themselves in and out of
a 725-kilogram Wheel of Death. Picture two connected hamster
wheels, spinning at such incredible speeds and heights it would
make stunt-doubles cringe. The performers dont seem to worry
about such things they defy gravity and jump through the air,
landing perfectly on the spinning wheels like their feet were
born to land this stunt. I let out a gasp, relieved and excited
at the same time. I look around and see similar reactions. This
is Cirque du Soleil, where impressive human feats turbo-charges
the blood of spectators. We might be witnessing a carefully
rehearsed production, but the thrill is powerful nonetheless.
Watching Cirque du Soleils North American touring show in
Toronto, Kooza, Im left in awe with how the 23-year-old touring
company is still able to instill in us a mixture of joy, fear,
and inspiration. Although Cirque shows pop up as often as Black
Eyed Peas concerts, theres no mistaking the unique sensation of
absorbing each delectable sequence after another.
At Kooza, extreme physical talent pours into every segment: a
tightly-toned man balances on top of a 23-foot tower of chairs,
even standing on one hand to the delighted applause of the
packed tent; three contortionists bend their bodies at painful
angles, and one performer even breakdances on her belly as her
feet tap circles around her body; trapeze artists scurry across
a high-wire, leaping over each other and riding a bike across
the razor-thin line; and a juggler starts simply enough,
bouncing balls off his chin while tossing eight other balls in
the air, but he soon elicits swooning ooohs! when he starts
juggling pins with his hands and feet.
Its not enough to just catalogue Cirque du Soleil acts to offer
a glimpse into the genius behind this company, still going
strong after 20 productions headlined around the world. Evident
in Kooza is the thread that seems to hold together every Cirque
show a loose story of someone entering a fantasy world of
magic and adventure. Like most Cirque shows, Kooza doesnt take
itself too seriously, throwing in comedic clown acts and
audience-volunteer buffoonery. It makes kids laugh, it wows
adults and it transports everyone far from their routine
doldrums.
And by everyone, I mean everyone. More than 70 million people
have witnessed a Cirque show since it began in 1984. In 2007,
Quebec-based Cirque du Soleil will present 15 different shows
around the world. As a business, the company employs more than
3,800 people and has elevated into a $600-million-a-year
behemoth. Ringley Bros, it is not.
So whats the big deal? Why charge minimum $45 a ticket? As
storied as Cirques past is read about it here in Digital
Journals past in-depth coverage of the company pushing to
change the future of entertainment what makes each show so
compelling are the new flavours offered to anticipating
audiences. The directors dont want carbon copies of their shows
dotting the planet. For instance, last year Cirque debuted Love
in Las Vegas, their homage to the Beatles, complete with circus
acts set to tracks like I am the Walrus and Here Comes the
Sun. Always stretching its imagination, Cirque du Soleil owner
Guy Laliberté also brought to Vegas the show O, set entirely in
a 1.5 million-gallon pool. And the risqué show Zumanity has
titillated audiences since 2003 by exploring sexuality and
eroticism, showing enough bare chests and cleavage to label it
adults only.
Beyond the unique characteristics of touring and residents
shows, theres a less obvious appeal never highlighted in press
releases: the language of movement. Whether its a high-wire act
25 feet in the air or a classic unicycle number, Cirque
performers add an identifiable grace to how they move on stage.
Its well-timed with the live music and never jarring; in fact,
how the performers move on and off the stage can sometimes be as
hypnotic as their actual act. Theres a controlled symmetry to
each performers step, a trait that may not honed through
rehearsals but instilled through mental preparation.
Lurking behind every Cirque shows are themes of child-like
wonder and empowerment, but its best to take this troupe at
face value. After all, Cirque knows how to entertain and it
rarely lags in momentum during a three-hour show. And when it
does, the playful clowns and tricksters entertain the senses
enough to allow us to catch our breath between death-defying
feats. Theres a mesmerizing flow to every Cirque act that
hasnt faltered in its two decades of live performance.
Last year, Laliberté said in a statement: "At Cirque du Soleil,
we believe that young people's greatest resource is their
ability to invent, create and conceive."
The Cirque ringleader may have been talking about funding an
auditorium for a youth charity organization, but he also
summarized each performances intention. Whether intentional or
not, Cirque du Soleil shuttles an adult back to simpler times of
childhood imagination, where anything was possible. Watching a
juggler is not just a passive experience; the inspired adult
will begin to think of ways to mimic such a feat at home (I
tried with tennis balls and sadly failed). Somehow, Cirque
becomes both entertainment and the germ of ideas. It wouldnt be
inappropriate for business leaders to bring staff to Cirque
shows to help foster creativity and flexibility within the
corporate structure.
And what kind of passion has Cirque instilled in fans? The more
obsessive circus lovers have committed themselves to following
every tremor of action done by the troupe, evidenced in a two
websites devote to all things Cirque du Soleil -- the Cirque
Tribune and Fascination!, the unofficial Cirque newsletter. It's
understandable why fans would commit themselves to this nomadic
tribe of performers, because after experiencing one show of
dazzling circus arts, I'm overwhelmed by how easy the artists
make their acts look. It's not surprising that some people want
to delve further into the genesis and soul behind each Cirque act.
When I leave the Kooza show, I self-analyze what emotions tumble
through my veins: joy and vigour, mixed with a handful of hope.
Why hope? Because Cirque du Soleil proves that a performance
stalwart can continue to inspire wonder in its 20th show. Within
three hours, it can turn men into boys, children into instant
smiles and twinkling eyes. Any doubts I had about Cirque just
repeating the same themes and acts dissolve into a haze of
imagination. Im hopeful for Cirques future, but also hopeful
for how it moves people to think differently about their lives.
At least theres one show I can count on to grace me with an
urge I havent felt since I was a child to run away with the
circus.
# # #
And if you're interested in more of Digital Journal's Cirque du
Soleil coverage, check out this other article "Cirque du Soleil
and the Future of Entertainment" by Christopher Hogg, which ran
on January 10, 2006 in our Features section.
Meyer Sound Named Official Supplier
{Aug.17.2007}
-----------------------------------
It's official, Meyer Sound has been named the official sound
equipment supplier for Koozå, Cirque du Soleil's latest touring
production! Some interesting excerpts from the press release
include:
The Meyer Sound loudspeaker system, provided by Montreal-based
Solotech, features 12 M'elodie ultracompact high-power
curvilinear array loudspeakers and 14 M1D ultracompact
curvilinear array loudspeakers, with additional Meyer Sound
components strategically located to add specific ambience and
dimension to the mix.
The sound system also employs Meyer Sound's LCS Series Matrix3
audio show control system, paired with both the CueMixer compact
and CueConsole modular control surfaces, to create an innovative
spatial aspect for every seat in the house.
{SOURCE: Entertainment Technology Press}
=======================================================================
COMPARTMENTS -- INFORMATION ON TOUR, ONLINE, AND ON-SCREEN
=======================================================================
o) ITINÉRAIRE - Tour/Show Information
================
ITINÉRAIRE
================
NOTE: The information presented below is for historical purposes only.
For current, up-to-the-moment information on Cirque's whereabouts,
please visit our website < http://www.CirqueFascination.com/ >.
[Touring Shows]
Alegría:
London, UK -- Jan 5, 2007 to Feb 11, 2007
Barcelona, Spain -- Feb 22, 2007 to Apr 29, 2007
Saint-Denis, France -- May 10, 2007 to July 15, 2007
Gijon, Spain -- Jul 26, 2007 to Aug 26, 2007
Curitiba, Brazil -- Sep 14, 2007 to Oct 7, 2007
Brasília, Brazil -- Oct 19, 2007 to Nov 11, 2007
Belo Horizonte, Brazil -- Nov 22, 2007 to Dec 16, 2007
Rio de Janiero, Brazil -- Dec 27, 2007 to Jan 27, 2008
Sao Paulo, Brazil -- Feb 7, 2008 to May 4, 2008
Porto Alegre, Brazil -- May 15, 2008 to Jun 8, 2008
Corteo:
Atlanta, Georgia -- Dec 15, 2006 to Jan 28, 2007
Dallas, Texas -- Feb 9, 2007 to Mar 11, 2007
Houston, Texas -- Mar 22, 2007 to Apr 29, 2007
Columbus, Ohio -- May 11, 2007 to Jun 10, 2007
Denver, Colorado -- Jun 22, 2007 to Aug 5, 2007
Los Angeles, California -- Aug 23, 2007 to Oct 28, 2007
Orange County, California -- Nov 8, 2007 to Dec 23, 2007
San Diego, California -- Jan 11, 2008 to Feb 3, 2008
Portland, Oregon -- Mar 4, 2008 to Mar 30, 2008
Seattle, Washington -- Apr 24, 2008 to May 18, 2008
Vancouver, BC -- Jun 12, 2008 to Jul 6, 2008
Calgary, Alberta -- Jul 31, 2008 to Aug 10, 2008
Ottawa, Ontario -- TBA
St. Petersburg, Florida -- TBA
Miami, Florida -- TBA
Dralion:
Neuss, Germany -- Dec 7, 2006 to Jan 7, 2007
Tokyo, Japan -- Feb 7, 2007 to May 6, 2007
Sendai, Japan -- May 23, 2007 to Jul 8, 2007
Osaka, Japan -- Jul 25, 2007 to Oct 14, 2007
Nagoya, Japan -- Oct 31, 2007 to Jan 6, 2008
Tokyo, Japan -- Jan 25, 2008 to Mar 2, 2008
Fukuoka, Japan -- Apr 23, 2008 to Jun 15, 2008
Koozå:
Montreal, Quebec -- Apr 19, 2007 to Jun 24, 2007
Quebec City, Quebec -- Jul 5, 2007 to Jul 29, 2007
Toronto, Ontario -- Aug 9, 2007 to Oct 21, 2007
San Francisco, California -- Nov 16, 2007 to Jan 20, 2008
San Jose, California -- Jan 31, 2008 to Apr 16, 2008
Hartford, Connecticut -- Apr 1, 2008 to Apr 20, 2008
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania -- May 8, 2008 to May 25, 2008
Chicago, Illinois -- June 26, 2008 to July 27, 2008
Boston, Massachusetts -- TBA
Quidam:
Dubai, UAE -- Jan 4, 2007 to Feb 28, 2007
Seoul, South Korea -- Mar 20, 2007 to Jun 3, 2007
Shanghai, China -- Jun 28, 2007 to Aug 26, 2007
Guadalajara, Mexico -- Oct 12, 2007 to Oct 21, 2007
Mexico City, Mexico -- Nov 16, 2007 to Dec 30, 2007
Monterrey, Mexico -- Jan 17, 2008 to Jan 27, 2008
Lisbon, Portugal - April 2008
Varekai:
Auckland, New Zealand -- Jan 5, 2007 to Feb 18, 2007
Canberra, Australia -- Mar 15, 2007 to Apr 8, 2007
Melbourne, Australia -- Apr 19, 2007 to Jun 24, 2007
Adelaide, Australia -- Jul 5, 2007 to Aug 4, 2007
Perth, Australia -- Aug 17, 2007 to Oct 17, 2007
Antwerp, Netherlands -- Oct 30, 2007 to Dec 2, 2007
London, UK -- Jan 10, 2008 to Feb 3, 2008
Amsterdam, Netherlands -- Feb 29, 2008 to May 4, 2008
Antwerp, Belgium -- Oct 25, 2007 to Dec 2, 2007
London, United Kingdom -- Jan 6, 2008 to Feb 3, 2008
Amsterdam, Netherlands -- Feb 29, 2008 to May 4, 2008
Berlin, Germany -- Jun 5, 2008 to TBA
Vienna, Austria -- Sep 26, 2008 to TBA
Dusseldorf, Germany --TBA
[Arena Shows]
Delirium:
Detroit, Michigan - Jan 24, 25 & 27
Grand Rapids, Michigan - Jan 31, Feb 1 & 2
Moline, Illinois - Feb 7 & 8
Minneapolis/St-Paul, Minnesota - Feb 9 & 10
Fort Wayne, Indiana - Feb 14 & 15
Chicago, Illinois - Feb 17, 18 & 19
Kansas City, Missouri - Feb 21, 22 & 23
Ames, Iowa - Feb 24 & 25
Green Bay, Wisconsin - Feb 28
Peoria, Illinois - Mar 1 & 2
Madison, Wisconsin - Mar 4
Indianapolis, Indiana - Mar 7, 8 & 9
Wichita, Kansas - Mar 12, 13 & 14
Oklahoma City, Illinois - Mar 15 & 16
Charlotte, North Carolina - Mar 21 & 22
Birmingham, Alabama - Mar 24 & 25
Shreveport, Louisiana - Mar 27
Batton Rouge, Louisiana - Mar 28
New Orleans, Louisiana - Mar 29 & 30
Raleigh, North Carolina - Apr 1 & 2
Miami, Florida - Apr 4, 5, 6 & 7
San Antonio, Texas - Apr 20, 21
Corpus Christi, Texas - Apr 22
Monterrey, Mexico - Apr 27, 28, 29 & 30
Saint Louis, Missouri - May 4, 5 & 6
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan - May 10, 11, 12 & 13
Spokane, Washington - May 16 & 17
Salt Lake City, Utah - May 19 & 20
San Diego, California - May 23, 24 & 25
Glendale, Arizona - May 26 & 27
Little Rock, Arkansas - May 31
Nashville, Tennessee - Jun 1 & 2
Greenville, South Carolina - Jun 6 & 7
Atlanta, Georgia - Jun 8 & 9
Charleston, South Carolina - Jun 10
Richmond, Virginia - Jun 12 & 13
Buffalo, New York - Jun 15, 16 & 17
Albany, New York - Jun 19 & 20
Washington DC - Jun 22, 23 & 24
Machester, New Hampshire - Jun 26, 27 & 28
Boston, Massachusetts - Jun 29, 30 & Jul 1
Rotterdam, Netherlands - Sept 13, 14, 15 & 16
Hamburg, Germany - Sep 18 & 19
Helsinki, Finland - Sep 22, 23 & 24
Stockholm, Sweeden - Sept 27, 28 & 29
Oslo, Norway - Oct 1 & 2
Mannheim, Germany - Oct 5 & 6
Manchester, United Kingdom - Oct 8 & 9
Birmingham, United Kingdom - Oct 10, 11 & 12
Sheffield, United Kingdom - Oct 13 & 14
Munich, Germany - Oct 19 & 20
Vienna, Austria - Oct 22 & 23
Prague, Czech Republic - Oct 26 & 27
Budapest, Hungary - Oct 30 & 31
Cologne, Germany - Nov 2 & 3
Zurich, Switzerland - Nov 5, 6, 7 & 8
Pesaro, Italy - Nov 10 & 11
Milan, Italy - Nov 13, 14, 15 & 16
Turin, Italy - Nov 18, 19, 20 & 21
Lisbon, Portugal Nov 28, 29, 30, Dec 1 & 2
Madrid, Spain Dec 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9
Valencia, Spain Dec 13, 14, 15 & 16
Barcelona, Spain Dec 19, 20, 21 & 22
Saltimbanco:
London, Ontario - Jul 31, Aug 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5
Ottawa, Ontario - Aug 8, 9, 10, 11 & 12
Halifax, Nova Scotia - Aug 15, 16, 17, 18 & 19
St. Johns, Newfoundland - Aug 23, 24, 25 & 26
St. John, New Brunswick - Aug 30 & 31, Sep 1 & 2
Syracuse, New York - Sep 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania - Sep 12, 13, 14, 15 & 16
Greensboro, North Carolina - Sep 19, 20, 21, 22 & 23
State College, Pennsylvania - Sep 26, 27, 28, 29 & 30
Norfolk, Virginia - Oct 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7
East Lansing, Michigan - Oct 10, 11, 12, 13 & 14
Peoria, Illinois - Oct 17 & 18
Champaign, Illinois Nov 9 & 10
Green Bay, Wisconsin Nov 13, 14 & 15
Dayton, Ohio Nov 21, 23, 24 & 25
Montreal, Quebec - Dec 19 30
2008 Dates:
Quebec City, Quebec - Jan 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8
Chicoutimi, Quebec Jan 16, 17, 18 & 19
Detroit, Michigan Jan 23, 24, 25, 26 & 27
Cleveland, Ohio Jan 29, 30, 31 & Feb 1
Memphis, Tennessee Feb 20 & 21
Charlottesville, Virginia Feb 26, 27, 28, 29 & Mar 1
Little Rock, Arkansas Mar 4, 5 & 6
Shreveport, Louisiana Mar 8 & 9
San Antonio, Texas Mar 12, 13, 14, 15 & 16
Laredo, Texas Mar 18 & 19
Corpus Christ, Texas Mar 21 & 22
Edmonton, Alberta Jun 18, 19, 20, 21 & 22
Winnipeg, Manitoba Jul 9, 10, 11, 12 & 13
Toronto, Ontario Aug 13 24
Hamilton, Ontario Aug 27, 28, 29, 30 & 31
[Resident Shows]
NOTE: (*) Prices are in United States Dollars (USD) unless otherwise
noted.
(*) Price reflected in brackets [] is inclusive of 10% Las Vegas
Entertainment Tax where applicable, but does not include
Sales Tax.
