======================================================================= ______ _ __ _ __ / ____/___ ___________(_)___ ____ _/ /_(_)___ ____ / / / /_ / __ `/ ___/ ___/ / __ \/ __ `/ __/ / __ \/ __ \/ / / __/ / /_/ (__ ) /__ / / / / /_/ / /_/ / /_/ / / / /_/ /_/ \__,_/____/\___/_/_/ /_/\__,_/\__/_/\____/_/ /_(_) 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 ------------------------------------------------------------ E X P A N D E D I S S U E ------------------------------------------------------------ ======================================================================= VOLUME 8, NUMBER 4 JUL/AUG 2008 ISSUE #60e ======================================================================= Bonjour et bienvenue! Greetings, and welcome to a very special edition of Fascination!, the Unofficial Cirque du Soleil Newsletter. The issue you have in your hands is yet another important milestone in our publication history - it's our sixtieth. While publication styles, themes and featured writers have come and gone and frequency of circulation has changed, our mission continues to remain the same: to find, research and report on topics Cirque du Soleil. And in fulfilling our mission: over the past seven years we have written a plethora of material on Cirque du Soleil. Thus, to celebrate this milestone, we've dug into our archives and selected a small handful of articles (but seemingly a large amount of text!) from our various featured writers to showcase some of the most interesting, eclectic, and best of what Fascination has to offer. And if you're interested in becoming part of our next set of historical issues, please drop us a line (richasi@azlance.com), we'd love to have your perspective on Cirque du Soleil related topics that interest you! As always be sure to check out the Itinerary section for any last- minute changes and extensions to tour stops; however, these dates are subject to change. That about wraps up this issue. Until next time! Join us on the web at: < www.cirquefascination.com > Realy Simple Syndication (RSS) Feed: < http://www.cirquefascination.com/?feed=rss2 > - Ricky "Richasi" Russo =========== CONTENTS =========== o) Cirque Buzz -- News, Rumours & Sightings o) Compartments -- Information on Tour and Behind the Curtain * Itinéraire -- Tour/Show Information * Didyaknow? -- Facts About Cirque * Historia -- Cirque du Soleil's History * CirqueTech -- The Technical Side of Cirque o) Fascination! Features *) "ZAIA Premiere: 'A Journey Through Time and Space'" By: Cirque du Soleil, Press Room Materials *) "Criss Angel vs. The Spyglass Hotel" [EXPANDED] By: Mike Donila, Times Staff Writer o) From the Fascination! Archives (SPECIAL!)... *) "Circus Reinvented, Restaged and Rethought" By: Jen Waldman {Originally Published: Issue #5 - January 2002} *) "From One Dream to Another - Quidam" By: T. Clay Buck {Originally Published: Issue #7 - March 2002} *) "Barock Odyssey" By: Paul Roberts - Hamilton, Ohio (USA) {Originally Published: Issue #8 - April 2002} *) "Cirque du Soleil: Fire Within" By: Wayne Leung - Ottawa, Ontario (Canada) {Originally Published: Issues #14-17 - October 2002 through January 2003} *) "The Houses of Cirque" By: Ricky Russo - Orlando, Florida (USA) {Originally Published: Issue #18, 22 & 27 - February, June & November 2003} *) "An Evenings Chat with BJ, Quidam's Percussionist" & "BJ, Live from Japan! - An Online Chat" {Originally Published: Issues #25 & #32 - September 2003 & April 2004} *) "Who Has What it Takes?" By: Keith Johnson & Lucy Valentine - Seattle, WA (USA) {Originally Published: Issues #41-44 - February 2005 through May 2005} *) "Six Thousand Fifty-Seven" By: Rich Alford - Bothel, Washington (USA) {Originally Published: Issue #55 - Sep/Oct 2007} o) Copyright & Disclaimer ======================================================================= CIRQUE BUZZ -- NEWS, RUMOURS & SIGHTINGS ======================================================================= Who Wants to Buy a Tent? {Jul.01.2008} --------------------------------------------- In the market for a Grand Chapiteau? If so, one can be yours for as little as $100,000.00 via this eBay auction! < http://cgi.ebay.com/Circus-Tent-for-Sale-Cirque-de- Soleil_W0QQitemZ120277294390QQihZ002QQcategoryZ88433QQssPageName ZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem > Naturally you can find almost anything through eBay (and we've seen some very interesting Cirque du Soleil related items appear in the past), but what makes this particular auction so intriguing is the fact that the gold and white striped big top on sale (it's pictured) is purportedly from the Nouvelle Expèrience engagement of Cirque du Soleil at the Mirage! Details of the sale include a steel frame with 3 connecting tents: the Grand Chapiteau (21,123 sq. ft.), Entry/Concessions tent (5,445 sq. ft.), and Backstage/Rehearsal tent (5,445 sq. ft.). It includes all connecting pieces (960 sq. ft.), heating and air conditioning units, and 1551 fixed and 119 moveable seats! (Sorry, show not included) So, if you have at least $100,000 to spend, you may be interested in getting this very unique piece of Cirque du Soleil. Good Luck! {SOURCE: Gary & Jill Chapman, eBay} René Dupéré named "Chevalier" {Jul.06.2008} --------------------------------------------- René Dupéré, long-time Cirque du Soleil collaborator and composer was recently named "Chevalier" in the Order de la Pléiade - Congratulations! La Pléiade, Ordre de la Francophonie et du dialogue des cultures was established in 1976 and is an initiative of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie (APF). Its aim is to recognize the eminent merits of those who have distinguished themselves while serving the ideals of cooperation and friendship within the Francophonie. There are five levels to the Order: from Chevalier to Officier, Commandeur, Grand Officier and, finally, Grand-Croix. Cirque Flies High [EXPANDED] {Jul.10.2008} --------------------------------------------- We love articles that take us behind the scenes and "under the curtain" of Cirque's creative and business processes. This one, from the Financial Times, adds to our knowledge of running the business of Cirque. An interesting read! * * * When Guy Laliberté thought workers at Cirque du Soleil’s Montreal headquarters were taking their jobs too seriously, he hired a professional comedian to liven things up. Madame Zazou spends 20 hours a week popping in and out of offices. She has carte blanche to interrupt meetings – briefly – with witty questions and comments, and is a regular heckler at Cirque’s annual “creative summit”, at which 100 senior employees exchange ideas on present and future shows. While her presence may brighten employees’ mood, it also attests to some important challenges facing the fast-growing international circus and entertainment group. Mr Laliberté, Cirque’s founder and controlling shareholder, remains the organisation’s dominant force even though he relinquished the chief executive’s job two years ago. He now spends only about half his time on Cirque business. Much of the rest is devoted to One Drop, the charity he set up last year to improve third world water supplies. The need to leaven the work atmosphere also underlines the difficulty of keeping the creative juices flowing in an ever- expanding troupe of acrobats, costume designers and musicians unaccustomed to a corporate regimen. From its origins 24 years ago as a small group of stilt-walkers, jugglers and musicians in Baie-Saint-Paul, Quebec, Cirque has grown into a far-flung enterprise with almost 4,000 employees and annual revenues of about $800m. It will stage 18 different shows this year, including several permanent ones at resorts in Las Vegas, Disneyworld in Florida, and in Tokyo and Macau. It is seeking partners to build sites for permanent productions in London, Paris and Spain. Cirque also holds about 80 events annually for corporate and other customers. Fiat paid $2m last year for a spectacle to spice up the unveiling of its Bravo hatchback near Rome’s Forum. A small Cirque troupe is performing daily this summer at a festival in Zaragoza, Spain. Daniel Lamarre, a former journalist and television executive who took the CEO reins from Mr Laliberté, expects Cirque’s revenues to double in size over the next five years. From top to bottom, Cirque’s management style is unusual. There is no board of directors. The top decision-making group on creative activities, known as le noyau créatif (the creative nucleus), comprises Mr Laliberté, Mr Lamarre, another Cirque founder, and the senior director of creation. A six-member executive committee oversees business operations. A group of four prominent Quebec executives, including the heads of Bombardier, the train and aircraft maker, and Power Corporation, one of Canada’s most powerful family-controlled companies, meets four times a year to offer advice on running the business. Productions have a long lead time. A Cirque show typically takes three years to develop from conception to opening night. It is built on two main legs: creative and business. The creative side starts with an over-arching theme, often suggested and refined by Mr Laliberté. Cirque 2009, a show now taking shape, centres on biodiversity and the world of insects. A three-person team, comprising stage director, creative director and production director, is then set up. Its first task is to devise what Pierre Phaneuf, vice-president for creation, describes as a “light skeleton”, outlining the type of show, size and composition of cast, the mix of live and recorded music, and so on. The team reports to an executive producer in charge of the business side. The budget for a permanent show is typically $40m, or $20m-$25m for a touring show such as Varekai, Quidam and Corteo. “We demand that they come up with a product that is profitable,” Mr Phaneuf says. Cirque employs about a dozen business analysts to crunch the numbers. Mr Lamarre declines to disclose profits but says that the company has not received a penny in government aid for more than 15 years. Many of Cirque’s creative staff, including all stage directors, costume designers, composers and choreographers, are freelances. “We try to make them feel part of the company without making them feel part of the business,” Mr Phaneuf says. Cirque pays for them to attend its own shows as well as others that might have a bearing on their own projects. Meanwhile, a 60-strong casting team, including 20 talent scouts, criss-crosses the globe for performers. To help mould its recruits and established artists into a functioning team, Cirque has a 100-person residence across the road from the head office. The casting website is in seven languages, but Cirque offers free English lessons to employees. Interpreters are routinely assigned to some performers – Chinese, eastern Europeans and Brazilians, among others – though even their services do not prevent the occasional misunderstanding. “When you work at Cirque, you’re doomed to work in a team at any level,” says Mr Phaneuf. Still, the unrelenting pressure for