Welcome to the latest edition of Fascination, the Unofficial Cirque du Soleil Newsletter.
Just before press time, the Cirque fandom was all a-twitter over a website found by fans that purported to show extended tours for Quidam, Corteo, OVO, Kooza, and many other Cirque du Soleil shows – including the newest: Cirque 2016. Many of us debated whether the site was legitimate or not, and therefore whether any of the info listed was good. Turns out the site, although by Cirque du Soleil’s IT department, was a QA Testing site, testing out new layout ideas and the like, and was thus populated with some fictional information. One thing that wasn’t fictional, however, was the use of Cirque2016’s actual name within the site, which we won’t name here. Those of you out there that know it – great! For those who don’t yet know, don’t despair. A media day, similar to the one Cirque held for TORUK-The First Flight, is scheduled to happen soon. In the meantime, by the time the next issue is out Cirque will have made their official announcement about the show, which will include the unveiling of the show’s name. So we won’t steal their thunder.
Speaking of TORUK-The First Flight. On October 28th, Cirque unveiled the new arena show to the media in Bossier City, Louisiana, where the new show will make its soft-opening debut. Here Cirque will keep tooling the show for it’s Montreal debut in December. A week before the Media Day the Shreveport Times went backstage to get a Behind the Scenes look at the show’s development, the text of which we’ve included in this month’s issue (see the Special Engagement section of our news section – Cirque Buzz – to see their backstage look).
For those who might be interested: the Cirque du Soleil gift cardsare back! The gift cards can be redeemed for show tickets anywhere in the U.S. and Canada, so use them to treat someone to an unforgettable experience at Cirque du Soleil today! The kicker is that the cards are only available as an eGift card, rather than a physical piece of plastic, but according to the cards’ website, a physical card is coming soon. Check out details about the “new” card at their website: < https://www.cirquedusoleil.com/gift-cards >, which includes an extensive FAQ for those with questions. You can buy a card for as little as $25 USD and as much as $200 USD!
In addition to the resurrection of the Cirque Gift Card, after months and months offline, just before TORUK’s Media Day, Cirque du Soleil revamped and relaunched its online boutique! Finally, am I right?! The offerings are very slim right now, but we’re assured that the selection will only get better in time. We’ve also heard that Cirque has taken over management of all its Las Vegas boutiques as well (it seems Cirque was losing revenue from the stores since MGM managed them – no longer), so it’s possible we’ll start seeing some of the selection usually exclusively found there online as well. Meanwhile, check out the new store here: < eboutique.cirquedusoleil.com > or at < www.cirquestore.com >.
And while this news is exciting, there’s plenty more within, such as: Cirque is ready to begin updating LOVE for next year’s 10th anniversary celebration. BELIEVE is also due for an upgrade. LA NOUBA is getting two new acts, and possibly replaced by 2018. A new “show” will pop up in Russia – JOEL – to celebrate the winter season. Cirque is now out of the night club business; BAZ will head to The Venetian. And much, much more!
Last month we continued our exclusive interview with KURIOS drummer Kit Chatham, picking up with Kit’s first Cirque experience, Corteo, and following him through his time with Viva Elvis, Mystere, and Zumanity. And now in part three, after being stolen away from Kooza by KURIOS director Michel Laprise, Kit discusses with us what he brought to the show. And more! We also continue with our look back at Guy Laliberte’s Poetic Social Mission. In Part 1, “The Countdown Begins” we listened as Guy took us through his first steps. In Part 2, “Training Kicks Up a Notch”, Guy got settled in, and passed a few essential tests. Now we continue as he gets down into the nuts and bolts of his training, covering the month of July 2009. And last, but certainly not least, is a special article reprinted from Sarah Barmark from the Canadian Business Magazine – she takes a look at what she calls the astonishing second act of Cirque du Soleil – a Cirque that is no longer an independent company. Check it out!
As always we also have the relevant posts made to Cirque’s Facebook pages, and updates to Cirque’s touring schedule.
So, let’s get started!
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