La Nouba:
Location: Walt Disney World, Orlando (USA)
Performs: Tue through Sat, Dark: Sun/Mon
Two shows Nightly - 6:00pm and 9:00pm
2007 Ticket Prices (adults) / (child 3-9):
o Category 0: $112.00 / $90.00
o Category 1: $97.00 / $78.00
o Category 2: $79.00 / $63.00
o Category 3: $63.00 / $50.00
2007 Dark Dates:
o January 14 to 22
o March 18 to 20
o May 30 to June 4
o July 29 to July 31
o September 23 to October 1
o November 25 to 27
Mystère:
Location: Treasure Island, Las Vegas (USA)
Performs: Wednesday through Sunday, Dark: Monday/Tuesday
Two shows Nightly - 7:30pm and 10:30pm
EFFECTIVE JANUARY 20, 2007 (for performances January 21st on)
Performs: Saturday through Wednesday, Dark: Thursday/Friday
Two shows Nightly -
o Saturday: 7:00pm & 9:30pm
o Sunday: 4:30pm & 7:00pm
o Monday - Wednesday: 7:00pm & 9:30pm
2007 Ticket Prices:
o Category 1: $95.00 [$104.50]
o Category 2: $75.00 [$82.50]
o Category 3: $60.00 [$66.00]
2007 Dark Dates:
o January 4 to 19
o February 4
o March 21
o May 3 to 11
o July 11
o September 1 to 7
o October 31
"O":
Location: Bellagio, Las Vegas (USA)
Performs: Wednesday through Sunday, Dark: Monday/Tuesday
Two shows Nightly - 7:30pm and 10:30pm
2007 Ticket Prices:
o Orchestra: $150.00 [$165.00]
o Loggia: $125.00 [$137.50]
o Balcony: $99.00 [$108.90]
o Limited View: $93.50 [102.85]
2007 Dark Dates:
o April 9 to 17
o June 10 to 12
o August 6 to 14
o October 7 to 9
o December 3 to 18
Zumanity:
Location: New York-New York, Las Vegas (USA)
Performs: Tuesday through Saturday, Dark: Sunday/Monday
Two Shows Nightly - 7:30pm and 10:30pm
2007 Ticket Prices (18+ Only!):
o Sofas: $129.00 USD [$141.90 USD] (Sold in pairs)
o Seats: $99.00 USD [$108.90 USD] (Lower Orcestra)
O Seats: $79.00 USD [$86.90 USD] (Upper Orchestra)
o Balcony: $69.00 USD [$75.90 USD]
o Stools: $69.00 USD [$75.90 USD]
2007 Dark Dates:
o February 4
o April 2 to 10
o June 4 to 6
o August 1 to 7
o October 15 to 17
o December 4 to 19
KÀ:
Location: MGM Grand, Las Vegas (USA)
Performs: Friday through Tuesday Tue, Dark: Wednesday/Thursday
Two Shows Nightly - 7:00pm and 10:30pm
EFFECTIVE JANUARY 23, 2007 (for performances January 24th on)
Performs: Fri through Tue, Dark Wed/Thu
Two Shows Nightly - 7:00pm and 9:30pm
2007 Ticket Prices (adult) / (child 5-12):
NOTE: Category locations change based on Early vs Late Show
o Category 1: $150.00 [$165.00] / $75.00 [$82.50]
o Category 2: $125.00 [$137.50] / $62.50 [$68.75]
o Category 3: $99.00 [$108.90] / $49.50 [$54.45]
o Category 4: $69.00 [$75.90] / $34.50 [$37.95]
2007 Dark Dates:
o January 9 to 22
o March 20
o May 15 to 19
o July 17
o September 11 to 15
o November 13
LOVE:
Location: Mirage, Las Vegas (USA)
Performs: Thursday through Monday, Dark: Tuesday/Wednesday
Two Shows Nightly - 7:00pm and 10:30pm
2007 Ticket Prices:
o Lower Orchestra: $150.00 [$165.00]
o Upper Orchestra: $125.00 [137.50]
o Lower Balcony: $99.00 [$108.80]
o Middle Balcony: $93.50 [$102.85]
o Upper Balcony: $69.00 [$75.90]
2007 Dark Dates:
o January 18
o February 11 and 12
o March 5
o April 19 to 23
o June 14
o August 16 to 20
o October 11
o November 29 and 30
o December 1 to 10
Wintuk:
Location: Madison Square Garden, New York City (USA)
Performs: Wednesday through Sunday, Dark Monday/Tuesday
Multiple Shows Daily -
Wednesday: 2:00pm, 7:30pm
Thursday: 11:00am, 7:30pm
Friday: 2:00pm, 7:30pm
Saturday: 11:00am, 3:00pm, 7:00pm
Sunday: 11:00am, 3:00pm, 7:00pm
2007/2008 Ticket Prices (adult) / (child 2-12):
Wednesday & Sunday:
o Category 1: $99.00 / $89.55
o Category 2: $65.00 / $59.95
o Category 3: $40.00 / $36.45
Thursday, Friday & Saturday:
o Category 1: $200.00 / $180.45
o Category 2: $110.00 / $99.45
o Category 3: $75.00 / $67.95
o Category 4: $50.00 / $45.45
Previews for the 2007 season will be presented from
November 1 to 4. The official season will run from
November 6, 2007 to January 6, 2008.
=======================================================================
COLUMNS - BEHIND THE CURTAIN
=======================================================================
Within...
o) DIDYAKNOW? - Facts About Cirque
o) HISTORIA - Cirque du Soleil History
o) CIRQUETECH - The Technical Side of Cirque
=================================
DIDYAKNOW? - Facts About Cirque
=================================
DidyaKnow? - "Quidam's Costumes at a Glance"
{Jul.13.2007}
---------------------------------------------
This week in DidYaKnow? we're dipping into the Cirque du Soleil fact
archives for a little insight into costumes for Quidam:
The fabrics and textures used in Quidam reflect the variegated hues of
a megalopolis inhabited by street people. Working in close
cooperation, the costume designer and the director have created
characters and costumes that reflect the performer personalities.
Fabrics - Basic costume and lining materials include leather, jute,
linen, crepe, wool, velvet, lycra and 42 varieties of silk and 30
varieties of cotton from England, France, Italy and California.
Colors - The color scheme relies heavily on grey, accented by rich,
warm colors and metallic tones.
There are approximately 250 costumes, 500 costume items and 200-300
shoes in Quidam.
Each artist has between 2-7 costumes each.
Each costume is specifically designed for the artist and there are two
spares of every costume.
The costumes of the Banquine troupe in Act One and Act Two are the
same design but in different colors. In Act One they are more colorful
representing characters in real life. In Act Two the colors of the
costumes are muted representing life after war, after tragedy.
There are 20 wigs in the show which are made from natural hair and are
washed and styled for every show! These wigs are hand made
specifically for the artist in the costume workshop in Montreal.
All the shoes are hand painted to blend in with the colors of the
costume. These shoes are re-touched and painted everyday. The paint
colors need to be exact and are mixed in the costume department on
tour.
There are 30 hats in Quidam including the bowler hat of the Quidam
Character which the character Zoe uses to enter the magical world
All the costumes that touch the skin must be washed everyday and
depending on the fabric they are either machine washed, dry-cleaned or
hand washed.
As the artists are so physical there are a lot of repairs to be done
on the costumes. The costumes from acts that have friction with
apparatus such as Aerial Hoops and Spanish Webs have to be replaced
and repaired more often. Costumes last anywhere between 6 months to
two years.
Each costume design goes through at least 10 drafts before the final
one is selected.
Eighty percent of the fabric is custom dyed. These fabrics are usually
white and are hand-dyed and printed in custom colors in the costume
shop in Montreal.
DidyaKnow? - What is Cirque's Current Video Catalog?
{Jul.27.2007}
-----------------------------------------------------
From the CirqueFAQ:
There are currently many Cirque du Soleil productions available
for purchase to view at home. Some have been released in the
past while others are new releases. This list showcases what
titles are currently available. All titles may not be available
in all regions. Each title is delimited by its name, the year
in which it was filmed, in what location it was filmed and its
running time:
[Productions]
o) La Magie Continue (1986, Toronto) - 90 min/50 min
o) Cirque Réinventé (1989, Montréal) - 56 min
o) Nouvelle Expérience (1991, Toronto) - 78 min
o) Saltimbanco (1994, Atlanta) - 78 min
o) Quidam (1999, Amsterdam) - 90 min
o) Dralion (2000, San Francisco) - 89 min
o) Alegría (2001, Sydney) - 90 min
o) Varekai (2002, Toronto) - 112 min
o) La Nouba (2004, Orlando) - 90 min
o) Corteo (2005, Toronto) - 110 min
[Documentaries]
o) A Baroque Odyssey (1994, Montréal) - 56 min
o) Inside La Nouba (2000, Orlando) - 45 min
o) KÀ Extreme (2005, Las Vegas) - 46 min
o) Lovesick (2006, Las Vegas) - 97 min
[Out of Print Documentaries (VHS Only)]
o) Quel Cirque! - 22 min
o) Saltimbanco's Diary - 22 min
o) Illusion of Truth: Alegría - 22 min
o) Full Circle: The Making of Quidam - 22 min
[Special Films/Television Series]
o) Alegria: Le Film (1998) - 90 min
o) Journey of Man (2000) - 41 min
o) Fire Within (2002) - 390 min
o) Solstrom (2004) - 585 min
o) Midnight Sun (2004, Montreal) - 95 min
Note: These productions were also released in VHS format, but have
since been discontinued: Le Magie Continue, Le Cirque
Réinventé, Nouvelle Expériencé, Saltimbanco, Quidam, Dralion,
Baroque Odyssey, Inside La Nouba, Quel Cirque, Saltimbanco's
Diary, Illusion of Truth: Alegría, Full Circle: The Making
of Quidam, Alegria: Le Film, and Journey of Man.
The following were also released in VideoCD (VCD) format in
select Asian markets: Cirque Réinventé, Nouvelle Expérience,
Saltimbanco, Quidam, Dralion, and Baroque Odyssey.
The following title was also available in LaserDisc (LD)
format: Le Cirque Réinventé.
DidyaKnow? - Why is "La Magie Continue" Listed at 90/50 min?
{Aug.10.2007}
-------------------------------------------------------------
From the CirqueFAQ:
In 1988, Cirque du Soleil made "Le Magie Continue" available
for purchase on VHS in its full 90-minute run-time. This VHS was
available for $29.95. Unfortunately, and it is unclear why,
Cirque du Soleil considered it necessary to cut-down the show
for it's DVD release. It is also not clear if a full version of
this show will ever be released to DVD, but considering its age
and the missing footage being only a curiosity to fans, the full
recorded version of "Le Magie Continue" will probably never
see the light of day again.
DidyaKnow? - Lyrics for Nostalgie
{Aug.10.2007}
-------------------------------------------------------------
A few months back we received an email from a talented young singer
auditioning for Cirque shows who happened across our site who then
emailed us the lyrics for Nostalgie, from "O". We misplaced that
email but recently found it... and would like to present these
lyrics to you now! (To protect the artists' identity, we're
withholding their name.)
Nostalgie
svodé es sova
kolya es nyabo
své dalya ko es tolyo krounya te svédjabo
nyatel déounya'
kolya es tolyou
své kalyé déné
kra kolé svékouya
sonyo es kronya
kraya es tanyou
né yaka soyé
dvosi kraya kounyé toulou
svodé es sova
kolya es nyabo
své dalya ko es tolyo krounya svédjabo
Here's contortion from O:
so bé ko na do sé
ko lé donima ya kou doto
s bé ko na do sé
ko lé donima sounké
makolé so bé ko na dosé
ko lé soé bono ya ni ma to
so bé ko na dosé
ko lé donima ya vé dja
And to debbie:
Né lo va ya son
né va ya so ya be kore nou
Der ché lo va ya son
né morkala vé né i lou
né lo va ya son
né va ya so ya bé korenou
dedja lo va ya son
ne morkala vé né va yombre
der ché lo va ya son
né morkala vé né i lou
and then a repeat of verse 1.
====================================
HISTORIA: Cirque du Soleil History
====================================
[July]
* Jul.01.1990 -- Cirque Réinventé (Vol 2) CD Released (Nâga)
* Jul.02.2002 -- La Nouba Boutique pepper spray incident forces
evacuation
* Jul.04.2007 -- Cirque named top Canadian Brand by Brand Finance
Canada.
* Jul.05.1984 -- 1984 Tour opened Rimouski
* Jul.05.1985 -- 1985 Tour opened Québec [Vieux-Port de Québec]
* Jul.05.1986 -- Le Magie Continue opened Québec
* Jul.05.1990 -- Nouvelle Expérience opened Seattle
* Jul.05.1996 -- Quidam opened Ste-Foy
* Jul.05.2007 -- Koozå opened Quebec City
* Jul.05.2007 -- Varekai opened Adelaide, Australia
* Jul.06.2000 -- Saltimbanco 2000 opened Seattle
* Jul.06.2006 -- Quidam opened Philadelphia
* Jul.07.1987 -- Cirque Réinventé opened Québec
* Jul.08.2004 -- Alegría opened Philadelphia
* Jul.10.2002 -- Saltimbanco opened Vienna
* Jul.10.2003 -- Alegría opened Vancouver
* Jul.11.1990 -- Cirque Réinventé opened Montréal
* Jul.11.1997 -- Alegría opened Berlin
* Jul.12.1984 -- 1984 Tour opened Saint-Jean-Port-Joli
* Jul.12.1994 -- Alegría opened San Francisco
* Jul.13.2003 -- Cirque nominated for 1 Emmy - 55th Emmy Awards
Outstanding Nonfiction Program Alternate - Fire Within
* Jul.14.1992 -- Fascination opened Osaka
* Jul.14.1992 -- Saltimbanco opened San Francisco
* Jul.14.2006 -- Alegría opened Amsterdam
* Jul.14.2006 -- Corteo opened Chicago
* Jul.16.2003 -- Varekai opened Chicago
* Jul.18.2002 -- Cirque nominated for 2 Emmys in 54th Emmy Awards
Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special - Alegría
Outstanding Choreography for 74th Academy Awards
- Debra Brown
* Jul.19.1984 -- 1984 Tour opened Baie-Saint-Paul
* Jul.19.2003 -- Quidam opened Osaka
* Jul.20.2004 -- Varekai CD released in Canada (CDS Musique)
* Jul.20.2004 -- Alegría CD released in Canada (CDS Musique)
* Jul.20.2007 -- Corteo Nominated for Emmys
o) Category 6: Art Direction for a Variety,
Music Program or Special
o) Category 28: Picture Editing for a Special
(Single of Multi-Camera)
* Jul.21.1995 -- Saltimbanco opened Berlin
* Jul.21.1999 -- Saltimbanco opened Adelaide
* Jul.21.2005 -- Dralion opened Oostenede
* Jul.22.1998 -- Alegría opened Antwerp
* Jul.22.1998 -- Quidam opened Chicago
* Jul.23.1988 -- Cirque Réinventé opened Toronto
* Jul.23.2006 -- Varekai NAT 1 Ends (2002-2006)
* Jul.24.1992 -- Fascination opened Sapporo
* Jul.24.2003 -- Saltimbanco opened Oostenede
* Jul.24.2003 -- Dralion opened Columbus
* Jul.25.2002 -- Quidam opened Boston
* Jul.25.2007 -- Dralion opened Osaka, Japan
* Jul.26.1984 -- 1984 Tour opened Québec
* Jul.26.1985 -- 1985 Tour opened Toronto [Harbour Front]
* Jul.26.1991 -- Nouvelle Expérience opened Toronto
* Jul.26.1995 -- Alegría opened Chicago
* Jul.26.1996 -- Saltimbanco opened Angers
* Jul.26.2001 -- Quidam opened Copenhagen
* Jul.26.2007 -- Alegría opened Gijon, Spain
* Jul.27.2004 -- Varekai opened Boston
* Jul.27.2004 -- Varekai CD released in US (CDS Musique)
* Jul.28.1993 -- Saltimbanco opened Chicago
* Jul.29.1999 -- Dralion opened Toronto
* Jul.31.1990 -- Cirque Réinventé opened London
* Jul.31.1997 -- Quidam opened San Jose
* Jul.31.2003 -- Zumanity Begins Preview Performances
* Jul.31.2004 -- Quidam celebrated 3000th performance
[Sat, 1:00pm/Calgary]
[August]
* Aug.01.1986 -- Le Magie Continue opened Saint-Sauveur
* Aug.01.1990 -- Nouvelle Expérience opened San Francisco
* Aug.01.2002 -- Dralion opened Seattle
* Aug.01.2002 -- Varekai opened Toronto
* Aug.02.1984 -- 1984 Tour opened Magog
* Aug.03.2004 -- Alegría CD Released US (CDS Musique)
* Aug.03.2006 -- Saltimbanco opened Sao Paulo
* Aug.04.1987 -- Cirque Réinventé opened Saint-Sauveur
* Aug.04.2005 -- Saltimbanco opened Monterrey
* Aug.04.2005 -- Corteo opened Toronto
* Aug 06.2006 -- Mystère celebrated 6000th performance [Sunday, 7:30pm]
* Aug.07.1992 -- Fascination opened Yokohama
* Aug.08.1989 -- Cirque Réinventé opened San Francisco
* Aug.08.1996 -- Quidam opened Toronto
* Aug.09.1984 -- 1984 Tour opened Hull
* Aug.09.1990 -- Nouvelle Expérience CD Released (Nâga)
* Aug.09.2007 -- Koozå opened Toronto
* Aug.10.2006 -- Varekai opened Sydney, Asia-Pacific Tour Begins
* Aug.10.2006 -- La Nouba Celebrates 5,000,000th guest!