fresh shows and bigger thrills is pushing Cirque in some unaccustomed directions. It will put the spotlight on a single individual for the first time this September in a show starring Criss Angel, an American magician. Mr Angel’s act is aimed at broadening Cirque’s appeal to a younger audience. Meanwhile, Cirque faces the challenge of dimming the spotlight on its biggest star, Mr Laliberté. Aged 48, he cuts a larger than life figure. While he has relinquished the title of chief executive, the credits for every Cirque show still list him as “guide”. Chosen by Ernst & Young as its World Entrepreneur last year, Mr Laliberté has a personal jet painted to look as if it is dripping with chocolate. His office parking spot is separated from the others by an avant-garde sculpture commemorating Rosa Parks, the US civil- rights campaigner. Mr Laliberté, declined, as he usually does, to be interviewed for this article. “We often ask, what do we do if he is hit by a bus?” says Mr Lamarre. A big increase in creative staff, from 50 to 250 over the past five years, is proof that Cirque can survive its founder, he adds. Still, Joanne Fillion, senior brand director, says that “it’s like a tribe. The culture is transmitted from generation to generation.” Still, she acknowledges that “it takes a lot of people and a lot of processes to replace Guy’s intuition”. Want to buy tickets for ZED? {Jul.10.2008} --------------------------------------------- Cirque du Soleil's new resident show "ZED" (in the Tokyo Disney Resort) is currently ramping up their creative process (having recently run through the show's first act for the first time); barreling down the tracks toward their October debut (and CirqueCon 2008: Tokyo! taking place November 6-9!). Their marketing and ticketing efforts have, so far, been focused on the Japanese market. Up until now the only way for English- speaking Cirque fans to purchase tickets to ZED has been through the English translation of their website http://www.zed.co.jp/about_show/admission_en.php - which points only to a Japanese-language website and phone number (that doesn't take international calls). Until Oriental Land Company (who is handling ticket sales for the show) comes up with a "formal" way to handle English ticket buyers, we are happy to exclusively report that Cirque has come up with a temporary solution. Cirque Tokyo has provided us with a special e-mail address for English-speakers to request tickets! The email is cds.tokyo.ticketing@cirquedusoleil.com. This email address will be in effect until the "formal" process has been put in place, at which time requestors will be pointed in that direction. (We'll post an update when that happens.) Be sure to check out the Tickets page (noted above) to find performance dates and time and seating locations and costs. Send an email to cds.tokyo.ticketing@cirquedusoleil.com with the following information: o) Date of the show o) Time of the show o) How many tickets you want o) What category of ticket you'd like: .) Premium Seat - ¥18,000 (first five rows of the front sections) .) Front Seat - ¥15,000 (the rest of the front sections) .) Regular Seat - ¥9,800 (the entirety of the back section) .) Overview Seat - ¥7,800 (the back row of the back sections) o) Your name and email They will respond with a total amount, which must be paid for with a credit card (they take Visa, MasterCharge, American Express, and JCB). Instead of shipping the tickets to you (which would be costly) they will be held in Will-Call at the Cirque Tokyo box office. (While the special CirqueCon 2008: Tokyo! ticket offer has expired, those wishing to join us for our "official" show on Friday, November 7, 2008 at 1930h can now purchase tickets through this method. So there is still a way to join us!) Delirium, the "Hot Ticket" at Carmike/Regal! {Jul.11.2008} --------------------------------------------- Starting Wednesday August 20, 2008 Carmike Cinemas and select Regal Cinema locations will feature Cirque Du Soleil's "Delirium"! The Hot Ticket offers an opportunity for entertainment consumers to experience highly anticipated and sold-out events in an enhanced Carmike theatre setting with one-of-a-kind programming. For fans of Broadway shows, rock concerts, or premier sporting events, The Hot Ticket will provide a community experience to see some of the world's best entertainment on larger-than-life digital screens. Showtimes for this event are Wednesday, August 20, and Thursday August 21, 2008, at 7:00 pm, and Saturday, August 23, 2008 and Sunday August 24, 2008 at 1:00 pm. Tickets for Cirque Du Soleil's "Delirium" on the big screen are on sale now for $20.00 at participating movie theaters. Visit Carmike Cinemas or Regal Entertainment Group for ticket purchases and/or participating theaters near you. {NOTE: Tickets are supposed to go on sale today but Fascination cannot find any information pertaining to the sale of Delirium tickets or anything to do with SONY "Hot Ticket" at either of these sites... stay tuned!} http://www.carmike.com/ http://www.regmovies.com/ LOVE Celebrates 1000 {Jul.11.2008} -------------------------------------------- To the cast and crew of LOVE: Congratulations! On your 1000th performance tonight! Seeing is BeLIEving {Jul.11.2008} -------------------------------------------- From PRNewswire: LAS VEGAS, July 10, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ - Seeing is believing, right? Criss Angel has made a career of making people "BeLIEve," and will keep doing so in his new collaborative effort with the World Famous Cirque Du Soleil in their new adventure at the Luxor Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas: Criss Angel "BELIEVE." Cirque Du Soleil, Criss Angel and the Luxor have enlisted the help of SkyTag, the innovator of Tall Wall imaging to create Las Vegas's largest and most spectacular impression to date. This show has promised to be like nothing anyone has ever seen. This is no illusion. You will "BeLIEve." Visit SkyTag here: http://www.skytag.com/ {SOURCE: PRNewswire/Comtex, SkyTag} Infinity Airs New Cirque Advert {Jul.14.2008} -------------------------------------------- Fans of Cirque du Soleil who reside in Canada may want to keep their eyes on the television in the coming week! According to CanadianDriver.com, Infinity Canada will release their latest car commercial featuring Cirque du Soleil! From the release: "Driving an Infiniti is akin to sitting in the front row of a Cirque du Soleil show," said Wendy Durward, Director, Infiniti Dealer Operations. "It's an exhilarating sensory experience full of beauty, strength, passion and peak performance and we think the new commercial clearly illustrates those similarities. We are very proud of our continuing relationship with Cirque du Soleil." The commercial features silk aerial performers descending on fabric that turns into yellow lines on the street in front of an Infiniti G35 sedan. The campaign also includes a magazine advertisement featuring the performers. According to the site, Infinity is in their second year of a three year partnership/sponsorship. Did you know that... o) the driving portion of the commercial was filmed in the Ville-Marie Tunnel in Montreal? o) the yellow lines in the tunnel were painted specially for the shoot? o) the yellow fabric used was designed specially for this ad? {SOURCE: CanadianDriver.com} Rigging Up Corteo [EXPANDED] {Jul.25.2008} -------------------------------------------- If you're interested in the behind-the-curtain elements of Cirque du Soleil you might be interested in an article published this morning out of the Calgary Herald - "Send in the Riggers". Chris Cannon, staff writer for the Herald, spoke with Vincent Schonbrodt, one of Cirque's riggers currently on tour with Corteo. It's a great read for those interested in the behind- the-scenes, nuts and bolts, aspect of Cirque du Soleil! * * * I was never one of those boys who wished to run away and join the circus. A combination of pity for the animals, an intuitive fear of clowns, and a late-blooming imagination restricted my early ambitions to zookeeping and meteorology. But Vincent Schonbrodt had a different experience. As he leads me, metre after metre, up the dark scaffolding, he tells me how most little boys' fantasy became his daily routine. Vincent is the head rigger for Cirque du Soleil's dream narrative Corteo, currently juggling its way across Canada. Since the age of 12, Vincent has been affiliated with the big top in one way or another, attending circus schools in Montreal and his native Belgium before becoming a trapeze artist for the Cirque show O in Las Vegas. After moving out of the spotlight to become lead acrobatic rigger with Ka, he took the weight of Corteo on his shoulders (all 35 tonnes of it), a position he's held for two and a half years. The closer we get to the underbelly of the big top, the more I feel for a secure grip on every rung and bolt, dizzied by the increasing volume and variety of cables, ladders, rails, and gears. It's like I've been swallowed by an alien mechanical organism or I'm getting an ant's perspective on a carburetor. Falling is not even an option--Vincent suited me up with a mirror of his own utility harness: 25 pounds of ascenders, descenders, carabineers, pelican hooks, jumarts, foot loops, krolls, and shunts--even if I were suicidal the worst I could do is give myself rope burn. I expect Vincent to casually dance along the rigging like a ballerina stepping out for her morning paper, but he is as careful as I am (his evident competence notwithstanding), noting that safety is his primary job. Corteo is the largest rigging challenge in Cirque du Soleil's 18-show arsenal, a complicated, Romanesque network of arches that maxes out the big top's stress limit to the point that shows can be delayed by wind, rain, or snow. It takes 15 professional riggers between four and five days to set up the infrastructure, after which Vincent directs a crew of 10 from the catwalk high above for the nightly performance. It's this catwalk, a large, rectangular hole in the scaffolding directly above centre stage, that serves as the station from which Vincent orchestrates his array of gravity-snubbing devices (the deus's machina). As we arrive at this dark corner of other boys' dreams, I feel like I'm behind the scenes in a puppet show rather than a circus. It is only rehearsal, but when I watch the performance the following week from the safety of the fourth row, I imagine the myriad of cables that support the performers and their toys under Vincent's control, a godlike puppet master with a dozen inch-thick cables tied to each finger. And this is what strikes me most--that the cables are not hidden from the audience. The riggers combine to form their own character in the performance. There is no attempt to make the technology invisible, no effort made to fool the audience into thinking giants can swing petite women thirty metres in the air without risk, no swarthy men in top hats telling you that bicycles can really fly. From this sacred, hidden space in