* Aug.11.2005 -- Varekai opened Columbus
* Aug.12.2004 -- Dralion opened Antwerp
* Aug.12.2004 -- Quidam opened Sydney
* Aug.13.2006 -- Corteo celebrated 500th performance
[Sun, 5:00pm/Chicago]
* Aug.14.1986 -- Le Magie Continue opened Longueuil
* Aug.14.1987 -- Le Cirque Réinventé opened Longueuil
* Aug.14.1993 -- Saltimbanco opened Washington DC
* Aug.14.1996 -- Mystère Live CD Released in Canada (RCA/Victor)
* Aug.15.2001 -- Dralion opened Boston
* Aug.16.1984 -- 1984 Tour opened Sorel
* Aug.16.1985 -- 1985 Tour opened Niagra Falls [CP Skylon Tower]
* Aug.16.2001 -- Cirque wins 3 Emmys for Dralion on Bravo
* Aug.16.2005 -- "O" CD released in Canada (CDS Musique)
* Aug.16.2005 -- La Nouba CD released in Canada (CDS Musique)
* Aug.16.2005 -- Mystère (Live) CD released in Canada (CDS Musique)
* Aug.17.2000 -- Dralion opened Minneapolis, Minnesota
* Aug.17.2007 -- Varekai opened Perth, Australia
* Aug.18.1992 -- Fascination opened Sendai
* Aug.18.2000 -- Alegría: Le Film premiered in Italy
* Aug.19.2004 -- Alegría opened Toronto
* Aug.20.2004 -- Saltimbanco opened Frankfurt
* Aug.21.2001 -- Alegría opened Brisbane, Australia
* Aug.21.2002 -- Alegría opened Minneapolis
* Aug.21.2003 -- Alegría opened Seattle
* Aug.23.1984 -- 1984 Tour opened Montréal
* Aug.23.2003 -- Dralion opened St. Louis
* Aug.23.2007 -- Corteo opened Los Angeles, California
* Aug.24.2006 -- Quidam opened Cincinnati
* Aug.25.1994 -- Alegría opened San Jose
* Aug.27.1992 -- Fascination opened Kita-Kyushu
* Aug.27.1992 -- Saltimbanco opened San Jose
* Aug.28.1986 -- Le Magie Continue opened Ottawa
* Aug.30.2004 -- Zumanity celebrated its 500th performance
* Aug.30.2006 -- Dralion opened Berlin
* Aug.31.2000 -- Quidam opened Düsseldorf
* Aug.31.2006 -- Alegría opened Brussels
* Aug.xx.2001 -- Dralion celebrated 500th Show
[Minneapolis, Minnesota]
==========================================
CIRQUETECH: The Technical Side of Cirque
==========================================
CirqueTech: "KÀ SoundScape: Speakers, Mixing & Mics"
{Jul.07.2007} & {Jul.21.2007}
-----------------------------------------------------
I was poking around the Internet for the odd fact about KÀ the other
day and came across a nice list of sound equipment for Cirque du
Soleil's KÀ at MGM Grand in Las Vegas. As I began browsing the article
it came as no surprise that it was one from LiveDesign Magazine. They
also have fabulous articles reviewing the many techincal aspects of
live, creative performances. Therefore, in this installment of
CirqueTech, I'm gonig to take a moment to highlight the equipment list
(in two parts) they published that allows us to hear from the depths
of KÀ's abyss. And if you're interested in reading the full article -
and I highly recommend you do - you can do so at the following URL: <
http://livedesignonline.com/venues/show_business_abyss/index.html >
LiveDesign Magazine always has fabulous articles reviewing the many
technical aspects of live, creative performance. In this installment
of CirqueTech, we're going to take a moment to highlight the equipment
that allows us to hear from the depths of KÀ's abyss:
KÀ Soundscape, Part 1: Speakers
-------------------------------
o) LEFT AND RIGHT LINE ARRAYS
.) 24 Meyer Sound MILO-65
.) 26 Meyer Sound MILO-90 (self-powered)
o) SUBWOOFERS
.) 8 Meyer Sound PSW-2
.) 24 Turbosound TSW-721
o) SURROUND SOUND
.) 6 Meyer Sound M1D
.) 6 Meyer Sound M2DPS-15
.) 8 Meyer Sound SB-2, 4 CQ-1
.) 6 Meyer Sound UPA-1P
.) 5 Nexo PS-8TD
.) 16 EAW KF 850
.) 36 EAW AS300i
.) 10 Tannoy IW8TDC (custom enclosure)
o) STAGE EDGE
.) 10 Nexo PS-8
KÀ Soundscape, Part 2: Mixing & Mics
------------------------------------
o) SIGNAL PROCESSING
.) 8 EAW MX800i,
.) 5 Klark Teknik DN98-48
o) POWER AMPLIFIERS
.) 24 Crest 8001
.) 36 Crest 7301
.) 8 Crest 3301
.) 10 Crest 7001
.) 16 Crown CTS-2000
o) MIXING CONSOLES
Level Control Systems (LCS) Cue Console Mixing and
Processing System with: LX-DSP frame, DSP modules, Cue-
Station software, Apple G5-Dual computers, Cinematic
monitors Aphex 1788 mike preamplifiers
o) SIGNAL PROCESSING AND EFFECTS UNITS
TC Electronic, Leitch, Mackie, Presonus, Klark-Teknik,
Aphex, Avalon, Symetrix
o) SAMPLERS AND MULTITRACK PLAYBACK
.) Akai Z8, Tascam MX-2424
.) Sierra Automation Switchers
.) Yamaha 02R Auxiliary Console
o) WIRELESS MICROPHONES
.) Sennheiser EM 3532-U series mike receivers (computer
display software, active antenna system and
accessories)
.) Sennheiser SKM 3072-U and SK 5012-U mike transmitters
o) IN-EAR MONITOR SYSTEMS
.) Sennheiser SR 3056-U
.) Sennheiser 3053-MT
.) Shure P6HWE1 Wired In-ear Monitor
{SOURCE: LiveDesign Media, "Into The Abyss of KÀ" -
http://livedesignonline.com/venues/show_business_abyss/index.html}
CirqueTech: "Delirium Equipment: Lighting & Control, Part 1/2"
{Aug.03.2007} & {Aug.17.2007}
-------------------------------------------
Once again I found myself on LiveDesign's website, poking around for
information on Cirque du Soleil sound equipment when I came across
this list of Lighting and Projection equipment. It comes from an
article entitled "Past Tents" and is a fabulous read all about
Delirium's technical merits. I highly recommend you give it a read!
The URL: <http://livedesignonline.com/mag/past_tents/index.html > In
the meantime, please enjoy this brief list of the equipment installed
for Delirium:
Delirium Equipment, Part 1:
Lighting, Control, Rigging & Projection"
----------------------------------------
o) LIGHTING
.) 24 Vari-Lite VL3500(tm) Spot
.) 30 Vari-Lite VL3000(tm) Spot
.) 34 Vari-Lite VL3000 Wash
.) 16 Vari-Lite VL2500(tm) Spot
.) 7 Syncrolite SX3K-2
.) 8 Clay Paky Stage Scan
.) 100 AC Lighting Chroma-Q Color Block
.) 196 Color Kinetics iColor(r) Cove MX Powercore
.) 2 Mole-Richardson Maxi-Spacelite
.) 6 Altman 48" ZS-2 MR16 Zipstrip
.) 36 ETC Source Four(r) PAR
.) 4 Robert Juliat Ivanhoe Followspot
.) 4 Altman 1000 Q Followspot
.) 24 AC Lighting Chroma-Q Color Changer
.) 4 Martin Atomic 3000 Strobe
.) 5 Luminous Swings (Custom)
.) 1 Emballa Shadow Light (Custom)
.) 4 Mega 12V FlashLight
o) LIGHTING CONTROL
.) 2 ETC Sensor SR48 Touring Dimmer Rack
.) 1 MA Lighting grandMA
.) 1 MA Lighting grandMA Light
.) 6 MA Lighting NSP
.) 8 Wireless Solutions Wireless DMX Transmitter
.) 14 Wireless Solutions Wireless DMX Receiver
.) 8 Theatre Wireless DMX-4WL-HO 12V Dimmer
.) 1 Cast Lighting WYSIWYG Perform Station
Delirium Equipment, Part 2:
Rigging & Projection
---------------------------
o) RIGGING
.) 64 CM 1-ton hoist
.) 52 CM 1/2-ton hoist
.) 4 Chain Master 1/4-ton hoist
.) 22 Show Distribution SD-800S Motor controller with
remote
.) 2 Crestron Rack-2 Digital controller for SD-800S
.) 1 Crestron touchscreen with custom design software
o) PROJECTION & CONTROL
.) 12 Christie Roadie 25K Projector
.) 6 Christie Roadster 16K Projector
.) 2 Sharp Video 3K Projector
.) 12 Coolux Pandoras Box(r) Video Server
.) 2 MA Lighting grandMA Light Console
.) 3 VYV Light System (Realtime Video Effect)
.) 3 Sony DXC-637 Camera 3 CCD
.) 4 Sony DXC-950 Camera
.) 7 Sony CCU Remote
.) 4 Fujinon Robotic Head
.) 1 Ross RVS-316 Video Switcher
.) 2 Verint Nextiva(tm) S1100 Smart-Link Wireless Video
System
.) 1 AutoPatch 16×16 Matrix
.) 1 Ross 16×32 HDSDI Matrix
.) 1 Leitch 10 DA Frame
.) 2 Evertz VIP(tm) Twelve Input Video Monitoring and
Display
.) 12 Doremi Labs XDVI-20
.) 1 12-1 Routing Switcher
.) 6 UltraVaio Downscaler HD to Composite
.) 1 1×2 DA Composite
.) 1 1 in × 8 out DA Composite
.) 1 Vector Waveform
.) 1 Black Generator
.) 6 LCD Screen
.) 6 3Com 1 Gigabit Switch
.) 3 PC Laptop
{SOURCE: LiveDesign Media, "Past Tents" -
http://livedesignonline.com/mag/past_tents/index.html}
=======================================================================
FASCINATION! FEATURES
=======================================================================
------------------------------------------------------
"The John-Paul Interview"
By: Keith Johnson - Seattle, Washington (USA)
------------------------------------------------------
We first met John-Paul Gasparrelli with a short interview in our very
first issue. At the time (September, 2001) he had just become the
Musical Director/Keyboardist for "O" in Las Vegas. So it's only
proper we close Fascination's sixth year with a long-dormant (2002)
fuller interview.
John-Paul comes with an extensive resume. Primarily self-taught, he
first came to LA in 1985, playing in many different groups and
situations. From '94-'96 he was the Musical Director/keyboardist for
"The Carolina Opry," a musical variety show in Myrtle Beach, SC. He
then returned to LA until mid-2001, when he ventured to Vegas and
became keyboardist for Bellagio Casino/Hotel act Dian Diaz. It wasn't
soon after that the Cirque came calling.
Though only Musical Director until Spring 2003, his story of how he
became a musician, his climb up the ladder, and his thoughts on music
are inspiring.
# # # # #
--What first attracted you to the piano?
Well, from the age of 10 to 14 I was an accomplished singer and actor
in musical theater in San Jose and Sacramento community and summer-
stock theater, which is where I started as a performer. After
appearing in productions like "West Side Story", "Damn Yankees", "Tom
Sawyer", "The King and I", etc., I discovered that I had a naturally
good singing voice, so much so that I was being scouted as a child
performer for Broadway shows. But my mother wouldn't let me fall into
the "child star" thing, as too many of those end up _not_ having a
career as an adult. So, I was this child singer/actor in Sacramento,
performing in productions with people like Molly Ringwald, who later
went on to be a big star.
--You say you were being scouted by Broadway. Did *you* want to do
that at the time?
Boy, and how! I had caught "the fever" as they say, and because it
was so much fun and it was something that I could do successfully I
was really into it. But my Mom and Dad, being the wise people they
were and are, put "the brakes" on that situation. At the time I was
unhappy about not having my parents be the "stage mother and father"
that so many of my peers had pushing them. In retrospect, I am so
thankful that I didn't end up a Hollywood casualty child-star.
Practically all of the child performers that "make it" have _no_
career after they are children. And my parents didn't want that for
me, as much as they knew that I wanted it as a child. I'm very blessed
to have such wise and caring parents. I probably wouldn't be where I
am today if I had gone the "child-star" route.
--Many musicians it seems initially turn to music as an escape.
Trying to get away from something uncomfortable, be it a hard home
life, or school, or whatever. Would you say that was true for you?
Well, without going into too much detail, if you knew my early
childhood you would know that from the time I was 6 to 10 years old, I
had a very bad time. From ten years old and up, it became a very good
time. I started performing when I reached my 10th year, and I think it
was both a celebration of my "exodus" to a new life and probably also
an escape from my previously horrible years. So I would say it was
both an escape _and_ a chance to find a way of expressing myself for
the future.
--How did the piano come into the picture?
As I was being hired to sing at various events I had to frequently
hire a pianist to play for me. So, after a friend's mother who played
at her church showed me a couple of chords on the piano, I started
figuring out, by ear, how to play music from people like Billy Joel,
Barry Manilow, etc. Also, as I had played clarinet from the 2nd to
10th grades, I knew how to read music and I transferred this knowledge
to the piano. So I had the ear thing going, as well as music training
from the clarinet.
As I got older, I started teaching myself jazz, R&B, pop and anything
else I wanted to learn. I always had a good ear for copying things so
most things I was studying came fairly easy. As I went into junior
high and high school I became more and more interested in learning
jazz and the singing thing, while still a strong focus, took a back
seat to the piano, which had taken over my primary efforts.
In high school I became the "school pianist" playing for anyone and
everyone that needed a pianist, from the school choirs to the jazz
band. You name it - I was there, and hungry to get as good as I could
in all styles. From there I applied and was accepted to the Berklee
College of Music in Boston. My high school jazz band teacher was an
alumnus so he recommended that I go there. I went very briefly and
returned to Sacramento shortly after to begin playing in dance bands.
--Who gave you your first keyboard?
My first keyboard was a small upright acoustic piano which my mother
and father gave to me. I was about 12 when they bought it (the first
of three acoustic pianos), and they also bought my first electric
keyboard setup, which consisted of a Rhodes Stage 73 electric piano
and a Korg Poly 61 synthesizer. I was so excited to get these
keyboards - this was very big stuff for a blossoming keyboardist just
starting to gig in 1983. My how times and technology have changed!
--What was your first paying musician job?
In 1980, when a drummer friend and myself (playing keyboards) were
hired for a dinner party. Talk about a small repertoire - I think we
knew about 12 songs then, and for four hours of music there were lots
of repeats! As for my first paying gig as a performer, period, I was
hired at the age of 12 to sing at a function in Sacramento. That was
one of the ones when I had to hire a pianist (before I knew how to
play!). This gig made me think that I should teach myself the piano
and avoid the outlay of money. Ah yes - greed is indeed the mother of
invention!
--What attracted you to making music your career?
Well, as a child, I always admired kids on T.V. that were performing,
and wondered if I could do the same. I think the fact that singing and
playing music has always come very naturally to me, without a lot of
stress and difficulty, and the fact that (hopefully) what I play/sing
sounds halfway decent, encouraged me to make it my career. (Not to say
that it's been an easy road, because it most certainly has not been!)
--How did you first become involved playing keyboards in LA bands?
After returning from Berklee in Boston I was anxious to start playing
"for real" and not just studying it in a classroom somewhere. I joined
a local band in Sacramento, "cutting my teeth" with this and a couple
of other local groups. After a few years I started looking to L.A. as
somewhere I could play with great musicians _and_ find more
opportunities than Sacramento could offer. So one day I packed up
everything, moved to L.A. and started "making the rounds." It was a
long process (as any effective networking process can be), but after a
few years of playing with as many people as I could I started being
able to make a decent living just doing music.
Around 1987 I moved to Long Beach after getting married, and met a
singer named Derek Bordeaux. Derek had just started his own group at
the time and he heard me playing with an excellent band in Newport
Beach. He called me for a gig one day and things just snowballed from
there. He ended up having the top R&B group in Orange County at that
time (Derek and the Diamonds), they ended up being the "All-Star"
R&B/Jazz cover-group of the time, attracting all the great players in
that area.
This is the kind of thing that happened throughout my time in Southern
California; you start getting a reputation (good or bad) as you play
more and more in the area, and you start becoming a part of the
network. By this process, I really got the opportunity to hone my
playing and musicianship with some of the best players in the world...
--What lead you to start playing keyboards as backup for touring acts
such as Expose and Debarge?
Again, by exposing (no pun intended) myself to as many opportunities
as possible, by being "hungry" to get "good," and playing for
sometimes very little money gave me a decent reputation in the area.
This led to lots of "word-of-mouth" situations, where out of the blue
I would get calls from groups like DeBarge and Exposé to work with
them. It really was a "climbing up the ladder" sort of thing; one
thing always seemed to lead to another. Sometimes better, sometimes
worse, but my playing skills and business sense always grew from
whatever I was involved with at the time.
--Your involvement in the Carolina Opry is an interesting note on your
resume. How did this opportunity come about? What did you take away
from the exprience?
Actually, during the country music boom of the early 90's, a guy I had
become friends with in the 80's, and had stayed in touch with over the
years, ended up moving to Nashville and becoming the musical director
and keyboardist for superstar Garth Brooks. He and I had been friends
before his big break, and when I found out he had started working with
Garth I contacted him in Nashville to congratulate him. I had been
working with, ironically, vocalist Johnny Lee ("Lookin' For Love In
All The Wrong Places") at the same time, so we had something in
common.
When we finally got back in touch, he told me that I should consider
moving to Nashville, as the "country craze" was hot at the time and
there were many opportunities to work in this arena. So I took a
chance and made the move to Nashville. (This was also because he had
set me up for an audition with Wynonna Judd, which I flew out to and
did great on, but didn't get the job because I was "from L.A.".) So,
hopeful to get into this market, I once again packed up the truck and
moved to Nashville.
When I got there, my friend set me up with lots and lots of auditions
with many of the country stars of the day. But nothing really
materialized with them, although I could play the material
effectively. About the time I was considering giving up on Nashville,
I got a call from the producer/director of The Carolina Opry in Myrtle
Beach, SC. He had gotten my resumé from a mutual friend, and was
looking for someone with my background to add to his show. He flew me
out to Myrtle Beach, and I was impressed with what I found. I was
offered the job, and not having anything to hold me in Nashville I
moved to Myrtle Beach and joined The Opry. A high-budget show and
slick production, it was a great experience and gave me lots of
valuable insight on how to be an effective musical director. It wasn't
the level of show that Cirque du Soleil is, but it was very effective
training and experience. And of course, living at a beachfront condo
was great, too!
--After working in Los Angeles for many years, you moved to Las Vegas
to play keyboards for Bellagio Bar act Dian Diaz. How did this
opportunity come up, and why did you decide to make the move away from
Los Angeles?
After I stopped working with Steve Oliver, Jeff Kashiwa and The Art Of
Sax in L.A., I took a hiatus from playing music at all. I was
increasingly becoming jaded with respect to the over-inflated
politics, false promises, and the "much ado about nothing"-ness of the
smooth-jazz world. You wouldn't believe all the nonsense that goes on
in "elevator-music"-land, but it does and did, and I finally had had
enough of all the phonies and such. So I took six months off to think
about which direction I wanted to go in, as the smooth-jazz thing,
IMO, had become a dead-end market.
One day I got a call from old friend Bruce Conte (the founding
guitarist of Tower of Power) to play with his band on their regular
"run to Vegas." Bruce had been in and out of The Art of Sax over the
years and we had become good friends. So off to Vegas I headed! Once
there I ran into another former bandmate that had moved there, and he
told me that Cirque du Soleil was looking for a keyboardist for the
"Mysterè" show. He got the contact info for me, and I immediately
became interested in the organization. I sent them my newly-released
CD and promo kit, and hoped for the best.
A day before the end of my run with Bruce in Vegas I received a call
from Cirque, inviting me to audition. I accepted and they Fed-Ex'd me
the material. Two days later I went to audition and did well. I went
back to L.A. hoping to hear from them, but never did. So I decided to
take a chance and move to Vegas and hope for the best.
Once in Vegas I started looking for work. Within a couple of weeks I
heard that vocalist Dian Diaz was looking to replace her keyboardist
in her house band at the Bellagio. Wanting to work I made arrangements
to audition, and was offered the job. It turned out to be a great
experience and gave me the opportunity to work with many of the
current great Vegas players, including Dian, herself a wonderful
vocalist.
Then, three months after my audition with Cirque, I got a phone call
from Montreal asking if I would be interested in becoming the musical
director of "O". Of course I said "Yes!", and a week later they
offered me the position.
It's amazing what happens when you just "throw yourself out there,"
and do your best. I'm very grateful for all the great things and great
people I have been involved with. A wonderful career, to be sure.
--You produced your own CD, "Moonlight." Why did you decide to
produce an album?
For the longest time I felt the need to officially realize my musical
ideas and abilities into a tangible medium. Just to have my playing
ability and ideas just "floating around out there" is not a good idea
if you're serious about making the most of your career. So I decided
to make the commitment to do a CD _for real_, and not to compromise on
any part of it, putting as much into it as my resources and ability at
the time would allow. I knew many people that I was playing with that
had taken halfway "stabs" at making their own CD and they always
seemed very "homemade" to me. This was something that I wanted to
avoid as I really feel, when you make your own CD, that it is truly
your "calling card" and that people get the gist of who and what you
really are with regards to your talent, your attention to detail, and
your self-image. There is a saying - "You only get one chance to make
a first impression". I think, especially when producing your debut CD,
that this is a true statement.
Also, when you want people in the industry to take you seriously as a
viable candidate for whatever they may be needing someone for, having
a well-done CD is vital. It really is your "calling card", and that's
why I spent so much pain-staking effort in making it the best I knew
how at the time.
--How long did the album take to put together as a project?
From start to finish the CD took about a year and a half. The good
thing was that I was able to figure out on my own how to do everything
to produce it. I literally did everything from the recording,
composing, arranging, playing, singing, producing, engineering,
mixing, etc. The things that I did not do were the saxophones, some of
the vocals and guitars, and some of the drum fills. The photography
was from an ace guy in L.A., and the design work was done in
partnership with a graphics guy in L.A. as well. It's amazing what
can be done with enough time, energy, some great keyboards, a good mic
and a Macintosh G4 computer!! It really is limitless if you invest
the time into it. I think all in all it was a very good first effort.
--I agree with you, the CD is a very good "calling card." How much did
the album cost you to produce? How many copies did you have made?
The album cost about $3000 in actual money spent. That obviously
wouldn't be taking _my_ time into account as there were hundreds of
man-hours involved on my part. The fact that I was able to do most
everything myself with the Macintosh computer really made a huge
difference. I had about 1200 copies made. To be honest, I never had
any illusions about "making it big" with this CD - it really was
intended to be a good "calling card" to show my abilities as a player,
writer and producer. And I think it succeeded in this context.
--When did you start recording, and were you also working during that
time?
I started at the beginning of 1999. The actual recording of the parts
went pretty fast once the arrangements and parts were there. That was
the part that took the longest. Creating arrangements and parts that
worked correctly were the toughest thing to make happen. It really
takes a period of time to "age" parts and arrangements that you come
up with. What may sound correct and exciting one day may (and often
did!) sound dumb the next. So being patient and letting time pass
really makes the difference. If I can listen to something over and
over again over a long period of time then it works. But if I listen
to something over the same period of time and it starts bugging me, or
I get bored, then it's time to change it. Obviously you can't wait
forever, but I think you start realizing when something is right and
when it's not.
I was indeed gigging and working in L.A. during the time I was
producing my CD. I was living in Pasadena and was playing with some
great jazz players, which really fueled my input into the album and
sharpened my "chops" for when it was time for me to play on it as
well.
--How long did the actual recording and mixing take?
The recording took about four months total, but the mixing is where
the work really is!.. I spent SO much time mixing, remixing,
relistening in cars, people's homes, other people's sound systems,
etc. to be able to make sure that the arrangements and mixing would
translate correctly in as many environments as possible. What sounds
good or powerful in one environment may sound lame and weak in
another. My mixing concept is one thing that will change on the next
CD. I think that my CD would have been even better if I had mixed it
in a pro commercial studio instead of my various apartments at the
time. And having a "real" engineer, which I would never consider
myself as, is a must. There are so many tricks and things that a real
recording engineer can do that I, being a musician primarily, will
never know. What I did have when mixing were my ears. As they are
pretty good, and I have a strong idea of arrangement, this is what
saved my CD from my ignorance of "real" engineering.
--Which aspect gave you the most pleasure?
Writing and playing the piano stuff. Being a piano player first and
foremost I'm fairly proud of the piano playing on the CD. Not the best
in the world to be sure, but I still think it's pretty good.
Also I had fun, and am proud of, the synth bass parts. Playing bass in
a song correctly is one of the hardest things to do, and coming up
with the right part is tough. You have to have the right sound and be
strong, but not _so_ strong as to be noticed. If you notice the bass
over the song then it's too much. But if you notice how much the bass
_isn't_ noticeable, but is subliminally carrying the song and
grooving, then you're doing it right. I think the bass stuff is really
good on this CD.
--Do horn arrangements come easily for you?
Actually, I love making horn section stuff with keyboards. I am very
much influenced by groups like Chicago, Earth Wind and Fire and the
big bands, and am an avid admirer of genius horn arranger Jerry Hey. I
have studied their horn arrangements for years and really have made an
effort to discover what makes them work and how to create them. One of
the things I was hired a lot for in L.A. was my ability to simulate a
live horn section with keyboards. I have one of the best horn section
sounds in my keyboard rig that you'll hear. Playing with all the jazz
and R&B groups that I did in L.A., you start figuring out how to make
keyboards sound like a real horn section.
--What do you think makes your keyboard horn sound so good, and how
have you modified it to make it so? In other words, what makes a good
horn patch sound? Is it more the sound, or the way it's played?
It really is a combination of things, but I think it comes down to how
you phrase what you play. The basic sound is very important, but once
you have a good sound, if you don't understand how real horn sections
phrase things and what they _wouldn't_ play, then you get into
trouble. Understanding the limitations of ensembles and implementing
that when you are simulating them is really the key. Having all the
technique in the world doesn't make any difference as a keyboardist if
you don't first understand what these ensembles play and what they
don't. Dynamics, harmonic content, voicing patterns and articulations
are all so vital when trying to create a believable horn section (or
string section, for that matter). I often hear players trying to play
horn stuff on keyboards that is just plain embarrassing, because they
just haven't taken the time to really study what's going on.
THE MUSIC BUSINESS:
--Being a professional musician can tend to be a very mobile career,
meaning you move where the work is, more often than other professions
might. Has that been true for you?
Yes I have had a very mobile life due to the ever-changing nature of
the business. But I don't think that being mobile is an exclusive
trait to the music business. I am starting to discover that to be
truly successful in _any_ business or career, you have to be willing
to be "liquid" and not get too comfortable in any one place forever.
The people that I have seen _not_ do this have stagnated or missed
opportunities that would never come again. The fact that I have been
open to change, and being "uncomfortable", has led me to this place in
my life. I look back on the toughest, most uncomfortable times in life
and they were when I was "on the move". But they were also the times
when I was playing at my peak and composing my best stuff. So it's a
trade-off. But being "willingly mobile" is a vital factor for _anyone,
not just musicians, to be truly successful and long-lasting.
--Can you be steady location-wise? Can you settle in Las Vegas and
expect to play for 20-25 years?
I've met people here that have been playing Vegas since the early 60's
(with Elvis no less!) and are still going strong. Vegas, for all of
it's craziness, is a great place to be a musician. There is so much
entertainment here and it's only getting bigger.
--What changes have you seen in the musical performance business since
you started?
When I started playing in L.A. nightclubs in the early 80's it was a
booming time and very popular. Jazz, R&B, Funk and Pop were very
viable things in that town and you could make a decent living playing
that stuff. Today I know so many musicians that have had to quit music
because that whole scene in L.A. is now gone. Times and music do
change and it certainly has in L.A. It's like the jazz scene in NYC in
the 30's and 40's - by the 50's that scene with Bird and Gillespie was
over and Rock had replaced it.
--What is the scene in L.A. like now?
As far as I hear from my friends that are there it's a tough scene. I
mean, who wants to hear a third-rate version of "Brick House" or
"Mustang Sally" yet again for the millionth time? Most people do not.
And club-owners are not attracting paying customers with that at their
clubs.
To these people that are there for their art, I take my hat off to
them. But to me life should be a balance, not an extreme of any
direction. I think that you can be great at something in your life
without it having to be at the expense of having a prosperous and
somewhat "normal" thriving existence. So many people I know think that
to be good and "real" they have to lead a forever struggling way of
life. If you have integrity and are true to what's honest and real
then things will come your way eventually.
--Which gets more jobs in your opinion - niceness, attitude (or self-
confidence, some might call is arrogance), or talent? I know they may
all factor in to some degree, but which is primary?
In my opinion, to be really successful you have to have the total
package. If you're a nice person but have no real talent or skills,
you can only go so far. People hire people that can deliver "the
goods" more or less. Likewise, if you're amazingly great at what you
do but have lousy people skills, are dishonest, mean, or are bad in
handling business, then as great as you may be talent-wise you will
only go so far as well. I think you can be confident and very able
without being a jerk or dysfunctional. But unfortunately I've found
that most of the bad rap that musicians get is well-deserved. A lot of
musicians are one way or the other - either amazingly talented but
impossible to count on and/or work with, or are really easy to work
with but cannot do the job correctly and have very little talent. Then
you have the nightmare person - the person who is a jerk, is mean
and/or dishonest, and also cannot play or perform. And amazingly
enough these people are working a lot. It's a strange brew. Personally
I have learned from many over the years how _not_ to be or act. I'm
not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but my goal has been
and is to be the best person I can be, deliver the best possible
product, and help as many as possible _whenever_ possible. I think
with this combination and philosophy success will follow _you_!
--Have your job experiences changed your outlook on music, how it is
used, or how you may use music in the future? If so, how?
It's funny - when you get "outside your box", and go out into the
world _without_ a safety net you start realizing just how many amazing
opportunities there really are out there but had been invisible until
you made the choice to see and investigate new ideas and ways of
thinking.
--Which has more "staying power" in the industry, singers or musical
instrument players?
It really depends upon how resilient your body and mind are. Some
singers can sing great for their whole lives and some burn-out in 2-3
years. Some instrumentalists play through their 80's and 90's, and
then there are those who get carpel-tunnel syndrome or some other
malady that stops their craft. It really depends upon how you treat
your body and mind and how careful you are in life.
--Do you ever get Carpel Tunnel symptoms (I've always wondered how
working musicians care for their hands)?
Yes, I have it and it is irritating sometimes. But working out every
other day in the gym makes it less noticeable. It really doesn't
affect me or my playing, knock on wood!
--Another musician-health question: Do you have tinnitus (ringing in
the ears, often caused by repeated exposure to loud noises)?
I have been fortunate to not have developed it, although why I haven't
is a good question. For years I stood next to a very loud saxophonist
(who shall remain nameless), and the volume really took it's toll on
my ears. Thankfully my ears have stood up against that punishment from
years past. I don't think I will ever (knock on wood) have to worry
about playing music at such loud levels again.
MUSICAL PHILOSOPHY:
--How would you characterize your music? What would you call it?
I think that forcing your music into one or another category can
border on taking yourself too seriously from the consumer's point of
view. Sure, you have to have an identity of what and who you are, but
I think that if you just go with the initial idea of your sound it
will find it's way by itself, without you having to force it down
anyone's throat. I think music can be seen in many stylistic ways, and
why limit yourself? I think it's funny and self-indulgent for jazz
musicians to try and reclassify themselves as "rock" for legitimacy's
sake. It's like those guys in wedding or lounge bands that are balding
but have ponytails, and are still "rocking out" on guitar or whatever
- the image that _they_ have of themselves and what others see are
totally different. Same thing with music; you really have to have the
honesty and the _courage_ to see yourself as realistically as
possible.
But I think it's good driving-around-in-your-car music. It's kind of
the "smooth-jazz" thing, for better or for worse !
--"Smooth Jazz" - That's exactly what I thought when I first heard the
"Moonlight" CD. How do you feel about that characterization, is it
bothersome?
Well at one time, like anything else, it was a compliment to be
considered "smooth-jazz". Now I believe it is definitely not. Just
like when country music was hot with Garth Brooks, now it isn't
anymore. You can't get stuck in one style, you have to move and grow.
I know so many people that refuse to change with life. They stick with
one thing that is comfortable and then rationalize their determination
to be stagnant and lazy. I have to admit that it's an easy thing to
get stuck in if you aren't careful. But it's dangerous, and the times
when I have had the most success are the times I tried to re-invent
myself and what I wanted to do. For example, I'm not a big Madonna
fan, but I admire the fact that she's always looking to improve and
refine what she is doing. She didn't get stuck in one thing and then
tried to live on that forever. I couldn't tell you the last hit she
had or sing the melody of her last single, but as a performer and
artist I commend her on not getting complacent. She is a great example
of what someone can do if they try to think "outside the box".
Some people I know try to formulate their musical output and I think
that's ridiculous, like producing musical "fast-food". The "smooth-
jazz" market and artists that I know are just making glorified
"elevator music" in my opinion. I know that will put some people off
by mesaying that, but the truth is the truth.
For my next CD I will be very conscious of not being "smooth-jazz" as
I think it's an easy thing as a musician to sell-out and default
stylistically. Especially if you've ever had the delusion of grandeur
of being the next Kenny G, David Benoit, or Boney James. It's time for
all the smooth-jazz drones to find something else to do and quick!
THE CIRQUE GIG:
--Have your job experiences changed your outlook on music, how it is
used, or how you may use music in the future? If so, how?
I think my entrance into Cirque made me realize that there are so many
other possibilities in music than I ever realized. It's funny - when
you get "outside your box", and go out into the world _without_ a
safety net you start realizing just how many amazing opportunities
there really are out there but had been invisible until you made the
choice to see and investigate new ideas and ways of thinking. The
music of Benoit Jutras in "O" really struck me as an amazing example
of how combinations of instruments previously thought of as
"uncombinable" have been combined to create an amazing tapestry of
sound and emotion. Benoit is a modern-day genius. What he has done
with the art of composition is really something, and has opened my
eyes a little more to the amazing possibilities of composition and
arranging.
What I think I will get from Cirque on a musical level is a deeper
insight as to how to discover my talents on writing for film and
theater, which is something I have been considering trying my hand at.
It won't be in any way as strong a focus as my work with "O" and won't
be for some time to come. I don't think at this point I could ever
seriously consider a paying career in that but you never know what the
future may hold. In any case, my exposure to the music in Cirque, and
the longer I am around it, will give me more and more education and
initiation into the complex world of film and theater scoring, the
next frontier for me, personally...
--What is the most challenging thing (about being a musician)?
Lately it's been to keep the "O" band in tip-top shape with regards to
making sure that things always stay on the top level quality and
consistency-wise. It's a tough show to play 10 times a week, and
making each one sound as precise and fresh as the very first - it's
harder than you would think. But it's a great challenge and one that I
really enjoy and feel I am successful with.
--You say you've taken much time getting the "O" show together. What
were the difficulties you had to overcome regarding your Musical
Director's job at "O", other than learning how to work the keyboard
setup?