the crown of the massive tent, carabineer-clad technicians will forget about their former jobs suspended from bridges and oil derricks, to help angels bob through the atmosphere, pretty girls spin in giant chandeliers, a clown pedal on the wrong side of a high wire. A little woman will tiptoe across the heads of audience members, nearly weightless from the giant balloons that give her flight. It will rain chickens. "Corteo is a playground for riggers," Vincent confesses. That sentiment is echoed by Anthony Delacruz, a swing technician who says, "We definitely come to fun, not to work." Indeed, it is hard to tell where the performance ends and the work begins. The show's narrative--a surreal depiction of a clown imagining his own funeral as a wondrous carnival--echoes the intersection of fantasy and reality that bonds the performer and the technician in the eyes of the audience. One can almost imagine the troupe travelling its upcoming schedule--Calgary, Ottawa, Miami, Tokyo- -without bothering to change out of costume or character, the entire caravan being towed by a single, tiny clown car. Most of us--from a very young age--learn to attach ourselves to our culture's performers, our talking heads, our celebrities, to see ourselves reflected in their image, rarely accounting for the sorcerers that grant them such fame. Similarly, when we dream of the circus, we associate with the fantasy represented by clowns and acrobats, not the technical feats that make it all possible. The charm of Corteo is its ability to combine the two, to create a world as enchanting from the catwalk as from the orchestra pit, to allow the riggers to appear at the show's curtain call--to the applause of their charges--engineers of wonder who make possible the clowns and the acrobats, and who are no less magical. {SOURCE: Calgary Herald} Australia: Go Backstage with CDS! [EXPANDED] {Jul.29.2008} -------------------------------------------- Attention fans in Australia - Channel Nine is about to take you backstage with Cirque du Soleil! On Sunday, August 10th at 6:30pm, Channel Nine will broadcast "A Backstage Pass to Cirque du Soleil", an "Australian-first journey behind the scenes of the world's most famous and successful circus". * * * With exclusive access, Ed Phillips takes viewers on a journey to Cirque Du Soleil's international headquarters to discover all the magical elements that create these amazing circus shows. Cirque Du Soleil HQ includes three acrobatic training rooms, a dance studio, a studio-theatre, and a fitness training room. Most of the costumes and props needed for the Cirque Du Soleil shows are made in production workshops in Montreal. Specialists of every description including master shoemakers, milliners, textile artists, sewers, lace makers and carpenters devote their painstaking labour to outfit and equip the stunning shows. Ed is fitted for his own costume and taught how to apply makeup for his role as a Spermato clown in Cirque Du Soleil's Mystere. Ed follows the circus to the entertainment capital of the world, Las Vegas, which houses five of Cirque Du Soleil's internationally renowned stage shows - Mystere, The Beatles' LOVE, KA, Zumanity, and O, all housed in purpose-built theatres. He mixes with the Australians involved in the shows to find out what it takes to make it as a performer at this elite level. And he brings a unique Australian flavour to his own performance as clown in Mystere. The show then returns to Australia with Cirque Du Soleil's new spectacular, Dralion, which pays tribute to the four elements that maintain the natural order and harmony of the world - wind, fire, water and earth. He is there for the last-minute rehearsals before catching all the glamour on the red carpet for opening night. If you're a fan down-under you definitely won't want to miss this! {SOURCE: eNews, NINE Network} Dasha, Julie & Natasha: The Twisted Sisters [EXPANDED] {Jul.30.2008} ------------------------------------------------------ Colleen Mastony of the Chicago Tribune recently sat down with Dasha, Julie and Natasha - Kooza's wonderful contortionists - to "ask about seeing the audience cringe and what it's like growing up in the circus" and more. For the last 15 months-nine shows a week, sometimes two shows a day, for a total 488 performances, if anyone's counting-the three young contortionists have tied themselves in knots. They've folded themselves in half, bent over backward, twisted and stretched in ways that are beautiful and-we must admit-a bit disturbing. Natasha Patterson, 11, of San Rafael, Calif., Julie Bergez, 15, of San Francisco, and Dasha Sovik, 17, of Moscow, are contortionists for Cirque du Soleil's "Kooza" show. Onstage, they seem like strange, supernatural beings, dressed in golden spandex and moving in unison to the dreamy music. But offstage, it turns out, they are giggly, gum-chewing adolescents, who- having performed together for five years-are as close as sisters. We sat down with the girls before a recent show to ask about seeing the audience cringe and what it's like growing up in the circus. Q: Who is the most flexible of the three of you, and what's the craziest thing that she can do? [Dasha and Natasha point to Julie, and they all giggle.] Julie: I happen to be the most flexible. The trick that comes to mind is the one you probably noticed; it's when I run around myself. It's the weirdest trick and the one that people are really impressed with. (Note to readers: For this stunt, Julie does a backbend and stretches her head so far forward that her chin is on the mat, her head is facing the audience. Then she literally runs her legs around her body like a spider. It is astonishing.) Q: Does it hurt? Julie: No. It's actually really easy. It doesn't take much skill. It's mostly flexibility. Q: Watching you, I had to close my eyes at one point. I was thinking bodies don't do that, bodies shouldn't do that. Do you ever see that people are ... Julie: Disgusted? [laughing] We're used to it. Dasha: You can see people in the front row are like [she screws her face up in an expression of disgust] or making faces like, "Oh God!" Q: When you are forming one of your human pyramids, are there moments you ever step on each other's bladders or do something that's painful? Natasha: There is a trick where Dasha is bending back catching her ankles and I have to climb up on her stomach.Sometimes, it's not very comfortable for her. [Giggling.] Dasha: Especially, when I just ate too much. Then it's like ugh. [She wrinkles her nose and sticks out her tongue.] Q: Do you ever pull a muscle? Julie: Being so flexible, it's hard to pull a muscle. We have never injured ourselves. Q: Natasha, your bio says that when you were 3 years old, you saw a gymnastics performance and you "immediately decided" that's what you wanted to do. Is that true? Natasha: Yes, I was 3. Q: What kind of gymnastics can you do when you're 3 years old? Natasha: Easy stuff like running through hoops and doing splits. Q: Were your parents gymnasts? Natasha: No, my mom is a chiropractor but now she's on tour with me. My dad is an electrician and plumber. Q: You're so tiny. What's your height and weight? And what's your clothing size? Natasha: [She giggles.] I'm 4 foot 10, and I weigh 75 pounds. I'm usually a small or an extra small. In jeans I'm a double zero, but most double zeros are too big. Q: What kind of relationship do you girls have with one another? Dasha: One is more annoying. [Pointing to herself and laughing.] Natasha: They're like my big sisters. [Pointing to the other girls.] Julia: I'm usually the one saying, "We have to go! We have to go!" Dasha: And no one ever pays attention to her anyway, so she's wasting her time. Q: What's the worst part about being a Cirque contortionist? Dasha: Sunday morning, because the shows are earlier, so you're still sleeping when you're trying to bend yourself in half. Q: And the best part? Dasha: Getting out on the stage and hearing the applause. Q: What's the most surprising thing you can do? Julie: I can give myself a massage with my own feet. Q: Really? Julie: Yeah. I mean, I could fall asleep in contortion. I could scratch my ear with my foot. Q: I didn't see you do that in the show. Julie: No, it's not very elegant. But there are tons of things that we take for granted. Q: Like what? Julie: Well, regularly our butts are on our heads, which seems weird for normal people but for us that's everyday stuff. Q: Do you ever make each other laugh with some of the wild tricks? Julie: Sometimes you get stuck in a position. Dasha: Or you're upside down, and your face does like this. [She pushes her cheeks upward.] That's pretty funny. Q: Do you ever wish you weren't in the circus, that you were just a "normal" kid? Natsha: I can't imagine being a normal kid. I can't really imagine not having this life. I can't imagine not having to go on stage and not having to train. Julie: A normal life seems kind of boring to me. { SOURCE: Chicago Tribune } Criss Angel vs. The Spyglass Hotel (Part 2) [EXPANDED] {Jul.31.2008} ------------------------------------------------------ By now you've heard about or seen the stunt that Criss Angel performed live in front of audiences in St. Petersburg, Florida, (we've expanded and re-published the multi-page expose and Q&A with Criss from the St. Petersburg Times in our FEATURES section this month), but before the illusion took place, the LA Times spoke with Angel and asked whether or not Cirque had requested he not go through with it. His response: Cirque is not very happy about my decision to do this because they have a lot of money invested in me and in the show. They would prefer that I don't do it. Whether I kill myself or twist my ankle, it would still have a detrimental effect -- obviously one more than another -- on us opening. And there's a lot of money that ticks away every day that show's not open and we're not ready to roll. So they don't want me to do it. They're not happy with this decision. * * * Rockstar magician and illusionist Criss Angel variously calls the event his “most challenging escape ever” and “the most dangerous thing I have attempted in my career” -– a stunt in which he’ll flee a building set for destruction and rigged with hundreds of pounds of explosives before 4,500 tons of concrete come barreling down on top of him. Handcuffed to a seventh-floor balcony, the Sin City sensation will have just three minutes and 30 seconds to get through a series of locked doors and climb three flights of stairs to the roof. His salvation: a helicopter hovering above with a dangling 30-foot ladder. The event will be broadcast live at 7 tonight on “Mindfreak,” Angel’s popular A&E show. Just days before making his way to Florida for the “demonstration” (the New Jersey-born 41-year-old feels it cheapens things to call them “tricks”), Angel sat down with a reporter before a taping of “The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson” to answer a few questions about the building escape -– but, more importantly, its affect on his new Cirque du Soleil- produced