The show was indeed together quite properly. As with the addition of
any new band member, or myself, there was the initial "fitting-in" to
the situation, and that does indeed take some time to settle. I took
quite a bit of time, and still do, to make sure that I continually
study the various acts on stage so that I can more effectively call
the musical sections to them. The better you study the many variations
of what can happen with the acts during a show the better prepared you
are when strange and inevitable things occur (which they sometimes
do!) I don't think you can 100% anticipate what each and every
situation will be like during a show so you constantly try and learn
as much as you can, so that you aren't caught too off-guard when
something out of the ordinary happens.
When I first began the show the whole concept of "calling" sections of
the music verbally to the band as the action occurs was quite new to
me, and completely different from anything I had ever done. Although I
learned the show in about 4-6 weeks time, and was conducting it alone
after 8 weeks, it was quite a challenge to take on the responsibility.
Gaining the confidence of knowing that you can handle with calmness
and control _any_ situation that may arise is the biggest challenge.
Also, getting the rest of the band to trust and have confidence in my
decision-making was something that was very important to establish
from the very start, and I am happy that we all have a very good and
mutually supportive relationship. The band is made up of very
wonderful people. Each member really brings something special and
different to the show and it's the chemistry of the band that really
makes the music work as smoothly as it does. I am very priviledged to
be working with such gifted and wonderful people.
--How do you keep the O band in "tip-top shape"?
Even the L.A. Lakers need constant practice and attention to detail. I
like to think that no matter how great people are doing there is
always something to improve. I take this concept to myself as well.
This band is wonderful and to stay wonderful it requires someone who
cares and tries to always bring out the best in them, both as people
and as musicians. I think that I have been successful in doing this
for the band of "O" and they have been successful in doing that for
me.
--What is the best thing about being a musician?
Sleeping in as late as you want, although I do get up every day at
9:30 A.M. or much earlier lately - insomnia, go figure! Seriously
though, I do feel truly blessed to be able to make a good living doing
this - playing my instrument and making music for money as well as
pleasure. Being a musician has introduced me to the most amazing
people and situations as well.
--What inspires you?
The fact that my professional life has become so successful inspires
me to trust and believe that my personal life will follow suit. I've
always hoped that, professionally, things would go this well.
--What recommendations would you give to young folks just starting
out, musicians who are interested in a *career* in music (as opposed
to those who think they'll make the rare "big splash")? My interest
here is on what one can do when young to make a sustainable living
performing music.
As with anything getting a real foundation in the basics of a craft is
essential to having longevity in the chosen industry. These kids that
just want to "be a star" are living very dangerously. They have no
real skills at the craft, and as a musician I think it's more reliable
and desirable to have a real, tangible ability to perform a service
that cannot be subjective in it's inherent worth. For example; you may
think you're going to be the next Madonna but not everyone else will
think so. But if you spend 20 years becoming a great pianist no one
can dispute that you are a great pianist, if that's what happens from
it. You will most likely always work. But as the next Madonna you may
work, but most likely you will not. It's about choices and about how
much time and effort you are willing to put into something.
I always thought that investing in developing content and quality as a
musician was much smarter than trying to figure out how to fool people
with image and glitz. What I do and what I am as a musician may not be
as "sexy" as what Billy Idol, does but I'm not complaining. I take
great comfort in knowing that, despite what trends may come and go, no
one can dispute that I am a competant player and that I know my stuff.
And this is because of the _time_ and work I have put in and nothing
more. It was a _choice_.
But this has definitely come at a price, a lot of time, sacrifice and
work. But I wouldn't have it any other way. To me you either do
something right or you don't do it at all. To think that you can
depend upon what's "trendy" at the moment to propel you and yourself
to riches and fame is a crapshoot at best.
So - in my long-winded way, to aspiring musicians wanting to have a
long, enjoyable career in the arts I say this: learn the fundamentals,
learn the basics, and learn them well. Do it right from the beginning
and you won't regret it. There is no shortcut. Even if you become an
amazing musician it is still a hard, tough road, full of uncertainty.
And that's where you need to hone your people skills. You need both -
hard work at the basics of your craft and great people skills. One
without the other and you won't make it. And then be prepared to spend
20 years making it happen. And then _keeping_ it happening. I never
let my guard down for a minute. The time I do someone will come in and
move me out. And one more thing to remember: have fun and don't take
it too seriously. Important words. But by all means - learn music and
your craft FOR REAL, not a shortcut via image and fads.
------------------------------------------------------
"CirqueCon 2007: Orlando Updates (Part 2)"
By: Ricky Russo - Orlando, Florida (USA)
------------------------------------------------------
CirqueCon 2007 was held on August 9th through 12th in Orlando, Florida.
As such the updates during this period were quite numerous. In order
to capture the feel of what was originally posted but without
repeating ourselves (and collecting a bunch of unnecessary text), the
update pieces presented here are topical: meaning only certain topics
from the updates, rather than the entire update, is presented here:
°o°) A QUICK NOTE {Jul.02.2007}
This is just a quick note to let everyone know that this Friday
- July 6th - is the deadline to receive our special CirqueCon
rate at our Headquarters Hotel: Port Orleans French Quarter!
after Friday the rate is history - and so are the group ticket
discounts! So if you haven't gotten your room yet, and you're
coming to CirqueCon in Orlando, don't delay!
In our next update, which from this point on will be weekly
(even if we haven't anything new to say), we'll announce the
menu and pricing for our Epcot Dessert Party. We won't have
enough passionates to have dessert 4 catered to us, but if you
still have a preference between desserts 1, 2 and 3, please let
us know. Friday is also the deadline for the dessert party - so
please let us know if you wish to join us!
We also know you're anxious about La Nouba seating and tickets -
we are too! We're waiting for the final decision about prices
from Cirque du Soleil. Just as soon as we know, you'll know!
°o°) LA NOUBA TICKETS - GET'EM NOW! {Jul.17.2007}
We thank everyone for their patience with regards to the
purchase of their seat to La Nouba, we know you've been
anxiously awaiting the news - so wait no longer!
Seating - Where Are We?
-----------------------
As you may know, Cirque du Soleil has had a number of seats
on reserve for our group these past few weeks. And while we
have probably tested your patience mentioning that as often
as we have, permit us to review them for those who may be
new to our group since our last update:
Our seats exist in two sections - 103 (front and center) and
204 (around the sound booth).
Why two? We were advised section 204 represents the best seats
in the house for sound quality and show visuals but we also
recognize there are a great many of you who also like that front
and center experience; therefore, we've reserved seats in both
areas to accommodate everyone's taste! A win-win situation!
So, how many seats do we have available? We have...
42 seats in Category 0, Section 103, Front & Center
27 seats in Category 1, Section 204, Row AA - DD
35 seats in Category 2, Section 204, Row EE - KK
The exact placement of seats in these categories and rows has
not been provided to us; except we can say we do have at least
Row A and C in section 103 and the first few rows in 204 as
part of our block.
Pricing - Okay, How Much?
-------------------------
Because the seating is spread across three different pricing
categories, as you may expect, so is the cost. The prices below
reflect the cost of adults & children (there is no distinction
between the two, sorry) with all taxes added in. And thanks to
Cirque du Soleil, some of our seats have a 15% discount over
normal pricing!
Category 0: Section 103, Front & Center (no discount)
$119.25 w/tax [by Check]
$125.25 w/tax [by PayPal]
Category 1: Section 204, ROW AA - DD (15% discount)
$87.80 w/tax [by Check]
$92.20 w/tax [by PayPal]
Category 2: Section 204, ROW EE - KK (15% discount)
$71.50 w/tax [by Check]
$75.10 w/tax [by PayPal]
Buying - Great, How Do I Get 'Em?
---------------------------------
Why does the cost of tickets by CHECK vs. PAYPAL differ, you
may be wondering?
Because the Orlando Cirque du Soleil box office is not equipped
to handle the volume of individual ticket sales for our group,
CirqueCon is facilitating the sale and distribution of the
tickets this year. This means we can't utilize direct credit
card payments like we could in Las Vegas and since PayPal
levies an approximate 5.0% service charge for each item, we
must charge slightly more to offset PayPal's transaction
charges - much like for the membership fee. We apologize in
advance for this.
We have these two convenient payment options available:
1) CREDIT CARD via PAYPAL
We have our general PAYPAL account for those that wish
to pay via credit card. However, in order to offset
PayPal's transaction charges of 5.0%, tickets are priced
as follows:
Category 0: Section 103, Front & Center (no discount)
$125.25 w/tax [by PayPal]
Category 1: Section 204, ROW AA - DD (15% discount)
$92.20 w/tax [by PayPal]
Category 2: Section 204, ROW EE - KK (15% discount)
$75.10 w/tax [by PayPal]
Please send the total amount for tickets to PAYPAL
account - orlando@cirquecon.com
2) BY CHECK
Tickets paid via CHECK are not subject to the paypal
surcharges, and are priced as follows:
Category 0: Section 103, Front & Center (no discount)
$119.25 w/tax [by Check]
Category 1: Section 204, ROW AA - DD (15% discount)
$87.80 w/tax [by Check]
Category 2: Section 204, ROW EE - KK (15% discount)
$71.50 w/tax [by Check]
Please send the total for each order. Checks should be
made out and sent to:
Keith Johnson
31241 Fourth Avenue South
Federal Way, WA 98003-5203
IMPORTANT - IMPORTANT - IMPORTANT - IMPORTANT
When making your payment, please advise us the NUMBER OF
SEATS you wish to reserve and the CATEGORY (either 0, 1 or 2)
in which you wish to sit.
Due to the limited availability in some categories, seating
choices will be filled on a FIRST PAID, FIRST SERVED basis.
Email us your selections at: orlando@cirquecon.com
DEADLINE -- The deadline for purchasing your Cirque tickets
is Tuesday, July 31st at 11:59pm Eastern Time. We apologize
for the quick turn-around time, but our weekend is fast
approaching! So please hurry! Any remaining seats will be
returned to Cirque du Soleil after the 31st - once they're
gone, they're gone!
COOL - Now What?
----------------
That's it! Once we receive your payment your seat reservations
become final and you're set to sit in your selected category so
long as we have the available seating. If your preferred seats
or category are sold out we will make every attempt to contact
you straight away. If we are unable to make contact with you,
we will place you in the next seating category and refund the
ticket difference (based on the form of payment).
Some other things to consider...
Seating Assignments -- Because CirqueCon is facilitating the
ticket distribution this year, we have a little say over what
seats you get. We will make every attempt to accommodate your
seating preferences, but we cannot guarantee certain or any
arrangements.
Deadline -- Once again, the deadline for purchasing your La
Nouba seats through us is 11:59pm ET, Tuesday, July 31st. Any
remaining unclaimed and unpaid for seats will be returned to
Cirque du Soleil!
Ticket Distribution -- You can pick up your tickets during our
scheduled open registration times and before the show.
Don't forget that our official show is scheduled for Saturday,
August 11th at 9:00pm.
°o°) LA NOUBA TICKET QUICK REMINDER {Jul.24.2007}
This update is just a quick reminder that there's only one week
left for Orlando CirqueCon passionates to reserve their La Nouba
seats through us. There are still plenty of choice seats
available; grab yours while you can - don't delay!
Category 0 (103, Front & Center) -- 19 seats left
Category 1 (204, ROW AA - DD) -- 25 seats left
Category 2 (204, ROW EE - KK) -- 39 seats left
After 11:59pm Eastern Time on Tuesday, July 31st, all ticket
sales will end - remaining seats will be given back to Cirque du
Soleil,so get yours today!
°o°) LA NOUBA TICKET REMINDER: 2 MORE DAYS {Jul.27.2007}
Greetings, fellow Cirquesters.
TWO MORE DAYS UNTIL THE LA NOUBA TICKET OFFER COMES TO AN END!
This update is just a quick reminder that there's only two more
days left for Orlando CirqueCon passionates to reserve their La
Nouba seats through us. There are still plenty of choice seats
available; grab yours while you can - don't delay!
Category 0 (103, Front & Center) -- 18 seats left
Category 1 (204, ROW AA - DD) -- 25 seats left
Category 2 (204, ROW EE - KK) -- 37 seats left
After 11:59pm Eastern Time on Tuesday, July 31st, all ticket
sales will end - remaining seats will be given back to Cirque du
Soleil, so get yours today!
°o°) CIRQUECON 2007 ORLANDO T-SHIRT, WHERE?! {Jul.30.2007}
They were quite popular with our passionates last year in
Las Vegas, and some of you have asked us about them again
this year - so where are those CirqueCon T-Shirts?!
Unfortunately, due to the short development time Rich and
I have had for CirqueCon 2007, we didn't have enough time
to finalize a logo design for T-shirt production; therefore,
we couldn't offer one this year through the vendor we used
last year - there wouldn't have been enough lead time for
printing and shipping.
BUT, our Graphics Guy has a solution for those who are
a little adventurous - make your own! And I'll let him tell
you how to do that in his own words: take it away Rich!
* * *
To create a T-Shirt using the CirqueCon 2007: Orlando!
official graphic, simply navigate to the picture on the
web site (www.cirquecon.com/2007/tshirt.htm), click on the
thumbnail, and choose to save the full image to your
computer of choice. Once saved on your computer, load the
graphic in your favorite graphic software (a Paint program or
even Microsoft Word), print the picture on Color Ink Jet
printer using a special "Dark T-shirt Transfer Paper".
Once printed, follow the instructions that came with the
transfer paper to iron the image onto a T-Shirt.
The "Special Dark T-shirt Transfer" paper is readily
available from office supply and craft stores. The brand
I use often is Avery, their part number is 3279, the name of
the product is "Dark T-Shirt Transfers" and I have had great
success with any number of different ink jet printers. This
product does NOT require any special ink for the printer
and, can be ironed on a shirt with a standard household iron.
The only trick I've learned is when washing a shirt, turn the
shirt inside out for washing and drying and, dry on medium
heat.
* * *
We do apologize that we didn't have the official CirqueCon
2007 graphic available for T-shirt processing earlier, but
for those of you interested in showing your CirqueCon
passion, here's the way you can do it!
Find the graphic on our page dedicated to the T-Shirt,
< http://www.cirquecon.com/2007/tshirt.htm >.
°o°) LA NOUBA TICKETS - DONE DEAL {Aug.04.2007}
Our special 15% discount offer on selected category tickets
for La Nouba has ended as of July 31st, and we wish to thank
everyone for their participation and quick response.
At this time we are unable to take any further orders for
La Nouba tickets. You can still purchase tickets to our
"official" show in the following three ways; however, normal
pricing and seating applies:
(1) Online at: https://www.omniticket.net/cds/
(2) By Phone: 407.939.7600
(3) In Person: at the La Nouba Box Office
For those passionates who purchased seats through us, you
will be able to pick up your tickets during our scheduled
open registration times and, of course, just before the
show. See either Ricky or Rich!
°o°) GROUP MEAL @ HOUSE OF BLUES {Aug.04.2007}
+--------------------------------+
| |
| Saturday, August 11th |
| 6:30pm to 8:30pm |
| HOUSE OF BLUES |
| |
| $47.00 per person |
| |
+--------------------------------+
Just a few short days ago we announced that we had been
working very hard to find a venue for our traditional
CirqueCon group meal, and as such had been speaking with
the House of Blues located just a stone's throw away from
the front of the Cirque du Soleil theater at Downtown
Disney West Side. We've been able to work through the
paperwork, and they're quite excited to be working with
us!
The response to our initial group meal email has been
excellent, therefore we are pleased to announce that we've
hit our minimum requirements and we'll be having our group
meal at the House of Blues!
There's still time to join us if you're undecided, but
please don't delay - we will finalize our reservation on
Monday, August 6th; therefore, we'll need to know our
final count by 11:59pm Eastern Time, Sunday August 5th!
NOTE: You MUST tell us in advance. We will be unable to
accomodate walk-ups.
MENU
------
* FIRST COURSE *
House of Blues Salad
Traditional Salad with Iceberg Lettuce, Red Cabbage,
Red Onions, Diced Tomatoes, Croutons and Ranch Dressing
-AND-
Rosemary Corn Muffins (2 Per Person)
With Maple Butter
* SECOND COURSE *
Creole Jambalaya
With Shrimp, Chicken, Andouille Sausage, Tasso Ham and
Roasted Green Onions
-OR-
Cajun Meatloaf
Wild Mushroom Gravy, Mashed Potatoes and Sautéed
Vegetables
-OR-
Grilled Marinated Rosemary Chicken Breast
With a Savory Andouille-Corn Bread Pudding, Pinot Noir
Reduction and Sautéed Vegetables
(Vegetarian option available upon request)
* THIRD COURSE *
Sinful Triple Layer Chocolate Cake
Served with Chocolate Sauce and Vanilla Ice Cream
HOW TO PAY?
-------------
For those who have already committed, please email us your
selection for the second course (a.k.a. the entrée) if
you haven't already done so. We will need this in advance
so our hosts at the House of Blues knows how many of each
plate to prepare. So please let us know!
We have these two convenient payment options available:
1) CREDIT CARD via PAYPAL
We have our general PAYPAL account for those that
wish to pay via credit card. Please send $47.00
(which includes all taxes and charges) to our
PAYPAL account - orlando@cirquecon.com.
2) BY CHECK OR CASH
Since we have vert little time until the start of
our event, we will accept checks or cash in person
on site.
That's it! We'll see you there. Come hungry!
°o°) ACTIVITIES IN THE LA NOUBA THEATER {Aug.04.2007}
There are just a few tiny little details to finish up,
which will happen in the next couple of days, but we just
couldn't wait to tell you something!
In our published "tentative" itinerary, we set aside
Saturday afternoon for a possible Cirque du Soleil
activity; while the exact time has yet to be determined,
it looks like that is going to happen and it's going to
be VERY COOL! Be sure to keep that time slot open, you
won't want to miss it!
After that activity, we'll want to gather our group of
passionates together at the Cirque du Soleil sign on the
La Nouba Theater for a Group Photo with our own cameras
(likely one of many to be taken this day...*cough*), then
assemble at the House of Blues for our Group Meal.
We'll eat, drink and be merry, then assemble for the 9:00pm
performance of La Nouba. After the show (that's right,
AFTER), stay in your seats because we'll be doing a few
"little" things with some *ahem* folks. So don't make
plans to leave immediately after the show! You REALLY
won't want to miss this!
With all Cirque du Soleil activities on Saturday you will
need to have your badge on your person. For the afternoon
activity you will just need a badge; for the "after show"
activity, you will need both your badge and a ticket for
the 9:00pm performance. We will be unable to let anyone
into the theater after the show.
Remember though, with all things Cirque it is subject to
change, but we are very excited!
°o°) YOUR PROGRAMME PACKET {Aug.07.2007}
CirqueCon 2007: Orlando is right upon us, and we're just
as excited to be hosting you as you are in joining us! In
just a short couple of days you'll be registering with us,
and we'd like to take a moment to tell you what to expect
upon check-in and, of course, what to check for just to
make sure all of your credentials are in-line.
(1) Programme Book per membership, containing articles and
briefs about La Nouba, the theater in which the show plays,
and other exciting experiences with the show and Cirque du
Soleil.
(1) Disney Resort brochure, containing maps and teasers
for all of Disney World's properties, including the theme
parks, water parks, Downtown Disney, hotels and other places
to play on WDW property. You'll want to take this with you!
(1) "World of Cirque" Adventure Souvenir Button Package,
containing a quest for those looking for a little extra fun
while wandering Epcot. Answer all the questions about the
World Showcase pavilions correctly and receive a very special
button! Everyone is a winner!
And, of course, Rich's wonderfully made buttons just for
our event!
Other items to look for are based on your attendance to
these following activities:
o) Epcot Dessert Party - Passionates who have signed up to
take part in our Epcot Dessert Party, please find a
"D-Ticket" (that's "D" for Dessert!) for each member of
your group, and a wrist band. The "D-Ticket" is your
keepsake for joining us at this event; however, in order
to be escorted to the party's location, please make
sure you are wearing the wristband. This wristband will
let the Event Guides and other Epcot Catering staff know
you are part of the Dessert Party group.
o) La Nouba Group Show - Passionates who have purchased
seats to La Nouba through CirqueCon should find one
ticket for each member of their group - totaling the
amount of your order - for our group's show at 9:00pm on
the evening of Saturday, August 11th. It is imperative
you keep these tickets safe as we cannot provide
replacements!
o) Group Meal, House of Blues - Passionates who have signed
up to join us at the House of Blues for dinner on
Saturday afternoon should also find a Dinner Ticket as
a keepsake for each member of your group.
If you've signed up for any of these events and do not
find your tickets, wristbands or other necessary items,
please find us immediately.
°o°) CAN I STILL SIGN UP FOR CIRQUECON EVENTS? {Aug.07.2007}
Unfortunately RSVP for all our events (Epcot Dessert Party,
Group Meal at House of Blues, and seats to La Nouba through
us) has ended. We apologize, but at this time we are unable
to take any further orders - special or otherwise - for any
of our ticketed events.
BUT!
You can still purchase tickets directly to our "official"
showing of La Nouba in the following three ways:
(1) Online at: https://www.omniticket.net/cds/
(2) By Phone: 407.939.7600
(3) In Person: at the La Nouba Box Office
Please note: ticketing and payment for these seats will be
handled directly through the Cirque du Soleil Box Office.
CirqueCon cannot guarantee any seating availability or
arrangements for tickets purchased through the Cirque du
Soleil box office.
For those passionates who purchased seats through us, you
will be able to pick up your tickets during our scheduled
open registration times and, of course, just before the
show. See either Ricky or Rich!
°o°) CIRQUECON ACTIVITIES - WHERE TO BE? {Aug.07.2007}
Epcot Dessert Party --
Time: Friday, August 10th @ 8:30pm
Location: United Kingdom Pavilion, Epcot
Epcot Dessert Party "D-Ticket" holders, meet Ricky in
the United Kingdom pavilion at Epcot near the
Fish'n'Chips stand by at least 8:20pm. Please make sure
you are wearing your Disney provided wristband for this
event (provided at time of registration) as this
wristband will let the event guides and other Epcot
catering staff know you are part of this party. We
cannot guarantee your admittance if you are not wearing
your wristband!
NOTE: Entry into Epcot is not provided by CirqueCon.
Your wristband does not act as an entry ticket. Payment
for the Epcot Dessert Party does not grant you access to
the park. Please have a valid park ticket or pass to
enter!
Need a map? Take a look at the location on our website:
www.cirquecon.com/2007/social.htm
Oh, and what are we having?
Dessert 4: Deluxe
A Variety of Miniature Stemware Glassed to include Classic
Tiramisu, English Trifle, Fresh Fruit and Berries; Pastry
Selections in Miniature to include: Fresh Fruit Tartlet,
Vanilla Cream Filled Pastry Horns, Chocolate Éclairs,
Chocolate and Pistachio Cannoli; Beverages: Coffee,
Decaffeinated Coffee, Hot Tea and Fruit Punch
Group Meal: House of Blues --
Time: Saturday, August 11th @ 6:30pm
Location: House of Blues, Downtown Disney
Group Meal ticket holders (those who have signed on for
the Group Meal will have a special Group Meal ticket in
your registration packet), please meet outside of the
House of Blues no later than 6:30pm. The meal will be
served starting 6:45pm so we want to be set and ready!
The House of Blues is located just outside of the Cirque
du Soleil theater - you can't miss it!
Group Show: La Nouba! --
Time: Saturday, August 11th @ 9:00pm
Location: Cirque du Soleil Theater, Downtown Disney
For those passionates who have purchased their seat for
our group show of La Nouba, please make sure you have
tickets in hand and meet us out front of the theater! We
will be seated by 8:45pm, so please make sure you have
your ticket!!
Activities at the Cirque du Soleil Theater --
Time: To Be Determined
Location: Cirque du Soleil Theater, Downtown Disney
For our afternoon activities, please meet at the
staircase in front of the Cirque du Soleil Box Office.
For our evening activity, please stay in your seats
after the show! Remember to bring your CirqueCon
2007 badge with you - you must have this to take
part in our activities!
°o°) WDW TRANSPORTATION QUICK FAQS {Aug.07.2007}
Q. HOW DO I GET TO AND FROM THE AIRPORT?
Getting to and from Orlando International Airport couldn't
be easier. For CirqueCon attendees staying with us at Port
Orleans: French Quarter using the group code above, Disney
provides Disney's Magical Express -- a free service that
will shuttle Disney Resort guests to and from the airport.
They will pick up your bags and transport them to your room
-- there's no waiting at the airport (except for the bus.)
In order to take advantage of this fabulous service, you
must request it at the time you reserve your room so don't
forget!
Q. HOW DO I GET TO AND FROM DOWNTOWN DISNEY/LA NOUBA?
There are two (2) ways you can reach Downtown Disney West
Side from Port Orleans: French Quarter, they are: 1) via
free Disney Resort Bus, which has pickups at various points
around the resort, and 2) via Water Launch, a boat from the
central building's dock straight to Downtown Disney.
If you need further information about Disney World
transportation alternatives, visit their online FAQ:
< http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/common/helpFAQ?
id=HelpFAQTransportationPage >
°o°) WDW PARK INFORMATION {Aug.07.2007}
Planning on visiting one of the parks during your stay with us
at CirqueCon 2007: Orlando? If so, we have the expected park
Operating Hours and Parade/Fireworks schedule times just for
you! Please remember to check your park's guide map and times
sheet upon arrival as these hours are subject to change and
parades/firework shows can be canceled due to inclement weather
conditions at any time.
°o°) EXPECTED PARK HOURS
.) Magic Kingdom
Th/09th - 9:00am to 11:00pm (EMH)
Fr/10th - 9:00am to 11:00pm (EMH)
Sa/11th - 9:00am to 7:00pm
Su/12th - 9:00am to 11:00pm (EMH)
.) Epcot
Th/09th - 9:00am to 9:00pm (EMH)
Fr/10th - 9:00am to 9:00pm
Sa/11th - 9:00am to 9:00pm
Su/12th - 9:00am to 9:00pm (EMH)
.) Disney/MGM Studios:
Th/09th - 9:00am to 9:00pm
Fr/10th - 9:00am to 9:00pm (EMH)
Sa/11th - 9:00am to 9:00pm
Su/12th - 9:00am to 8:30pm
.) Animal Kingdom
Th/09th - 9:00am to 7:00pm
Fr/10th - 9:00am to 7:00pm
Sa/11th - 9:00am to 7:00pm (EMH)
Su/12th - 9:00am to 6:00pm
.) Typhoon Lagoon (Water Park)
Th/09th - 9:00am to 8:00pm (EMH)
Fr/10th - 9:00am to 8:00pm (EMH)
Sa/11th - 9:00am to 8:00pm (EMH)
Su/12th - 9:00am to 7:00pm (EMH)
°o°) PARADES & FIREWORKS SCHEDULE
.) Magic Kingdom:
03:00pm = Disney Dreams Come True Parade
09:00pm = Spectromagic! Parade
10:00pm = Wishes Nighttime Spectacular
11:00pm = Spectromagic! Parade
.) Epcot:
09:00pm = Illuminations: Reflections of Earth
.) Disney/MGM Studios:
03:00pm = Disney Stars and Motorcars Parade
09:00pm = Fantasmic!
.) Animal Kingdom:
04:00pm = Mickey's Jammin Jungle Parade
Q. What is EMH?
A. EMH stands for Extra Magic Hours (not Emergency Medical
Hologram for you Star Trek fans) and is an exclusive benefit
of Disney Resort guests!
Each day one of the Disney Theme Parks opens an hour early or
stays open up to three hours after regular Park closing, so
Disney Resort Guests (with valid resort ID) can enjoy easy
access to select attractions - even the most popular ones! With
Extra Magic Hours, you can make the most of your vacation time
and see and do everything at an easy, relaxed pace.
If you want to take advantage of this benefit and have a Magic
Your Way Base Ticket, your Theme Park selection must be the Park
offering the Extra Magic Hours benefit that day. Remember, you
can only visit one Theme Park per day with the Magic Your Way
Base Ticket. To get the most out of the Extra Magic Hours
benefit, just add the Park Hopper(r) Option to your ticket. Then
you can go from Theme Park to Theme Park on the same day,
including whichever Park has Extra Magic Hours.
What's open?
°o°) Magic Kingdom Park
.) Mornings: Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin,
Cinderella's Golden Carrousel, Dumbo the Flying
Elephant, "it's a small world", The Many Adventures of
Winnie the Pooh, Mickey's PhilharMagic, Peter Pan's
Flight, Space Mountain, Stitch's Great Escape!,
Tomorrowland Indy Speedway.
.) Evenings: Includes attractions listed above and Big
Thunder Mountain Railroad, The Haunted Mansion, The
Magic Carpets of Aladdin, Pirates of the Caribbean,
Splash Mountain.
°o°) Epcot
.) Mornings: Living with the Land, Mission: SPACE,
Soarin', Spaceship Earth, Test Track.
.) Evenings: Includes attractions listed above and Honey,
I Shrunk the Audience, Journey Into Imagination With
Figment, Mexico-Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three
Caballeros, Norway-Maelstrom, The American Adventure.
°o°) Disney-MGM Studios
.) Mornings: Muppet Vision 3-D, Rock 'n' Roller Coaster
Starring Aerosmith, Star Tours, The Twilight Zone Tower
of Terror.
.) Evenings: Includes attractions listed above and The
Great Movie Ride, Voyage of The Little Mermaid.
°o°) Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park
.) Mornings: DINOSAUR, Expedition Everest, It's Tough to
be a Bug!, Kilimanjaro Safaris, Pangani Forest
Exploration Trail.
.) Evenings: DINOSAUR, Expedition Everest, Festival of the
Lion King, It's Tough to be a Bug!, Kali River Rapids,
Primeval Whirl, TriceraTop Spin.
°o°) WEATHER CONDITIONS {Aug.07.2007}
We recognize that August presents weather challenges: daily
afternoon thunderstorms are the norm, August is the middle of
the Atlantic Hurricane season, and temperatures and humidity
soar. While these weather phenomenons do pose as challenges, we
hope these will not be deterrents. There are plenty of indoor
locations both inside and outside the parks to get out of the
sun and into an air-conditioned setting - such as: the resort
pool, AMC Movie Theater complex, stores and shops at Downtown
Disney Marketplace, other WDW resorts (check out Animal Kingdom
Lodge, the Contemporary, Polynesian, and Pop Century) and even
our resort's main house!
For the weather conscious, here are some high and lows from last
year to give you an idea of what to expect in August:
/-----------------------------\
| 2006 Temperatures |
+--------+------+------+------+
| Date | High | Low | Hum. |
+--------+------+------+------+
| AUG 09 | 93°F | 72°F | 94% |
| AUG 10 | 95°F | 72°F | 100% |
| AUG 11 | 95°F | 74°F | 94% |
| AUG 12 | 96°F | 74°F | 94% |
\-----------------------------/
°o°) FINAL PRE-EVENT UPDATE {Aug.08.2007}
Greetings Cirquesters!
This is the final evening before our exciting weekend-long
adventure begins at Walt Disney World. Rich and I have already
been down to the French Quarter and I must say, its fabulous. I
cannot wait to explore this resort and the rest of Walt Disney
World beginning tomorrow evening!
We know many of you will be coming in throughout the afternoon
and evening; therefore, we've changed our open registration time
on Thursday to 6:00pm until approximately 8:00pm. Then we'll
break and everyone can grab a bite to eat, mingle about, and
do whatever they feel. You'll probably not want to stay out too
late, though, for Friday will come early and I know you'll want
to get an early start park hopping!
Catch Thursday's Registration at Room 4234 (that's building 4,
floor 2, room 34) from 6:00pm until 8:00pm. Rich will kick off
the celebration and then I'll join him a bit later after I come
from the airport and get settled.
There's a last-minute schedule conflict regarding our Activities
at the Cirque du Soleil theater on that Saturday afternoon, but
don't worry, once we get that worked out I'll have a full
schedule for you - you'll get it on site!
We're very excited and ready to have a great time. Are you? We
hope so!
This is it. We'll see you there!
Ricky & Rich
------------------------------------------------------
"Cirque and the Future of Entertainment" [EXPANDED]
By: Christopher Hogg, Digital Journal
------------------------------------------------------
As the lights dim inside the blue and yellow tent, Corteo, the 17th
production from Cirque du Soleil, begins with soft, inviting music. A
rotating stage splits the audience in two, one half facing the other.
A massive arched steel structure dominates the interior of le grand
chapiteau, with rails transporting scenic and acrobatic materials 41
feet above. The stage is flanked by two enormous hand-painted baroque-
style curtains, and the band is separated into four groups, each on a
corner of the stage.
The show begins with a fabulously strange mix of characters 56
artists from 13 countries make up the cast of clowns, angels, little
people and giants.
The story of a clown who envisions his own funeral happening in a
carnival atmosphere, Corteo blends aerial dance, juggling, gymnastics,
tumbling and high-wire walking.
The show features oddities like a man who can whistle classical music,
hitting notes higher than most opera singers; a two-and-a-half-foot
tall woman, buoyed by three giant helium balloons, being tossed around
the audience like a beach ball; and a number of acrobatic acts, such
as a barefoot woman riding a unicycle on a high wire and four female
aerialists twirling from chandeliers the size of large trucks.
I immediately find myself both distracted and allured by all that is
happening on stage. Corteo (like every Cirque production) has so much
going on at once you need five pairs of eyes to catch everything.
Characters wearing elaborate costumes made from 900 different fabrics
flip, twist and cartwheel across the stage. Angels dangle from wire
rigging above, while a live band plays beautifully orchestrated music.
Its a full-blown assault on the senses, and it happens almost
immediately.
This is Cirque du Soleil: the ultimate live production. It is a
culmination of arts, acrobatics and action, and very simply, the
future of entertainment.
FROM SMALL TOWN TO SIN CITY
Everything began with a group of street performers in the early 1980s
in Baie-Saint-Paul, a small town near Quebec City, Canada. There,
stilt-walkers, jugglers and fire-eaters were part of a street theatre
group founded by Gilles Ste-Croix (Cirque du Soleils current vice-
president of creation). One of the theatre groups performers, Guy
Laliberté, would later become founder and CEO of the multibillion-
dollar entertainment company, Cirque du Soleil.
In 1984, Quebec City was celebrating the 450th anniversary of Jacques
Cartiers first voyage to Canada, and the city needed a show to
celebrate the event. Laliberté proposed a show he called Cirque du
Soleil and convinced organizers to fund the event. A revolution in
entertainment was born that day.
When the company began, it had only 73 employees. It has since boomed
into a business of more than 3,000 staff, including more than 800
artists.
To date, Cirque has attracted more than 50 million spectators almost
seven million people will see a Cirque show this year and has 11
shows running worldwide. Its touring shows have made nearly 250 stops
in more than 100 cities around the world, and fans keep coming back
40 per cent of Cirque spectators have already seen at least one Cirque
show.
Over the next few years, the company also plans on implementing a
permanent show in many large cities around the world, including Tokyo,
Montreal, New York, London, Paris and Miami (to name a few).
Laliberté, who began as a busker, is now a billionaire.
Constant touring, combined with a strong presence in Las Vegas, has
kindled the companys exploding popularity. In Vegas, Cirque has four
full-time shows in theatres built specially for them.