show, “Criss Angel: Believe,” which cost a reported $100 million to produce. "Believe" premieres at Las Vegas’ Luxor Resort Hotel and Casino in October. Criss Angel: On July 30, I will do my most challenging escape ever. I will be manacled in front of thousands of viewers, some of them randomly picked to come up and secure me, shackle me, manacle me to the seventh-floor balcony. I will be in full view, nothing to hide. And I will have a specific amount of time to escape before the building implodes. Q. Why do a live demonstration instead of taping it and airing it later like you usually do? I’ve done nearly a thousand demonstrations on “Mindfreak” now. Whether it’s taped on television, I’m still doing it live in front of an audience. We always wanted to bring the show live. People always want to see what’s going to happen. And because it’s taped, anything can happen. Probably –- well, not probably, definitely -– this is the most dangerous thing I have ever attempted in my career. I’ve done a lot of escapes and a lot of pretty crazy things. Q. You’ve had fishhooks pierced through your back and hung from a helicopter. You appear to walk across a lake in one of your shows this season. What makes this the most difficult thing for you? Each one has its own set of challenges and risks. Walking on water isn’t necessarily something I’m going to kill myself with. I could be embarrassed or exposed. We now live in a day and age with technology at our fingertips. People know who I am -– it’s not like the first season [of “Mindfreak”]. They have helicopters out there overhead. Tourists shooting from every angle. So if I’m not on my game in a public forum that I cannot control, it will be all over the Internet and very embarrassing. That’s the risk in that. But a building implosion is death if I’m not successful. Q. You don’t have to do this. The show is already connecting with fans. Going live just seems like a liability. How much do you feel you need to prove what you are doing is legitimate? How much do you need to remove that layer of doubt for your fans? You hit the nail on the head. I don’t have to do this. I have an amazing show [“Criss Angel: Believe”] that we feel is going to revolutionize modern magic shows. Because No. 1, I’ve been working on it for 15 years and we’ve got the greatest artists and conceptors in the world working on it. So night after night, the people that are skeptical are welcome to see the [stuff] that I do live, 10 times a week, 46 weeks a year for 10 years –- which equates to 4,600 performances. The proof’s in the pudding. What you see on my show is what you get live and what you get on the TV show. People will see that for themselves. I do all of my demonstrations for no one else but me as an artist, an escape artist, as a magician. When I lost my father in 1998, he was such a proponent of mind, body and spirit –- and that anything is possible. I do what I do to be the best I can be with the time I have on this earth. I’m just very grateful that the public has connected to that message. It’s a much bigger message than me just doing an illusion and how do I make that work. I don’t care about how it works. I care about how people connect to it and how it makes them feel. I hope it inspires them. Q. Cirque just plunked down $100 million for a new show for you. They must not be too psyched you’re doing the building thing. Cirque is not very happy about my decision to do this because they have a lot of money invested in me and in the show. They would prefer that I don’t do it. Whether I kill myself or twist my ankle, it would still have a detrimental effect –- obviously one more than another –- on us opening. And there’s a lot of money that ticks away every day that show’s not open and we’re not ready to roll. So they don’t want me to do it. They’re not happy with this decision. Q. How strenuously have they tried to discourage you from doing it? Oh, they’re looking for all contractual things and different things. I know a lot of things have been written, but I have an incredible relationship with Serge Denoncourt, the director of the show, and Cirque. But when I got involved with them, I said, “I’m still going to do what I do.” I have an insurance policy on my life that’s worth a few dollars. But I wasn’t going to alter my lifestyle because of this show or anything else. I have to live my life to the fullest and enjoy it because you don’t know when your last moment is. I’m not going to change my lifestyle for any job. I ride motorcycles. I have go-carts that go 160 miles per hour. I do jumps that are 100 feet long. I do that stuff. And the chance of me getting hurt? Yeah, it could happen. And yeah, I could screw up the Cirque thing. But I don’t want to alter my life and not be true to myself as an artist. Then I shouldn’t cross the street because I could trip and fall down. Where does it end? I’ve been OK up to this point where I’ve never been to the hospital with serious injuries. Q. So how confident are you that you are going to escape the building? I have an amazing team and we’ve been doing due diligence. I’m going to be picking locks, handcuffs, and I’ve been doing that since I was 14 years old. It’s not a big deal. But that pressure of live television, your heart-rate, your aim, your focus -– everything has a detrimental effect. I thrive on that challenge of performing, though. Cool and collected as if I was here with you doing something. * For the record, a Cirque du Soleil representative denied the production has investigated any contractual loopholes to prevent Angel from performing the stunt. She voiced concern for his safety but described his choice to perform on “Mindfreak” as a “separate business entity” over which Cirque du Soleil does not have any control and with which it does not interfere. “Criss is the star of our upcoming show and of course we are concerned with his safety. We want him to come back home to Vegas in one piece as soon as possible,” said Anita Nelving, director of public relations for Cirque du Soleil. “But in terms of us being upset or angry, that’s not the case.” Q. So is Angel simply drumming up hype for his show by mischaracterizing how worried Cirque is? “There is an element of an illusionist creating exponential danger around what he is doing,” Nelving said. “But we respect Criss as an artist and trust in his skills that we’re going to get him back safe and sound.” {SOURCE: The L.A. Times} Dubai buys 20% of Cirque du Soleil {Aug.06.2008} ------------------------------------------ While not a takeover, what was rumored on Cirque du Soleil's 24th birthday (June 16, 2008) did appear to have some truth to it after all. Today Cirque du Soleil announces selling a 20% stake in their company to Nakheel and Istithmar World of Dubai. From the AP article: The agreement keeps control of the Montreal-based entertainment company in the hands of founder Guy Laliberte, putting to rest for now speculation that the troupe would be sold outright. “This partnership is the best of both worlds for me and my management team,” Laliberte said in a joint statement with Nakheel and Istithmar. “We can keep control of our creative challenges and operations while accelerating our growth doing projects all over the world.” Nakheel and Istithmar are part of Dubai World, a diversified holding company owned by the government of Dubai. Koozå 500! {Aug.08.2008} ------------------------------------------ Today, at 4:00pm, Koozå celebrated its 500th performance! The celebration the matinée audience was treated to a special "adjustment" in the show. For the final act, Heimloss popped up out of one of 9 traps in the stage and instead of unplugging the show, he stood back as a brilliantly crafted "500" shone bright in the Big Top! Koozå is currently in Chicago until August 24th. In 11 Days: DELIRIUM in Theaters! {Aug.09.2008} ------------------------------------------ THE HOT TICKET" LAUNCHES IN AUGUST WITH STATE-OF-THE-ART DIGITAL PRESENTATIONS DELIRIUM(tm) by CIRQUE DU SOLEIL(r) IN US & CANADIAN MOVIE THEATERS [ http://www.DELIRIUM.thehotticket.net ] CULVER CITY, Calif., August 7, 2008 - On, August 20th, 21st, 23rd and 24th Sony Pictures Releasing's new special programming division The Hot Ticket will bring audiences the groundbreaking live music and dance extravaganza DELIRIUM in HD from Cirque du Soleil. For the first time ever, special limited engagement presentations of DELIRIUM will be available to audiences in select movie theaters across the US and Canada. "We couldn't be more delighted and proud to kick off our inaugural slate of Hot Ticket programming with Cirque du Soleil's DELIRIUM," said Rory Bruer, President of Domestic Distribution for Sony Pictures Releasing. "It's the perfect marriage to have such a visually exciting multimedia show as DELIRIUM showcased in theaters in state-of-the-art high definition presentation. It is stunning to experience the show in this way and it sounds amazing. It's truly the next best thing to being there and experiencing the show "live" and I believe audiences will be blown away by the incredibly creative and talented artists, acrobats and performers that make up the world renowned Cirque du Soleil troupe." With visually stunning tableaux in which music and projections meld together, DELIRIUM is a mesmerizing production. "We are happy to take this opportunity to bring the Cirque du Soleil experience to a new entertainment environment," explained Jacques Méthé, Executive Producer at Cirque du Soleil Images. "We believe that DELIRIUM in HD will offer audiences a memorable experience in movie theaters because of its magnitude, the energy of the performers and the diversity of its music going from percussion to electronic music." Audiences throughout North America will discover or rediscover the journey of Bill, the main character who is searching for balance in a world increasingly out of sync with reality. This incandescent journey filmed under the highest standards will be seen with a state-of-the-art digital projection and surround sound. Said David Mallet, director of the film, "I am really happy with this one-of-a-kind production since the use of twenty cameras allowed us to both capture the spectacular scale and nature of the show along with the incredible skill and intimate interaction of the fabulous Cirque du Soleil artists. This unique cinema experience will be a delight for the viewers. " The experience is unique for the viewers who can now enjoy the performances of dancers, singers, musicians and acrobats on a large screen in digital theaters. The result is an entertainment experience that is available for a limited time. For further information and to purchase tickets for DELIRIUM please visit http://www.DELIRIUM.thehotticket.net. {SOURCE: Sony Pictures Entertainment} Presse: "Rock 'n' Roll Cirque" [EXPANDED] {Aug.13.2008} ------------------------------------------ Saltimbanco's Arena Tour is pulling into Toronto for a couple of weeks, and this morning the Globe and Mail ran a piece about the show, its history and its changes. From the article: Since Cirque's Saltimbanco opened in Montreal in 1992, the show's colourful costumes and awesome acrobats have wowed audiences under an old-fashioned Grand Chapiteau that provided both shelter and intimacy in the tradition of an acrobatic bazaar. But for its latest North American tour, the world- renowned circus has shed its tent in favour of bigger venues usually reserved for rock stars and hockey matches. [...] Transforming the show from an intimate tent affair to an arena spectacle took a total of 21 weeks. The task demanded that technicians raise the stage and intensify the lighting and sound to resonate throughout a massive environment. What follows is a breakdown of the changes Cirque du Soleil underwent to bring Saltimbanco to the masses. * * * 2,500 - NUMBER OF EXTRA SEATS The conversion from big top to arena means double the audience size, a huge boost in ticket sales and a chance to bring Saltimbanco (translated from Italian to mean "to jump on a bench") to new markets, acrobatic coach Michael Ocampo says. The switch allowed the North American tour to stop in 47 cities so far this year (with 136 more to come) versus the six or seven shows a year previously possible under the big top. (They would perform in one spot for months at a time.) Many of the new stops are smaller cities where the audiences "maybe heard of Cirque du Soleil and always wanted to see the show but might've never had the chance," Ocampo says. 245,000 - WEIGHT, IN KILOGRAMS, OF EQUIPMENT HAULED AROUND IN A DOZEN, 16-METRE TRAILERS "It's really like a rock 'n' roll show, not like a circus show," production manager Michel Therrien says. But the tractor trailers transporting the 33-by-20-metre stage, plus hundreds of costumes and props, are surprisingly compact - and need to be as the tour moves briskly from city to city. "It's much more efficient and mobile," says Tanya Jacobs, head of wardrobe for Saltimbanco. The closets packed with 1,200 costumes are built into the trucks and need not be unloaded: Performers simply pluck their flamboyant feather dresses and sleek silk and spandex bodysuits out of the trailers. 9 - NUMBER OF HOURS TO SET UP THE SALTIMBANCO STAGE Time is a precious commodity when setting up and tearing down the giant yellow, green, blue and fuchsia stage, and Saltimbanco crews are grateful for the time-saving convenience of the arena tour, Therrien says. "The big top took four days to set up," he says. "[Now]we always work on concrete, we don't have any weather issues. When you work on the big top, sometimes there's rain, and you're in the mud or sometimes there's snow. We don't have those challenges in an arena." But one challenge facing the engineers in each new city is fastening the acrobatic rigging to the arena floor. Every venue has tiny metal-rimmed holes called circus rigs in different points of the ground. Wires are anchored into the holes and linked to the acrobatic grid - a circular nest of yellow metal bars suspended nearly 10 metres in the air. Trapezes, the Russian swing and the bungee are then fixed to the grid, which needs to be firmly in place before it's safe for the artists to perform. Starting at 7 a.m. yesterday, 20 Cirque technicians in Toronto and about 60 more locally hired crew began to unload the stage and slowly position and lift lighting off the cconrete floor. The colourful stage was wheeled in and held steady by steel counterweights. By noon yesterday, about 100 snake-like chains dangled from the ceiling and were fastened to lighting grids below. Crew members straddled and balanced on startlingly narrow rafters in the arena - perhaps higher than the acrobats perform - yanking the chains to hoist the lighting and acrobatic grid in preparation for show time. 51 - NUMBER OF PERFORMERS WHO HAD TO LEARN THE ROPES A shift to the arena venue means sinewy acrobats need to readjust how far they leap and swing during the performance, Ocampo says. When artist Yannick Blackburn overextended herself during a manoeuvre last December in a Montreal arena, ringmaster James Clowney stepped in to rescue him. In doing so, he broke his leg, an ankle and a cluster of ligaments in his knee (he was back on tour within six months). Injuries are relatively few for the acrobats, many of which are world-class international performers. An invisible wire acts as a backup in case performers lose their footing, Ocampo says, but it can't guarantee they won't fall to the floor. "Even if the safety wire's there and it's going to catch you, the fall is still very violent and it hurts your body. You can bruise your ribs, you can even break a rib if you fall hard enough." 8 - NUMBER OF PERMANENT SHOWS The grandeur of an arena tour aligns with Cirque's recent move toward opening "permanent" shows around the world, especially in Las Vegas. The company will open Zaia, its first such show in Asia, on Aug. 28 in Macau. And the ink is still fresh on the sale of 20 per cent of Cirque to Dubai property developer Nakheel and investment company Istithmar World Capital. The sale follows last year's announcement of a plan to develop a permanent show in Palm Jumeirah in Dubai by 2011. 37,820 - KILOMETRES COVERED SINCE THE TOUR BEGAN IN LONDON, ONT., ON JULY 31, 2007 The North American tour sees no firm end in sight. Having already played Canada's West Coast, Saltimbanco heads to Hamilton by the end of August and goes into the United States until January, 2009. {SOURCE: The Globe and Mail} Cirque Ticket Prices "Extremely Low"? [EXPANDED] {Aug.13.2008} ------------------------------------------ TicketNetwork.com, the leading source for the ticket industry's most comprehensive inventory, announced today its prices for Cirque du Soleil shows worldwide fare extremely low compared to the competition. Its broad appeal however creates a high demand for tickets, which the secondary market tries to meet. "Prices in our industry are governed by demand," said TicketNetwork CEO Don Vaccaro. "Saving up to $90.00 on a single ticket can determine whether a family can afford to see a show or not," Vaccaro further said. TicketNetwork aims to provide customers with Cirque du Soleil tickets at competitive prices. As is the case in most other industries, comparison shopping is crucial in secondary ticketing. The price samples below outline the differences between companies: La Nouba tickets for Friday, September 05, 2008 at 9:00 PM at Downtown Disney at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, FL. Prices for tickets in section 206, row LL: TicketNetwork: $258.00 TicketsNow: $279.00 StubHub: $306.00 “O” tickets for Friday, September 19, 2008 at 10:30 PM at “O” Theatre at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, NV. Prices for tickets in section 104, row F: TicketNetwork: $228.00 TicketsNow: $252.00 StubHub: $269.00 Saltimbanco tickets for Thursday, September 25 at 7:30 PM at the Target Center in Minneapolis, MN. Prices for tickets in section 106, row J: TicketNetwork: $70.00 TicketsNow: $78.00 StubHub: $83.00 The Beatles: Love tickets for Saturday, September 20, 2008 at Love Theatre at The Mirage in Las Vegas, NV. Average prices for tickets in section 200, row p: TicketNetwork: $233.00 TicketsNow: $257.00 StubHub: $275.00 Zumanity tickets for Saturday, September 13, 2008, at 7:30 PM at the New York New York Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, NV. Average prices for tickets in section 101, row E: TicketNetwork: $174.33 TicketsNow: $241.00 StubHub: $265.00 {SOURCE: TicketNetwork.com} How Much Cirque is Too Much? [EXPANDED] {Aug 18.2008} ----------------------------------------------------- Mike Weatherford for the Las Vegas Review Journal recently posed the question "How much Cirque is too much for Vegas?" in a recent article for the paper. Indeed fans and followers of Cirque du Soleil have been asking this very question ever since Zumanity premiered in 2003. Renewed interest comes now due in part on the recent 20% stake that Nakheel and Istithmar World of Dubai purchased on August 6th and the upcoming premiere of Criss Angel BELIEVE at the Luxor. * * * Fueled by money from Dubai, Cirque du Soleil is ready to soar around the world. But its wings still could be clipped at Mandalay Bay. Two weeks ago, Las Vegas' dominant entertainment player sold one-fifth of the company to affiliates of Dubai World, the Persian Gulf state holding company that also has a half-stake in MGM Mirage's CityCenter. The Dubai money should aid the "acceleration of our development," Cirque's president, Daniel Lamarre, noted. Working with the developers on a Cirque production set for Dubai in 2011, "I've learned to trust them, and I was really impressed by the speed (with) which they're developing their organization." Growth of the permanent show division also means more jobs in Las Vegas, where the division is based. But each time Cirque opens a show on the Strip, there is a renewed gap between the company's ambitious plans and the skeptical local reaction. Talk to Cirque, and you hear something like this: "Give me as many venues as you have, and I'll find the right creators," Lamarre says. "When I walk into our creative center in Montreal, there are more ideas than there are theaters available to us." Talk to Las Vegas locals and others in the show community, and you hear something like this: "The Cirque shows are wonderful, but enough already. Isn't there anything else out there?" People at Mandalay Bay are asking the same question. I'm hearing there is dissension within MGM Mirage ranks about which way to go after "Mamma Mia!" closes in January. At the property level, there is a real push to find a third alternative to either Cirque or another established Broadway musical. An original, Motown-themed revue is on the short list. Lamarre says most people have "no idea we are investing so much money in research and development." One team travels the globe as trend-spotters. Another is staked out at the Olympics to add new names to the 7,000 in the company's bank of artists. Still, I'm told that after giving Cirque development money for show concepts, MGM Mirage execs have yet to hear a pitch they like for Mandalay. But there is strong loyalty to Cirque, and with good reason. While the rest of the Strip is taking it on the chin, Cirque's five shows collectively saw a 3 percent increase this year, Lamarre says. With the branding of Criss Angel (starring in the next Cirque) and Elvis Presley (for CityCenter), "I think we are demonstrating more than ever that we are able to develop content that is hugely, hugely different one from the other," Lamarre says. When Angel's "Believe" opens next month, all eyes will be looking for proof. {SOURCE: Las Vegas Review-Journal} "O" as in Olympic {Aug.29.2008} ------------------------------------------ Thanks to Anonymous Cirquester for passing along this passage in celebration of the Olympics in Beijing: Did you know...There are 20 Olympians among the 1,000 performers in the 18 touring and resident Cirque shows worldwide? Nine of them perform on the "O" stage every night. With the buzz of the