Cirque not only dominates Vegas, it has transformed the citys entire
economy. In 1999, non-gaming revenue (including hotel stays, food and
entertainment) surpassed gaming revenue for the first time in the
citys history.
Today, Vegas is celebrated as North Americas heart of live
entertainment; Celine Dion pulls in up to $2.8 million (all figures in
U.S. dollars) per week, Elton John averages about $720,000 a show and
Jerry Seinfeld grossed $1.2 million in three sold-out shows this past
June.
Cirque du Soleil, however, overshadows all of the above. With roughly
10,000 people a night paying between $60 and $150 to see a Cirque
show, the companys earnings work out to about $1.5 million per day.
Its a staggering number considering that in 1990, when Cirque was
initially setting up in Vegas, investors were worried the show might
not take off. At that time, the average Sin City tourist was Mr. and
Mrs. Retiree travelling from Middle America to play slots or roulette.
Showgoers ventured out to see Siegfried and Roy, but a Cirque-style
show had never been done. Even Cirque executives thought the idea
risky, including Ste-Croix who experienced culture shock when he first
arrived in Vegas in 1989.
Knowing the risks, the company decided to take the gamble. Its first
show, Mystère, was a sellout within 10 days of opening.
In his usual passionate voice flavoured with a French-Canadian accent,
Laliberté told 60 Minutes: We had contributed this city to grow
culturally, artistically. We had proved that people could be
sophisticated.
Since Cirques opening in Vegas, the city has undergone a serious
makeover, changing its image as a haven for sleazy lounge acts and
over-the-hill headliners into a family-friendly entertainment hub that
attracts wealthier, younger, classier tourists.
While location is one reason Cirque has blossomed into a cultural
phenomenon, its the show itself that keeps people talking.
THE MAIN EVENT
Cirque du Soleil is one of the few live entertainment companies that
has virtually no critics. There is little to complain about when a
troupe pulls off shows that are well choreographed, superbly directed
and performed almost flawlessly every time.
One of the successes of Cirque du Soleil, and most certainly Guy
Laliberté, is to have made possible the coexistence of business and
art within the same company, says Chantal Côté, the companys senior
publicist. When Cirque du Soleil began to be successful, Guy
Laliberté wanted to reinvest the profits to diversify and plan for the
future. Innovation and risk-taking proved to be the solution.
Like every corporation, Cirque is only as good as its people, which is
why the company has agents combing the world for talent, discovering
acrobats and tumblers in a variety of places, from the smallest circus
in Israel to the biggest spectacle in Athens the Olympics. In fact,
75 per cent of Cirque performers are plucked from competitive sports
and trained to become artists. Performers train at the Montreal
headquarters for about six months before a show, where they not only
practice acrobatics, but learn to sing, act and play music.
Cirque employs 20 trainers to supervise performers during training
programs, and physiotherapists and fitness specialists work on site to
keep the artists in good health.
Even the musicians undergo training. Kit Chatham, percussionist for
Corteo, was sent to Montreal to develop music for the show and to take
acting classes. Almost the entire cast for Corteo had been in training
for about one year, but when 28-year-old Chatham joined the team in
January 2005, he was immediately asked to compose music for the show.
Weve had some unbelievable songs, but they dont quite fit the act,
says Chatham. We constantly redesign to make the music completely
fit.
Because musicians are split up into groups while performing, the band
had to come up with new ways to communicate with each other, timing
the music based on the acrobats movements.
We have to feel the performance, says Chatham, and slow down or
speed up based on how we feel. You lose visual communication when you
do this type of thing and thats what makes this job tough.
In addition to training performers, the studio is responsible for
developing new equipment and acrobatic techniques, and coaches and
riggers are always conducting new research.
Cirque rarely does market surveys to determine what people want to
see. If we did that, we would be following trends, which is precisely
what we do not want to do, says Côté. Well do minor adjustments
according the publics reaction, but well never make drastic changes.
Somehow, weve always managed to stay ahead of peoples expectations.
Cirque will even put tickets on sale before naming the show or
providing a description. However, this rarely has a negative effect on
sales.
The time and investment the company puts into set design is another
factor in its tremendous success. For example, Cirque spent $165
million to build a theatre for Kà, which plays at the MGM Grand Hotel
in Vegas. There are entire hotels in Vegas that have been built for
less. The 1,950-seat theatre has no traditional stage. Instead, the
audience faces a seemingly bottomless, smoke-filled pit.
The theatres most unique element is its two gigantic moving
platforms. The Sand Cliff Deck platform measures 25 by 50 feet and
weighs in at 80,000 pounds. It is controlled by a crane attached to
four 75-foot-long hydraulic cylinders that can simultaneously lift the
platform, rotate it 360 degrees and tilt 110 degrees.
This innovation allows Cirque to produce chase sequences, for
instance, where the stage tilts at 12 degrees per second, throwing
artists 60 feet into air bags below. And with high-tech lighting and
infrared-sensitive cameras that track movement, the technical staff
blend in an intricate mix of computer-generated effects that turn the
set into a living cinema screen.
Even the pre-show takes an over-the-big-top approach, with more than a
hundred 30-foot-wide fireballs exploding in the theatre.
While the technology in Kà is impressive, it is by no means the only
Cirque show with incredible scenes; O features an Olympic-sized pool
in which the artists perform, and Zumanity blends dance, acrobatics
and semi-nude artists to create an adult-themed performance.
Cirque recently made a deal with Apple Corps to produce a show that
celebrates the musical legacy of The Beatles, opening in 2006 at the
Mirage Hotel. This joint venture marks the first time Apple Corps (The
Beatles label) has agreed to a major theatrical partnership.
We want to bring the magic of Cirque du Soleil together with the
spirit and passion behind the most beloved rock band of all time to
create a single, simple statement of delight, says Laliberté.
The Beatles producer, George Martin, will oversee the music element
of the show, and the venture has been approved by Paul McCartney,
Ringo Starr, Yoko Ono and Olivia Harrison.
Beginning in January 2006, Cirque will also make an unprecedented move
to the realm of live concerts. The performances will draw on the
companys vast music catalogue and will involve innovative stage
techniques and video projections. The company even admits it might not
stop there. Côté said they are interested in magic shows, live comedy,
even Ice Capade-type shows.
THE FUTURE IS CIRQUE-ISH
With its impact on business, its recruitment of the worlds best
talent, its diversity of shows and its constant movement forward,
Cirque is clearly a leader in the entertainment industry.
Across North America, ballet and opera have seen a decline in
attendance. Both are classical forms of entertainment, and both are
niche. The same goes for many Broadway shows, musicals and plays.
Although some Broadway hits can sell out for months on end, that pales
in comparison to Cirques Mystère, which has been running at the same
scale for 14 years.
Progress is important for the future of any business, and in the
entertainment industry there are many companies that can learn from
Cirque its combination of ballet, opera, comedy, dance, acrobatics
and gymnastics opens the appeal to a larger audience, resulting in a
lasting impact. From a clown imagining his own funeral (Corteo), to a
twin boy and girl being hunted relentlessly by archers and spearmen
through vast landscapes of ice, water and fire (Kà), Cirque du
Soleils shows elicit widely different feelings by its sheer range of
content and execution.
Almost everyone even those who have never seen a show has heard of
Cirque du Soleil.
Its constant presence and movement around the world make Cirque a
fresh headline in many daily newspapers and propel the companys image
forward. The company never appears stagnant. Few companies can compare
to Cirque du Soleil on a financial scale, and few shows have the
ability to continually shock audiences and leave critics speechless.
Cirque du Soleil is an obvious benchmark for what is to come in the
future.
One day, perhaps we will see the company evolve and spread into every
aspect of performing arts. Perhaps there will be a Cirque du Soleil
school for opera, ballet or comedy, and athletes will get scholarships
for applying clown makeup creatively. Perhaps even Hollywood will
start adding acrobatics to feature films to ensure all shows are
entirely different, and audiences wont be forced to watch complete
ripoffs of last years hits.
Whatever the possibilities, the history of entertainment will
definitely dictate the future, and Cirque du Soleil is the act people
will be watching.
IN CONVERSATION WITH CIRQUE'S GILLES STE-CROIX
As vice-president of creation and new project development for Cirque
du Soleil, there are always many eyes on Gilles Ste-Croix. Ste-Croix
leads the creative team responsible for every concept Cirque presents
to the admiring public, from artwork to acrobatics. Digital Journal
Editor-in-Chief, Christopher Hogg, spoke with Ste-Croix to find out
where his creativity comes from.
Digital Journal: What inspires you?
Gilles Ste-Croix: Pretty much anything. I love magazines and buy them
to look at the images. That will sometimes trigger the beginning of an
idea. Once the theme of the show is established and the specific
characters are defined, the members of the creative team look into
fashion or art magazines and websites for lines, fabrics, textures. It
could also be a specific artistic discipline or trend like the martial
arts, extreme sports, African tribal dance, urban breakdance style,
etc. Everyone has eyes and ears for anything that can nourish their
work.
Digital Journal: What is the biggest challenge in creating Cirque du
Soleil shows?
Gilles Ste-Croix: The biggest challenge for us is to successfully
break new ground with each show we are creating. As we do not have any
comparison point for what we do, because there is no other
entertainment company like ours, we take a creative risk each time. At
the same time, this is our biggest motivation.
Digital Journal: Shows like Kà involve some unprecedented technology.
Do you think this type of theatre will be more widespread in the
future?
Gilles Ste-Croix: Not at Cirque du Soleil, it wont. I cannot really
talk for the entertainment business in general, but at Cirque du
Soleil, as I explained, we do not want to make the same kind of show
twice. Kà is unique and will remain as such in comparison with all our
other shows. Despite technology, Cirque du Soleil shows need human
energy and human contact with the spectator in order to be successful.
Digital Journal: How do you think Cirque du Soleil will change in the
future?
Gilles Ste-Croix: Cirque du Soleil will continue to work with
different creators from various backgrounds so that the company keeps
refreshing itself and exploring new ground. I wish that in 50 years my
children would bring their own children to a Cirque du Soleil show and
see that it keeps changing the world of entertainment.
------------------------------------------------------
"Cirque: The Greatest Canadian Company?" [EXPANDED]
By: Konrad Yakabuski, The Globe and Mail
------------------------------------------------------
The traffic in and out of the parking lot is backed up beyond view.
But no one, on this steamy July evening at a suburban Quebec City
shopping centre, is here for the sales at La Baie or Sears. Even the
most radical end-of-season markdowns are no match for the blue-and-
yellow big top nearby. The Cirque has come to town. And not just any
town.
The Cirque du Soleil had its coming-out here in 1984, an ad hoc array
of street performers banding together to put on a show. That was 70
million spectators ago. Now the slick entertainment machine whose
trunks bear stamps from Vegas to Shanghai has come home with Kooza,
the newest of its ever-expanding stable of thrill-a-second shows. From
the fancy porta-potties with running water to the mesmerizingly staged
acrobatics, backed up by a live orchestra and original score, this is
blockbuster theatre, without a carny in sight. You can't blame the
hometown crowd for being easily won over.
Still, Kooza may or may not live up to its billing as an exploration
of "fear, identity recognition and power." For Canada's biggest
cultural export, a somersault is never just a somersault-it must mean
something. In Kooza, now half-way through a two-month run in Toronto,
the flip might represent "the duality between good and bad." In
Quidam, the 11-year-old touring show that just made history by playing
in China-the acrobatic equivalent of fruitfully carrying coal to
Newcastle-it might connote the "nameless person who lives lost amidst
the crowd in an all-too anonymous society." Indeed, there is no
concept too lofty for the Cirque. Not even this one: Best. Canadian
company. Ever.
It hardly matters that few critics buy into the Cirque's New Age
philosophizing. Nor, apparently, does it matter if audiences do, as
long as they continue to fork out for a ticket. And do they ever. The
best seats for Kooza-which is just a tent show, after all-go for $225.
And yet, the Cirque has twice extended Kooza's current Toronto run,
most recently to Oct. 7.
How does the Cirque do it? "Part of the greater success of the Cirque
is its being able to identify trends and creative elements that the
world wants but that it just doesn't know it wants because it hasn't
seen them yet. It's almost mystical," says Brad Wavra, senior vice-
president of touring at Live Nation, the Los Angeles-based concert
promoter that is the Cirque's partner on Delirium, the troupe's first
arena production.
The big risk, of course, is that the world eventually gets bored with
the Cirque's particular brand of spectacle. There are already lots of
Cirque-haters, who think it's pretentious and overhyped. Undaunted,
the Cirque has ratcheted up its rate of production, launching a couple
of new shows every year. In addition to the eight that are currently
touringand the six staged at permanent venues in Las Vegas and
Orlando, two more Vegas shows are in the works. And the Cirque's
touring shows are moving into ever-smaller markets-Saltimbanco just
played in St. John's, a market the troupe has never visited before.
Within the next couple of years, the Cirque will sink roots in Macao,
New York, Tokyo and Dubai. And it is insinuating itself ever more
deeply into the collective consciousness by showing up in unexpected
places-such as its unorthodox cameo in this past summer's bawdy
Hollywood hit Knocked Up.
It's no wonder the Cirque has become a favourite of business school
professors around the world, who use it to teach about managing
exponential growth, innovation, globalization and error avoidance.
Robert David, a professor of business strategy at McGill University's
Desautels Faculty of Management, wrote a case study on the Cirque in
2004 whose title asked "Can It Burn Brighter?" David worried that the
Cirque might overextend itself, diluting its brand value. But that was
before the company came up with the idea of adapting tried-and-true
content that comes with a base of diehard fans, as it did with the
Beatles-themed Love that opened in Vegas last year. Next up in this
vein are permanent and touring productions based on Elvis Presley
songs, which will premiere in 2009. Like Disney, the Cirque has proven
adept at delivering old content in imaginative new ways. "They have
done a great job of not falling into the trap I laid out in the case
study," David concludes. "They managed to continue the excitement by
teaming up with these partners."
Founder Guy Laliberté, 48, who owns 90% of the privately held Cirque's
shares and refers to himself simply as its "guide," is worth $1.5
billion (U.S.). (Fame means he no longer has to court the media, so he
gives few interviews these days.) That's not a bad pile for a self-
described "little frog from Montreal" who never graduated from high
school and once lived on the streets in Europe (he still bums his
cigarettes off employees). In 23 years, he has managed to build what
is arguably Canada's most recognized global brand and its most
disciplined and risk-averse multinational. And he's done it without
sacrificing creativity. Rather, he has made every unit of the
business-from accounting and human resources to R&D and IT-a slave to
artistic prerogative. What might seem like an extravagance to the
pencil-pushers at any other entertainment company speaks to the
essence of the Cirque's culture. How does the company have the 20,000-
plus costumes it uses each year sewed? By hand. In house. In Montreal.
"When you walk into that head office in Montreal, you feel it-you feel
that cultivation of creativity like no place else in the world. And
I've been all over the world," insists Live Nation's Wavra. "They will
not rest until they get it right."
By now, no one can argue that the Cirque's success is an accident, a
one-act wonder sustained by brilliant marketing. Lofty goals or good
publicists by themselves can't juggle 14 touring and permanent shows,
a workforce of 3,800 (including about 1,000 performers representing 40
nationalities) and the expectation that each new show will top the
last. It takes a certain Québécois je ne sais quoi to evolve from a
ragtag bunch of street performers to a highly structured organization
without losing the original spirit. It also takes smart management.
What goes on behind the scenes at the Cirque's inspiringly laid-back
Montreal headquarters, built on an abandoned quarry and dump, is often
more jaw-dropping than the acrobatics you see on stage. "The Cirque is
known for its world-class creativity. But its backroom is also world-
class," says former Alcan CEO Jacques Bougie, a member of Laliberté's
inner circle of advisers. "With the Canadian dollar as high as it is,
the Cirque faces the same constraints as any exporter. But it
envisaged well in advance how to manage its costs in an exemplary
fashion." Rumours say the company is wildly profitable; Bougie laughs
at the suggestion that they're wrong. "The Cirque wouldn't be giving
away 1% of its revenues [to social causes]every year if it was in the
red."
The high dollar is just one of the countless forks in the road that
the Cirque has negotiated to reach its current heights, which,
expressed as projected revenue for the year, stand at more than $700
million (U.S.). Laliberté figured out early on that, if he was to come
close to realizing his colossal creative ambitions, he could not do it
alone. For the first 15 years of the Cirque's existence, Laliberté
could count on the guidance and financial acumen of his alter ego,
Daniel Gauthier. The two were 50-50 partners in the Cirque until 1999,
when Gauthier told his boyhood pal he wanted out. The breakup was
traumatic for both men, not to mention the entire Cirque family. "We
lived in symbiosis, without even needing to speak to understand each
other," Gauthier said at the time. Laliberté has admitted to having
"bawled" when the partnership was finally dissolved in early 2001.
Gauthier's desire to move on didn't just create a management void, it
presented Laliberté with the dicey task of raising a mountain of cash
to buy out his partner. The Cirque was already a striking success by
then, with two permanent Vegas shows, but its staying power had yet to
be established. It is unlikely Laliberté, protective of the Cirque's
independence, seriously considered taking his creation public or
selling a stake to an outside investor. Yet those would have been the
easiest ways to come up with the reported $483 million he needed to
buy Gauthier's shares. In the end, a syndicate of banks came through.
Only Laliberté and his bankers know how much he still owes or how much
(if any) of his current 90% stake is pledged as collateral. At any
rate, the bankers need not worry: The Cirque's market value has
increased by at least 50% since the loan was made. Judging by Forbes's
estimate of Laliberté's fortune, the Cirque is worth $1.7 billion
(U.S.).