Olympics in the air over the past month, we wanted to take a moment to recognize the Olympic talent that graces our stage on a nightly basis. o) Synchronized Swimmers: .) Suzannah Bianco (USA) .) Miho Kono (Japan) .) Belinda Schmid (Switzerland) .) Kanako Kitao (Japan) .) Madeleine Perk (Switzerland) .) Cinthia Bouhier (France) o) Gymnasts: .) Zoltan Supola (Hungary) .) Imre Lengyel (Hungary) .) Sergei Kudrevich (Belarus) {SOURCE: Cirque du Soleil} ======================================================================= COMPARTMENTS -- INFORMATION ON TOUR AND BEHIND THE CURTAIN ======================================================================= o) ITINÉRAIRE - Tour/Show Information o) DIDYAKNOW - Facts About Cirque o) HISTORIA - Cirque du Soleil History O) CIRQUETECH - The Technical Side of Cirque ================ 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/ >. Alegría: Rio de Janerio, 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 Buenos Aires, Argentina -- Jun 20, 2008 to Jul 27, 2008 Santiago, Chile -- Aug 8, 2008 to Sep 21, 2008 Seoul, South Korea -- Oct 15, 2008 to Sep 21, 2008 Taipei, Taiwan -- Jan 14, 2009 to Feb 22, 2009 Dubai, UAE -- Mar 5, 2009 to TBA Corteo: San Diego, California -- Jan 11, 2008 to Feb 3, 2008 Portland, Oregan -- Mar 1, 2008 to Apr 13, 2008 Seattle, Washington -- Apr 24, 2008 to Jun 1, 2008 Vancouver, BC -- Jun 12, 2008 to Jul 20, 2008 Calgary, AB -- Jul 31, 2008 to Sep 7, 2008 Ottawa, ON -- Sep 16, 2008 to Oct 26, 2008 Miami, Florida -- Nov 13, 2008 to Dec 28, 2008 Tokyo, Japan -- Feb 4, 2009 to May 5, 2009 Nagoya, Japan -- May 21, 2009 to Jul 12, 2009 Osaka, Japan -- Jul 29, 2009 to Sep 30, 2009 Dralion: Tokyo, Japan -- Jan 25, 2008 to Apr 6, 2008 Fukuoka, Japan -- Apr 23, 2008 to Jun 15, 2008 Sydney, Australia -- Jul 17, 2008 to Aug 17, 2008 Canberra, Australia -- Oct 23, 2008 to Nov 16, 2008 Brisbane, Australia -- Nov 27, 2008 to Jan 11, 2009 Perth, Australia -- Jan 28, 2009 to Mar 29, 2009 Melbourne, Australia -- Apr 9, 2009 to Jun 14, 2009 Koozå: San Francisco, California - Nov 16 to Jan 20, 2008 San Jose, California -- Jan 31, 2008 to Mar 16, 2008 Hartford, Connecticut -- Apr 1, 2008 to Apr 27, 2008 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania -- May 8, 2008 to Jun 15, 2008 Chicago, Illinois -- Jun 26, 2008 to Aug 24, 2008 Boston, Massachusetts -- Sep 4, 2008 to Oct 19, 2008 Washington, DC -- Oct 30, 2008 to Dec 7, 2008 Atlanta, Georgia -- Jan 2, 2009 to Mar 1, 2009 Baltimore, Maryland -- Mar 13, 2009 to Apr 5, 2009 New York, New York -- Apr 16, 2009 to Jun 21, 2009 Quidam: Mexico City, Mexico - Nov 16, 2007 to Jan 13, 2008 Monterrey, Mexico - Jan 17, 2008 to Feb 10, 2008 Veracruz, Mexico -- Feb 27, 2008 to Mar 16, 2008 Lisbon, Portugal -- Apr 20, 2008 to May 25, 2008 Màlaga, Spain -- Jun 5, 2008 to Jul 13, 2008 Alicante, Spain -- Jul 24, 2008 to Aug 31, 2008 Barcelona, Spain -- Sep, 11, 2008 to Oct 19, 2008 Brussels, Belgium -- Oct 30, 2008 to Dec 21, 2008 (*) London, UK -- Jan 4, 2009 to Feb 22, 2009 (*) Liverpool, UK -- Feb 26, 2009 to Feb 28, 2009 {ARENA} Belfast, UK -- Mar 4, 2009 to Mar 7, 2009 {ARENA} Newcastle, UK -- Mar 12, 2009 to Mar 15, 2009 {ARENA} Birmingham, UK -- Mar 18, 2009 to Mar 22, 2009 {ARENA} Manchester, UK -- Mar 25, 2009 to Mar 27, 2009 {ARENA} Dublin, Ireland -- Mar 31, 2009 to Apr 5, 2009 {ARENA} Sheffield, UK -- Apr 9, 2009 to Apr 15, 2009 {ARENA} Glasgow, Scotland -- Apr 16, 2009 to Apr 19, 2009 {ARENA} Varekai: London, UK - Jan 6, 2008 to Feb 3, 2008 Amsterdam, NL -- Feb 28, 2008 to May 25, 2008 Berlin, Germany -- Jun 5, 2008 to Jul 13, 2008 Oberhausen, Germany -- Jul 31, 2008 to Sep 14, 2008 Vienna, Austria -- Sep 25, 2008 to Nov 9, 2008 Madrid, Spain -- Nov 20, 2008 to Dec 28, 2008 Seville, Spain -- Feb 5, 2009 to Mar 14, 2009 Bilbao, Spain -- Mar 26, 2009 to May 3, 2009 Hamburg, Germany -- May 22, 2009 to Jul 5, 2009 Oostende, Belgium -- Jul 16, 2009 to Aug 23, 2009 Zurich, Switzerland -- Sep 4, 2009 to Oct 25, 2009 Munich, Germany -- Nov 5, 2009 to Dec 20, 2009 [Arena Shows] Delirium: Oberhausen, Germany - Feb 1 & 2 Hanover, Germany - Feb 5 & 6 Bremen, Germany - Feb 9 & 10 Stockholm, Sweden - Feb 13 & 14 Turku, Finland - Feb 16 & 17 Zurich, Switzerland - Feb 25 & 26 Budapest, Hungary - Feb 29 & Mar 1 Berlin, Germany - Mar 6 Nurnberg, Germany - Mar 8 & 9 Milan, Italy - Mar 11, 12 & 13 Turin, Italy - Mar 15, 16 & 17 Birmingham, UK - Mar 22 & 23 Liverpool, UK - Mar 25 & 26 Paris, France - Mar 31 & Apr 1, 2 Antwerp, Belgium - Apr 5 & 6 Glasgow, UK - Apr 9 & 10 Belfast, UK - Apr 12 London, UK - Apr 17, 18 & 19 (Delirium's final curtain call was in London) Saltimbanco: 2008 ------ Quebec, 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 Christi, Texas - Mar 21 & 22 Wichita, Kansas - Mar 26, 27, 28, 39 & 30 Omaha, Nebraska - Apr 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6 Des Moines, Iowa - Apr 10, 11, 12 & 13 Moline, Illinois - Apr 15, 16, 17 & 18 Cedar Rapids, Iowa - Apr 23, 24, 25, 26 & 27 Alberquerque, New Mexico - May 14, 15, 16 & 17 Boise, Idaho - May 21, 22, 23, 24 & 25 Victoria, BC - May 29, 30, 31 & Jun 1 Kelowana, BC - Jun 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8 Kamloops, BC - Jun 11, 12, 13, 14 & 15 Edmonton, Alberta - Jun 18, 19, 20, 21 & 22 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan - Jun 25, 26, 27, 28 & 29 Regina, Saskatchewan - Jul 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6 Winnipeg, Manatoba - Jul 9, 10, 11, 12 & 13 Kansas City, Missouri -- July 16, 17, 18, 19 & 20 Newark, New Jersey -- Aug 7, 8, 9 & 10 Toronto, Ontario -- Aug 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20, 21, 22, 23 & 24 Hamilton, Ontario -- Aug 27, 28, 29, 30 & 31 Amherst, Massachusetts -- Sep 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7 Buffalo, New York -- Sep 10, 11, 12, 13 & 14 Trenton, New Jersey -- Sep 17, 18, 19, 20 & 21 Minneapolis/St-Paul, Minnesota -- Sep 24, 25, 26, 27 & 28 Milwaukee, Wisconsin -- Oct 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5 Highland Heights, Kentucky -- Oct 8, 9, 10, 11 & 12 Honolulu, Hawaii -- Oct 30, 2009 to Nov 16, 2008 Prescott Valley, AZ -- Nov 20, 20089 to Nov 23, 2008 Tuscon, AZ -- Nov 26, 2008 to Nov 30, 2008 Oklahoma City, OK -- Dec 3, 2008 to Dec 7, 2008 Tulsa, OK -- Dec 10, 2008 to Dec 14, 2008 Hidalgo, TX -- Dec 17, 2008 to Dec 21, 2008 2009 ------ Hoffman Estates, IL -- Jan 21, 2009 to Feb 1, 2009 St. Charles, MO -- Feb 4, 2009 to Feb 8, 2009 Lakeland, FL -- Apr 29, 2009 to May 3, 2009 Gainesville, FL -- May 6, 2009 to May 10, 2009 Tallahassee, FL -- May 13, 2009 to May 17, 2009 Jacksonville, FL -- May 20, 2009 to May 24, 2009 Sunrise, FL -- May 27, 2009 to Jun 6, 2009 Tampa, FL -- Jun 25, 2009 to Jul 5, 2009 [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 2008 Ticket Prices (adults) / (child 3-9): o Category 0: $121.41 / $96.92 o Category 1: $105.44 / $84.14 o Category 2: $86.27 / $69.23 o Category 3: $69.23 / $55.38 2008 Dark Dates: o January 22 to 26 o March 25 o May 20 to 24 o May 27 to 312 o July 29 o September 23 to 27 o November 18 Mystère: Location: Treasure Island, Las Vegas (USA) 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 2008 Ticket Prices: o Category 1: $95.00 [$104.50] o Category 2: $75.00 [$82.50] o Category 3: $60.00 [$66.00] 2008 Dark Dates: o January 3 to 18 o February 3 o March 12 o May 1 to 9 o July 9 o September 4 to 12 o November 5 o December 24 "O": Location: Bellagio, Las Vegas (USA) Performs: Wednesday through Sunday, Dark: Monday/Tuesday Two shows Nightly - 7:30pm and 10:30pm 2008 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] 2008 Dark Dates: o February 10 o April 7 to 15 o June 8 o August 11 to 19 o October 12 o December 8 to 23 Zumanity: Location: New York-New York, Las Vegas (USA) Performs: Tuesday through Saturday, Dark: Sunday/Monday Two Shows Nightly - 7:30pm and 10:30pm 2008 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] 2008 Dark Dates: o Feburary 3 o February 19 & 20 o April 6 to 14 o June 9 to 11 o August 3 to 11 o October 14 & 15 o December 1 to 16 KÀ: Location: MGM Grand, Las Vegas (USA) Performs: Fri through Tue, Dark Wed/Thu Two Shows Nightly - 7:00pm and 9:30pm 2008 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] 2008 Dark Dates o January 13 to 28 o March 16 to 19 o May 11 to 19 o July 13 to 16 o September 7 to 15 o November 2 to 4 LOVE: Location: Mirage, Las Vegas (USA) Performs: Thursday through Monday, Dark: Tuesday/Wednesday Two Shows Nightly - 7:00pm and 10:30pm 2008 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] 2008 Dark Dates: o February 3 & 4 o February 11 o April 1 to 9 o May 12 o June 12 o July 29 to August 6 o October 9 o December 2 to 17 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 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 / $45.45 Information regarding the 2008 season is not yet available. ZAIA: Location: VENETIAN, Macao (China) Performs: Tuesday through Sunday, Dark Monday One to Two Shows Daily - Tuesday: 8:00pm Wednesday: 8:00pm Thursday - Saturday: 7:00pm & 10:00pm Sunday: 4:00pm & 7:00pm PREVIEW PERFORMANCES - July 26th through August 27th GALA PREMIERE - AUGUST 28, 2008 2008 Ticket Prices (adult) / (child 0-12): o Category 1: MOP$ 1288 / No Child o Category 2: MOP$ 788 / MOP$ 688 o Category 3: MOP$ 588 / MOP$ 488 o Category 4: MOP$ 388 / MOP$ 288 BELIEVE: Location: Luxor, Las Vegas (USA) Performs: Friday through Tuesday, Dark Wednesday/Thursday Two Shows Nightly - 7:00pm and 10:00pm PREVIEW PERFORMANCES - BEGIN SEPTEMBER 26th GALA PREMIERE - OCTOBER 31st, 2008 NOTE: Children under the age of 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Children under the age of five are not permitted into the theater. 2008 Ticket Prices (all): o Category 1: $150.00 +tax o Category 2: $125.00 +tax o Category 3: $99.00 +tax o Category 4: $79.00 +tax o Category 5: $59.00 +tax 2008 Dark Dates: o September 8 & 9 o September 13 o November 5 to 13 ZED: Location: TOKYO DISNEYLAND, Tokyo (Japan) Performs: Varies One to Two Shows Daily - Varies PREVIEW PERFORMANCES - August 15th through September 30th GALA PREMIERE - October 1, 2008 2008 Ticket Prices (all): o Category 1 ("Premium"): ¥18,000 o Category 2 ("Front"): ¥15,000 o Category 3 ("Regular"): ¥9,800 o Category 4 ("Overview"): ¥7,800 ================================= DIDYAKNOW? - Facts About Cirque ================================= In honor of LOVE's 1000th performance, we have a few fun facts courtesy of Cirque du Soleil! o) Since its opening, 1,947,238 visitors have come to see the show. o) The LOVE theatre features 24 digital projectors that are used in the show. Everything is digital, from source to screen, making the impressive 100-foot-wide high-definition panoramic images possible. o) There are over 6,500 speakers in the theatre (compared to Mystère's 78), which create one of the most panoramic surround-sound systems in the world-like IMAX for the ears! Each seat is fitted with six speakers so the Beatles' music can be heard like never before. o) The Performers wear 331 multi-layered costumes during a performance of LOVE. o) The stage is made up of seven lifts, two sloats, various traps and one turntable. Each lift is capable of lifting 20,000 pounds. o) We use 204 moving lights, 1,000 dimmers... and one finger to control it all. o) The theatre seats 2,013 guests. o) The cast features sixty performers from seventeen countries, split equally between dancers, characters / actors and acrobats and ranging in age from nine to 71 years old. ==================================== 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.06.2008 -- René Dupéré named "Chevalier" in the Order de la Pléiade * 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.11.2008 -- LOVE celebrated 1000th performance [Friday] * 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.17.2008 -- Dralion opened Sydney, Australia * 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.24.2008 -- Quidam opened Alicante, Spain * 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] * Jul.31.2008 -- Corteo opened Calgary, AB, Canada * Jul.31.2008 -- Varekai opened Oberhausen [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.06.2008 -- Nakeel of Dubai purchases 20% Stake in Cirque * Aug.07.1992 -- Fascination opened Yokohama * Aug.08.1989 -- Cirque Réinventé opened San Francisco * Aug.08.1996 -- Quidam opened Toronto * Aug.08.2008 -- Alegría opened Santiago * Aug.08.2008 -- Koozå celebrated 500th Performance [Fri, 4:00pm/Chicago] * 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.14.2008 -- Alegría opened Santiago, Chile * 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.20.2008 -- DELIRIUM premieres on Digital Theater Screens * 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, MN] ========================================== CIRQUETECH: The Technical Side of Cirque ========================================== Cirque du FaceBook ------------------ For our CirqueTech column this period, we'd like to take a moment to point out some of Cirque's recent outreach into the digital realm of fandom: Facebook pages. o) Mystere -- http://www.new.facebook.com/Mystere o) "O" -- http://www.new.facebook.com/Ocirque o) La Nouba -- http://www.new.facebook.com/LaNouba o) Zumanity -- http://www.new.facebook.com/Zumanity o) KA -- http://www.new.facebook.com/KA o) LOVE -- http://www.new.facebook.com/TheBeatlesLOVE At the moment only the resident shows are represented via Facebook, but it's a start! You'll need to have your own Facebook account in order to become a "fan" of these pages, but once you do you'll gain access to some unique aspects of Cirque du Soleil - like Bebe's "papa" pictures on the Mystère facebook page! ======================================================================= FASCINATION! FEATURES ======================================================================= ------------------------------------------------------- "ZAIA Premiere: 'A Journey Through Time and Space'" By: Cirque du Soleil {Press Room Materials } ------------------------------------------------------- THE FIRST PERMANENT CIRQUE DU SOLEIL SHOW IN ASIA CELEBRATES ITS WORLD PREMIERE ON AUGUST 28 AT THE VENETIAN MACAO-RESORT-HOTEL Written and Directed by Gilles Maheu Macau, China - August 28, 2008 - ZAIA, the very first permanent Cirque du Soleil production to open in Asia, celebrates its world premiere on August 28, 2008 at the Venetian Macao-Resort-Hotel in Macau to coincide with the 1st Anniversary of its host resort-hotel. PRESENTATION (ACTS) ------------------- Choreography I - City Scape The dance troupe embraces social diversity through a series of choreographies. First, a couple performs a languorous tango to the sound of a bandoneon (a small accordion), the flexibility of the dancers sometimes evokes the movements of contortionists. Then, two other dancers perform a high-energy gypsy dance without any musical accompaniment, tapping out the rhythm on their bodies with their hands as other performers arrive on stage from everywhere. Finally, the entire troupe presents a rhythmic dance that merges styles. Aerial Bamboo Hanging from a pole, two artists perform a hand to hand act on a pole suspended in mid-air. They move up and down in unison, as if on a surface inclined at a 90-degree angle in the middle of the cosmos. From time to time, one of the artists grips the hand or foot of the other, creating acrobatic figures by executing fluid movements steeped in poetry. Chinese Poles on Globes As her earthly odyssey leads her to the Orient, Zaia discovers acrobats clinging to poles shaped like weathervanes symbolizing the points of the compass perform Chinese Poles act. What makes this act special is the fact that the poles are held by porters who are standing on globes. Choreography II - Dance of the Automatons Characters whose fanciful costumes are reminiscent of toys made from recycled objects perform modern dance and break dancing moves, sometimes as if their bodies were dismembered. One of the dancers rotates on his head like a spinning top at an amazing speed! Rola Bola A Charlie Chaplin-like character arrives from the sky on a big ladder, and finds bits and pieces of pipe and planks, which he uses to build a rickety structure at center stage. He balances precariously as he makes it climb higher and higher so he can rejoin his "celestial ladder." Aerial Frame Under a panoply of ladders slung high above the stage, acrobats perform an act that merges aerial disciplines in a mixture of styles inspired by North Korean acts. To achieve this, four stations are equipped with suspended swivel chairs to hold porters who catch and release the artists flying in both directions. Timing is crucial when flyers perform pirouettes with spectacular spins from one station to the next. Hand to Hand Two acrobats evoke the love of the original couple by performing a hand to hand act full of sweetness and sensuality. The two artists create impressive figures and seemingly impossible feats of balance that require absolute mastery and control. Aerial Straps Duo A pair of artists uses aerial straps to evoke their nascent passion, sometimes using a single strap for synchronized movements, sometimes a double strap to perform an aerial ballet of seduction, finesse and elegance. Choreography III - Fire Dance After attending the union of Romeo and Zaia, the Sage, who incarnates an African shaman performs a dance in the dark, twirling a stick that is lit at both ends. Other dancers and acrobats join in. At the climax all them are dancing with incandescent objects and then they disappear into the entrails of the stage. Trampoline and Double Teeterboard (X-Board) In a veritable tribute to weightlessness, acrobats present an act combining two disciplines: Teeterboard and Trampoline. A flurry of criss-crossing flights, rebounds, daring leaps and jumps takes over the stage. CHARACTERS ---------- Zaia Zaia is the name of the main character, a young girl who dreams of becoming an astronaut and discovering the mysteries of space. Her imaginary celestial journey will follow in the footsteps of her parents and she will encounter love. Her odyssey leads her to take a fresh look at the beauty of Earth and the humans who live there. Romeo Captivated by the innocence of Zaia, Romeo is a young spectator she meets at the beginning of her voyage. This character will search for her throughout the story. When they come together at last they will delight each other in a sensual straps duet. The Sage A mysterious ageless character, the Sage embodies the memory, knowledge and different eras of humanity. He is the archetype of the ancestor, the first of all ancestors, a kind of bright spot in the blackness of space. The Sage watches over Zaia. Clowns Sensitive and silly, the clowns are the companions of Zaia in this wonderful adventure. Although they become separated their friendship will reunite them in the end. Parents Zaia's parents, itinerant acrobats on tour in space, passed on to her their wanderlust and desire for discovery. The Handyman A Charlie Chaplin-like character, the Handyman builds a precarious structure with planks and its pipes. When his shelter collapses, everyone bands together to save him. Adam and Eve This couple represents original, pure, mythical and eternal love. It is through them that Zaia herself discovers love, a feeling that she will later share with Romeo. The Humans These characters of all ages and all social strata represent the last people on Earth. Pressed and jostled in their daily lives, they are equally capable of humor and great impulses of unity. The Aristos Characters from another era, the Aristos represent high society and elegance as they participate in the aerial number. The Weathervanes These characters from the Chinese Poles on Globes number represent the points of the compass. The Fossils The ice-encrusted Fossils are silent witnesses to the union between Adam and Eve. The Primitives The Primitives represent the first men who tamed fire and learned to use it. They include us in their celebration of love and fire. COSTUMES -------- A major influence on Dominique Lemieux's costume designs for ZAIA came from the inventive ensembles and looks that young people are creating for themselves around the planet. "In my visual research I was inspired by the urban dress of the world's cities," she explains. "A new culture has emerged from the ethnic mix that characterizes the modern city. There's a spontaneous variety that is reflected in the way today's young people dress. The ZAIA costumes refer to this eclectic merging of genres." The ZAIA costumes also reflect and represent the cultural diversity and differences between groups of characters within the show. For example, to emphasize the importance of show's "urban" dancers and differentiate them from the other characters, they are all dressed in warm colors, while the acrobatic inhabitants of the world of ZAIA are in more reflective materials, whether they are darker or lighter colors. In other scenes, the performers seem to have emerged from a toy box. Their costumes are decorated with accessories made from recycled objects: pieces of metal, newsprint, a piece of a fan, a rotary phone, a compass, a trumpet and so on. Some costumes evoke animals like coyotes or hyenas, while others recall boats, musical instruments or airplanes. This show marks the first time Dominique Lemieux has worked with polyester fabrics. The light weight of polyester allows for a technique called sublimation, a technique that fixes designs in the fibers of the cloth and enables her to use a great diversity of colors. The central character, the young girl called Zaia, who belongs to the "urban" world, is the focal point of the color red in the show. Her partner wears warm earth colors decorated with gold and copper. Drawn from all cultures, the Sage is an almost god-like character, an archetype of a wise old ancestor with his long coat and long tresses, which have gold mixed in with the silver. He is source of shimmering light in the darkness of the night sky, and has the power to transform himself into the character of the Shaman, and his Shaman costume references that of