Gauthier's departure also marked the beginning of a transformation of
the Cirque's structure from a loose one, not big on job titles, to a
more traditional corporate ladder. In late 2000, Laliberté hired
Daniel Lamarre, until then head of TVA, Quebec's leading television
network, as president and chief operating officer (he became CEO last
year after Laliberté ceded that title).
Initially, Lamarre's mandate was to expand the Cirque's ambit to
include the development of Cirque-themed hotels and entertainment
complexes, starting with projects in London and Montreal. But when
those projects foundered, Lamarre's role evolved into that of a
traditional head of operations. He's assisted by the six senior vice-
presidents on the Cirque's executive committee, which includes company
veterans Robert Blain (who took over as chief financial officer after
Gauthier left) and Gilles Ste-Croix, a onetime commune-dwelling hippie
and acrobat in the original troupe who now oversees all of the
Cirque's creative content. "Gilles is probably the only person in the
organization who knows Guy's tastes well enough to replace him [in
meetings]" says Lamarre.
In the past couple of years, a trio of seasoned entertainment industry
bigwigs have also signed on, each with executive producer status,
mimicking a corporate structure used by Hollywood movie studios.
Former Telefilm Canada executive director François Macerola is
producing the Cirque's upcoming permanent show at Disney Tokyo, slated
to open next year, as well as the Elvis-themed projects. Aldo
Giampaolo moved from the president's job at Montreal concert promoter
Gillett Entertainment Group to head up the Cirque's arena-show
division. And Charles Joron, a founder of the Montreal International
Jazz Festival, joined the Cirque last year to handle its permanent
show in Macao, the former Portuguese colony on the Chinese coast that
recently surpassed Vegas as the world's biggest gambling centre.
As an incentive to stay with the Cirque, Laliberté has so far ceded
10% of the Cirque's equity to top executives, starting with Lamarre.
The shares vest over a 10-year period. "The Cirque has changed," notes
Louis Hébert, a professor at business school HEC Montréal. "They've
really professionalized the management."
Laliberté's appearances at the Montreal head office have become an
increasingly rare event, but his spiritual presence remains pervasive.
All major decisions still begin and end with him. Without a
traditional board of directors, though, Laliberté realized years ago
that he was lacking a group of independent peers to act as a sounding
board. So in 2001, he assembled four of Quebec's top business minds to
form an advisory board. Its membership has been a fiercely guarded
secret-prior to this article, the Cirque has never acknowledged its
existence. But Lamarre confirmed that the "committee of wise men" is
made up of Power Corp. of Canada president and co-CEO André Desmarais,
Bombardier executive vice-president and heir Pierre Beaudoin, former
Alcan CEO Bougie and Serge Saucier, chairman of Montreal-based
management consultants Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton. Directors, of
course, are legally answerable for their actions, which tends to lead
to circumspection and caution. But advisers can speak their minds
freely. "With a traditional board of directors, senior management
talks 90% of the time and listens the other 10%. But Guy has nothing
to sell to our wise men. So he and senior management listen 90% of the
time," says Lamarre.
"Far be it from us to interfere with the creative aspects of the
Cirque," explains Bougie, the only one of the four who agreed to be
interviewed. "But over the years, for instance, we've given advice on
branding, on strategic priorities and whether or not to undertake
certain projects." Adds Lamarre: "Our decision to go to Macao was
heavily influenced by the advisory board. André opened a lot of doors
for us in China. The wise men have also helped us avoid making a big
mistake."
At the Cirque, "big mistake" is code for a $1.2-billion Cirque-themed
casino and hotel complex that government-owned Loto-Québec was forced
to abandon in 2006 after Laliberté pulled out. It was a heartbreaking
decision for Laliberté. He has longed to enhance the Cirque's presence
in its current hometown with a project in the city's core worthy of
Montreal's glam reputation. (The Cirque's no-logo headquarters is in
the city's low-income northeast end, in a neighbourhood tourists never
see.) Already, in 2002, the Cirque had dropped plans for a $100-
million hotel-spa in Montreal, citing the post-9/11 drop in tourism.
The Loto-Québec project was on a much bigger scale and, although the
complex's 2,500-seat theatre would not house a permanent Cirque show
(the Montreal market being too small for that), everything in the
development-from the card tables to the menus and hotel rooms-was to
evoke Laliberté's company of acrobats and clowns. The Cirque's
involvement carried no financial risk, since its investment would have
been nil. For Laliberté, the risk was purely reputational.
The Loto-Québec casino, intended to replace its existing cramped
complex on the site of Expo 67, was to be the centrepiece of a
redevelopment of a decrepit strip of waterfront property that had been
neglected for decades. But anti-poverty activists immediately rose up
against the project. They feared the casino's proximity to the low-
income neighbourhood of Point St. Charles would fuel gambling
addictions among the poor. The project became a hot potato for the
government of Premier Jean Charest, which was caught between the
business community's vociferous support for badly needed development
and well-organized protest by community groups. To buy time, the
province ordered a report on the social costs of the development. But
it was Laliberté who nixed the project by withdrawing the Cirque's
participation in March, 2006.
While it is tempting to see the Loto-Québec fiasco as a rare reversal
of fortune for the Cirque, McGill's David insists that it actually
underscores the organization's strengths. Rather than agonizing for
months and risk being hauled more deeply into a political debate that
could have damaged the Cirque's brand value, Laliberté showed his
decisiveness. He did it again a few months later in Miami Beach,
where, in similar political circumstances, he pulled a Cirque proposal
to redevelop the famed Jackie Gleason Theater. "Sometimes the best
decision is not to go ahead. And the Cirque seems able to do that,"
says David. "It really takes great skill not to fall into the trap of
escalating commitment."
The abandoned projects also highlight another, seemingly
counterintuitive aspect of the Cirque's management-its conservatism.
The company never takes on excessive risk. Yet that hasn't stopped it
from realizing ever-more ambitious projects. "Part of the Cirque's
genius is getting other people to put up the money," explains David.
For Delirium, the Cirque's first attempt at a live-arena show, it
faced the task of persuading Live Nation to put up half the funds to
produce the show, something the concert promoter typically never does.
Lamarre recalls his first encounter with Live Nation's Canadian-born
CEO, Michael Rapino. "I said, 'Michael, we want to do the biggest
arena show ever, with more equipment than either the Stones or U2. Do
you want the meeting to continue?'"
Of course, he did. And the payoff was worth the risk. In 2006 alone,
according to Billboard, Delirium was the 10th-highest-grossing U.S.
concert act, with a bottom line of $70 million (U.S.), an impressive
feat during a highly competitive year that included tours by the
Rolling Stones, Madonna and Bon Jovi-all of which had the economics of
vastly larger venues going for them. Delirium is embarking in
September on an 87-show European tour after 265 performances in North
America. Other eager partners include Walt Disney Co., in Orlando and
Tokyo, and Las Vegas Sands Corp., which is counting on a Cirque show
at its new Venetian Macao casino to be a major draw for Asians and
Westerners alike.
No partner has staked as much of its future on the Cirque, however, as
MGM Mirage Inc. It has hundreds of millions of dollars tied up in the
five Cirque shows currently running at its Las Vegas hotels. And it
has committed at least $300 million (U.S.) more to build theatres-to
Cirque specifications-to house the Elvis show as well as another that
will launch next year at the Luxor hotel featuring Mindfreak magician
Criss Angel. The Elvis theatre alone, at MGM's massive CityCenter
project, will cost $217 million (U.S.). And this after MGM spent $135
million (U.S.) to build the theatre-complete with two tilting and
rotating stages-for KÀ, the Cirque show created by acclaimed Quebec
director Robert Lepage.
Typically, the Cirque and MGM Mirage split the costs of developing
each show, even though the Cirque retains full creative control. The
two companies also take an even split on box-office receipts. This
requires a lot of counting. Mystère, the Cirque's first Vegas show at
the Treasure Island resort, is in its 15th year; O, the Cirque's only
aquatic production, is in its 10th. As a group, the Vegas shows
continue to fill more than 90% of the 8,000 available seats, drawing
about 72,000 spectators each week, with ticket prices starting at
around $100 (U.S.). Even diehard gamblers now take in a Cirque show.
And many non-gamblers flock to Vegas just to see the Cirque, or
Quebec's other big-name cultural export, Céline Dion.
It was Steve Wynn, as the chairman of Mirage Resorts, who first
brought a Cirque tent show, Nouvelle Expérience, to Vegas in 1991
after seeing it in Chicago with his second-in-command, Bobby Baldwin.
"Even before that show opened, we made the deal to build Treasure
Island and put in Mystère," says Baldwin, who became CEO of Mirage
Resorts after Wynn merged the company with MGM Grand Inc. in 2000. "It
was a huge financial risk. But we just had a lot of confidence in
Guy." Baldwin adds: "Guy hires very intelligent people. They're very
creative and highly disciplined. We've never had a dispute over money
or the books. We've never had a show open late."
Laliberté, of course, leaves the books mostly to others. Apart from
his unrivalled creative vision, his strength is people. A more
consummate networker would be hard to find. While his colleagues
slaved to put up the tent for their first Los Angeles performance in
1987, Laliberté, the story goes, was nowhere to be found. Mutiny was
on the minds of many. But that all changed on opening night. In the
days and nights-especially the nights-leading up to the opening, their
absentee leader had been out talking up his show with the beautiful
people in L.A.'s restaurants and nightclubs. He succeeded in
generating the buzz that made the then virtually unknown Cirque the
must-see act of the 1987 Los Angeles Festival.
For years, Laliberté's private parties during the weekend of the
Montreal Grand Prix Formula One race attracted international
celebrities. (Starting this year, the party, which is now open to
paying guests, switched to Mont-Tremblant after the Cirque became a
partner in the resort's rival Champ Car race.) The idea for Love was
born at the 2000 party on the grounds of Laliberté's majestic estate
in St-Bruno, south of Montreal. One of the guests to Laliberté's
"magical garden" was George Harrison. "He was supposed to come only
for 30 minutes, say hello, pay a polite visit to us. In the end, he
stayed all night. He jammed with the musicians there," Laliberté
recalled this year on Larry King Live.
Laliberté's unique ability to transmit his vision, energy and drive to
others makes him an exceptional leader. Accordingly, the Cirque
receives tens of thousands of unsolicited resumés each year-and not
just from athletes, performers and creative types. Among Montreal
business-school graduates, according to HEC Montréal, a job at the
Cirque is more coveted than one at any other big-name employer in the
city, including Bombardier, Alcan or BCE. It's not that surprising: In
a poll commissioned for this year's Fête Nationale celebrations, 32%
of Quebeckers said they considered the Cirque their province's
greatest international success story, well ahead of rivals Céline Dion
(24%) and Bombardier (11%).
Laliberté is fiercely jealous of the Cirque's Québécois identity.
Whether in Vegas, Toronto or Shanghai, every Cirque show begins with:
"Mesdames et Messieurs, bonsoir. Bienvenue au Cirque du Soleil." "Guy
is uncompromising about that," says Lamarre. "The Cirque exists
because the government of Quebec, and Quebeckers, have been generous
to it."
The Cirque may never have gotten off the ground had it not been for
René Lévesque. After seeing the troupe perform in Quebec City in 1984,
the Parti Québécois Premier provided a $1.5-million grant so it could
undertake a province-wide tour. And though today it has 800 mostly
American employees in Las Vegas to manage the ongoing shows there, the
Cirque's Montreal headquarters houses 1,800 workers, about 80% of them
Quebeckers. (That said, Quebeckers make up only a small minority of
the Cirque's performers. Olympic calibre athletes-cum-artists are a
rare breed; casting scouts and trainers literally scour the planet in
search of them.)
"We have a fundamental belief in the extreme creativity of
Quebeckers," says Lamarre. "We're using more and more local creators
all the time." Indeed, though the Cirque has attained enough
international renown to attract any number of big-name theatre and
film directors, it continues to draw almost exclusively on Quebec
talent to create and mount its shows. In addition to Lepage's helming
KÀ, Quebec theatre director Dominic Champagne directed Love; filmmaker
François Girard, who directed The Red Violin and the upcoming Silk,
has signed on to direct the Disney Tokyo show; and Montreal theatre
director Serge Denoncourt is handling the Criss Angel show at the
Luxor. The final cut on any show, however, belongs not to the
director, but to Laliberté.
Mounting any Cirque show is not just a creative challenge. It's a
massive technical one. As a result, the Cirque spends about $10
million a year on research and development. Its engineers and
technicians have come up with ever more ingenious props, such as the
swinging chandeliers that performers ride in Corteo, a touring show
launched in 2005. The Cirque has even invented specialized
trampolines. "Take any sector of the Cirque, creative or technical,
and we're the best in the world," Lamarre boasts. "We have become the
forerunners of our industry."
In an era when multinationals show allegiance to no flag, moving jobs
to low-cost destinations with the stroke of a pen, the Cirque's
loyalty toward its home province may appear anachronistic. It could
save a bundle, for instance, simply by moving the costume workshop
offshore. But for the Cirque, it's important that everyone involved in
a project sees the fruits of their efforts and knows just what they're
contributing to. That's why offices at the Cirque's headquarters have
windows that look onto one of the three acrobatic training studios.
The audience never gets close enough to appreciate the workmanship
that goes into the Cirque's painstakingly stitched wigs (one hair at a
time), eccentric hats or handmade leather shoes. "It's the kind of
thing a traditional corporate entity would be tempted to cut back on,"
notes McGill's David. "But for the Cirque, it would send the wrong
signal not only to the audience but to the artist. Handcrafted
costumes tell performers they're valued as artists. It's part of the
corporate culture. Besides, given that they continue to be able to
raise ticket prices, why cut corners?"
While artists are sometimes coddled, prima donnas are not tolerated at
the Cirque. "We don't want stars, that's clear," Lamarre says. "It's
the show that's the star." In this, the Cirque distinguishes itself as
an "expert organization" rather than an "organization of experts,"
says HEC Montréal's Hébert. "The idea is that, what makes you good is
not just your personal talent, but the fact that you belong to the
organization. The Cirque makes you better; it adds value to you."
That's not the only reason job applications pour in. The Cirque
provides some of the best working conditions in the entertainment
industry. Artists don't work on a project-by-project basis; they're
full-time employees with complete benefits. Salaries are benchmarked
against global industry trends, rather than the lower pay scales in
Montreal. From the moment an artist signs on, initially for two years,
he or she is enrolled in the Cirque's Crossroads program, aimed at
preparing performers for the eventual, but inevitable, career
transition they'll have to make as their bodies give out. Some
performers remain with the Cirque as trainers or in other capacities,
but most end up leaving the company.
It's rarely easy to hang up the leotards, and disputes often arise
about the timing of an artist's retirement. The Cirque suffered a
black eye a few years back when a performer was allegedly fired for
being HIV positive. The company ended up paying a $600,000 (U.S.)
settlement. Lamarre concedes the incident was badly handled, but
insists the Cirque does not discriminate-indeed, it has several HIV-
positive employees. At any rate, one doesn't sense any morale problems
at the Cirque's headquarters. After all, how many employers provide
their workers with free access to independent tax experts and perhaps
the most imaginative cafeteria food anywhere? For a business prof, the
contented workforce provides a perfect illustration that generating
profits is not just about cutting costs.
Just how high can the Cirque soar? Love and the upcoming Elvis show
make it clear that the big top is bigger than anyone could have
imagined before the Cirque came along. "We're not a circus. We're
Cirque du Soleil," Lamarre says. "We're an entertainment business."
What that might mean about what comes next is top secret, for now.
Perhaps it's Hollywood? Could the Cirque become a rival to Disney, a
company that has repeatedly tried to buy it?
We have only an inkling of the ambitions Laliberté harbours. But we do
know that the "little frog from Montreal" has realized just a fraction
of what he has conceptualized. The risk for the Cirque is about what
happens after him.
There is no indication yet that the company has to worry about that.
But the topic must surely come up in discussions between Laliberté and
his "wise men." If it doesn't, it probably should. What Laliberté has
created must live on, preferably with his vision intact. After all,
without the Cirque, a model for corporate Canada to emulate, we'd all
be a lot hollower.
GUY LALIBERTÉ: THE HIGH LIFE
As a street performer, Laliberté's specialties were playing the
accordion, juggling, stilt-walking and breathing fire. Today he's
renowned for throwing elaborately staged, all-night parties, so much
so that he's turned it into a side business. The latest, called Kaba,
was held at Mont-Tremblant this summer. Tickets went for as much as
$400. Laliberté owns a Global Express jet, which he had painted to
look like a sundae dripping with hot fudge. Laliberté won $700,000
(U.S.) at a poker tournament in Las Vegas last April. He is the father
of five children, ages three months to 11 years, the two youngest with
currrent partner Claudia Barila, 33, a former model. Laliberté was
named 2007 World Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young.
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COPYRIGHT AND DISCLAIMER
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Fascination! Newsletter Compendium
Volume 7, Number 4 (Issue #54) - Jul/Aug 2007
"Fascination! Newsletter" is a concept by Ricky Russo. Copyright (c)
2001-2007 Ricky Russo, published by Vortex/RGR Productions, a
subsidiary of Communicore Enterprises. No portion of this newsletter
can be reproduced, published in any form or forum, quoted or
translated without the consent of the "Fascination!
Newsletter." By sending us correspondence, you give us permission
(unless otherwise noted) to use the submission as we see fit, without
remuneration. All submissions become the property of the "Fascination!
Newsletter." "Fascination! Newsletter" is not affiliated in any way
with Cirque du Soleil. Cirque du Soleil and all its creations are
Copyright (c) and are registered trademarks (TM) of Cirque du Soleil,
Inc., and Créations Méandres, Inc. All Rights Reserved. No copyright
infringement intended.
{ Dec.31.2007 }
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