the Sage. While there is a poetic, allegorical aspect to much of the show, there is also an aspect of reality and that is reflected in the authenticity of the golden Astronaut costumes. In the Adam and Eve hand-to-hand number, the performers wear costumes dyed in shades of turquoise and skin tones. The garments are like a second skin, giving the impression that the artists are dressed in leaves with a texture like ice and crystals. The Fire Dancers wear skintight skin-colored costumes that are printed with tattoos, and adorned with leather and metal components. In the globes and poles number, the costumes are inspired by weather vanes that indicate the direction of the wind and a variety of elements such as water, sun and ice. The two Singers in the show wear spectacular flowing robes of velvet that have been distressed to reveal different colors of the layers of materials beneath and studded with bright LED "stars." The singers also wear spectacular illuminated wigs. The clowns' costumes contrast with the other characters in the show. Their outfits are inspired by, among other sources, 18th century explorers. A patina of worn, patched fabrics gives them an old- fashioned appearance. THE THEATRE ----------- The ZAIA Theatre is reminiscent of ancient architectural telescopes such as Jaipur in India and the vast stone Mayan observatories of Central America. It is not a planetarium as such, however it contains many visual cues and references that add to the show's underlying theme of cosmic exploration. In keeping with the primary theme of a journey into space, verticality is an important component of the show and the theatre was designed with a higher than 80-ft/24-meter ceiling and the set elements are intended to recreate the experience of being in space - an experience that is both mysteriously alien and strangely familiar. This is a timeless journey from through the stratosphere and beyond, while keeping an eye on Earth. THE SET ------- The proscenium is almost circular, like an oculus (a round window, sometimes called a "bulls eye") made up of several layers that create a sense of depth through perspective lines and curves made of bronze that converge on the single focal point located at the centre of an enormous sun set against the backdrop, known as the "Star Drop," which recreates the night sky with 3,000 fiber optic "stars." Designer Guillaume Lord used a star map to give the Star Drop an accurate representation of the constellations at the exact location of the theatre. When the audience enters the theatre, one of the main set elements, a gigantic Sphere, appears to be a chandelier and the walls are illuminated by light sources at ground level, creating the mysterious effect of a deep dark cavern. When the Sphere is revealed in all its constantly-changing glory following the opening number, its full scope and the effect of its trajectory over the heads of the audience is nothing less than stunning. PROJECTIONS ----------- The Sphere houses six projectors that beam images onto its six segments through a full 360 degrees. The individual projections take into account the curvature of the Sphere and are stitched together seamlessly to give the appearance of a series of single images. This sculptural mosaic transforms into a lantern, a hot air balloon, the earth and the moon, depending on the requirements of the show. Some Figures: o) The theatre has a seating capacity of 1,852. o) The Proscenium is 88' high and 97' Wide. o) The 12,221 sq. ft. Star Drop measures 121' x 101'. o) The polished bronze-plated Sun has a 20' diameter. o) Above the audience the 48' x 95' Oval Track transports performers and set elements (such as the 600-lb "ice" blocks) on 5 chariots that weigh 800 lbs. o) It takes 30-40 backstage technicians to operate the set. o) The 25'-diameter Sphere has an aluminum exoskeleton, a projection surface, weighs 4,000 lbs and moves through three axes. {SOURCE: Cirque du Soleil Press Room} ------------------------------------------------------- "Criss Angel vs. The Spyglass Hotel" [EXPANDED] By: Mike Donila, Times Staff Writer {A Special Reprint from the St. Pete Times} ------------------------------------------------------- Before explosive performance, Mindfreak speaks: 'Failure is not an option' Sporting a necklace shaped like handcuffs, except with hundreds of diamonds, a black T-shirt and hat promoting his upcoming Believe, a new show by Cirque du Soleil at Luxor in Las Vegas, internationally renowned illusionist and escape artist Criss Angel sat down with the St. Petersburg Times for an exclusive interview Monday afternoon. Speaking for almost an hour, he touched on topics ranging from life and death to family, fighting, magic and why he doesn't want to be a role model yet somehow sets an example anyway. Oh, yeah, he also mentioned Wednesday night's event on Clearwater Beach, where he'll attempt to escape from the Spyglass hotel before it implodes. Here's almost the entire interview: Q. So on one of your shows I saw you turn a few $1 bills into some $100 bills. Are you going to help a few broke journalists out here if we scratch together some ones? (Laughs.) I wish what I do was all real. Some of it's real, some of it's an illusion and I try to blur the line between both, but unfortunately I've got to be honest with you. Taking a $1 bill and turning it into a $100 — unfortunately it's not real. Q. Aw, you're killing me. I thought we were going to get paid for doing this. Me as well (laughs). Q. So what's your knowledge and connection with the area, Tampa Bay, Clearwater? This is my third trip here, being that last week I was out rehearsing. I guess it was probably about 12 years prior to that I went out to Clearwater, then went out to Tarpon Springs, which I know has a tremendous Greek community, and being 100 percent Greek I had to go to that community. The Greeks are amazing. They don't have a lot of us in the entertainment business, so when they have someone who is 100 percent Greek in the entertainment business, they really get behind you, so I'm looking forward to also stopping by Tarpon Springs if I get some time as well. Q. How long are you going to be in town? I'll probably be here until Thursday evening. What I can say is that the beaches here are just amazing and the people have been incredibly hospitable and I'm just grateful for the opportunity to try this because we didn't have a lot of options. We had a lot of options in buildings, but when it came down to putting me in a building when it was going to implode, nobody was going to let us do it except for Clearwater, so I thank all those officials who trust and respect my artistic vision, and hopefully we generate a lot of publicity of this wonderful place we call Clearwater. Q. What gave you the idea? Did you just wake up one morning and say I'm going to shackle myself to a building that's going to blow up? I've done about 1,000 demonstrations now, going into my fourth season (of his A&E show Mindfreak), and season four has been an amazing process for me because I've got to do things I've always wanted to do. But traditionally I've had these thoughts that run in my head that I'd like to see as a spectator. And (I'm) a huge fan of obviously Houdini and even Evel Knievel. Back in the day there was no more exciting television that was beyond Evel Knievel. And when he would do that live jump and you didn't know whether or not he was going to live or die, people tuned in to see how it would unfold. And I think very much with this episode, which is live … I'll be in the same situation. No one knows what the outcome is going to be, even me. I know what I'm going to try, but you never know. Anything can happen. Q. You don't know the outcome? I know what I want it to be, and I've trained for what I want it to be, but anything can happen. Anything. There's 550 sticks of dynamite that will be below my feet, there's a helicopter that needs to hover 30 feet above the roof. If I don't make it through the handcuffs, five locks and four doors in no more than three minutes and 30 seconds — if I'm one second late, that helicopter needs to leave without me. Who knows, I could trip, I could have trouble picking a lock. … Who knows? Can dynamite detonate prior to when it's supposed to? There's a million uncertainties. The only thing I have to do is remain on target and be calm, cool and collected so that I keep my heart rate low and think clearly about what I have to accomplish in the time that I have. Q. So on Wednesday, do you have any rituals? Is there a special meal you'll eat, a special workout? You know, I just kind of get myself into that zone. The difference, though, between what I'm going to do Wednesday and what I typically do, is that usually when I'm taping Mindfreak I go on when I'm ready. I can't do it this time. I have to go on, you know, the clock, it's live, I have to go on when it's my cue to go, whether I'm mentally there or not. I've only allocated one hour, so it's going to be rough. But typically, I just like to be by myself, I like to visualize in my head over and over again like an athlete what it's supposed to look like, so hopefully my body follows through. Q. You kind of caught the magic fever early. I guess when you were 6 or 7 your aunt taught you a trick. My Aunt Stella. Q. Then it took off from there. So you're in high school? Are you thinking is this what you want to do? I knew right away what I wanted to do since I was 6 years old. … As you pointed out, my Aunt Stella was kind enough or not kind enough (laughs) to teach me my first card trick, but you know, it's kind of interesting because to be perfectly honest with you, I wasn't — I did well in high school because of my personality and teachers liked me personally, but I was in the slowest classes. I wasn't a smart kid and I still don't think I'm too smart when it comes to book smart, but I was very good with what I knew and with my craft and I think that was my calling in life. But even today I never went to college. … But it just goes to show you that if you want something bad enough and you're willing to work through the rigors to get it, then you can live your dream basically like I'm living mine. I'm not smarter or better, I just was very — I persevered. When people told me no, it just made me stronger and more hungry to prove them wrong, and I think that's really where I excelled. It was in my attitude and how I looked at things because I'm not a book smart kind of guy. I'm not. Q. Can you talk about your lean years, your lowest point? Well, not knowing how you're going to pay your bills ... Q. Right, right. Was there ever a time where you thought, "I've got to give this up?" No, I never thought about quitting. I have a very competitive spirit about me and no matter what I put my mind to, I have to accomplish it, no matter how difficult it is. That's just in me, in my personality. And even when times were tough and I didn't know how to get through, I was very fortunate to have an amazing family who were very supportive with what I wanted to do. But I did whatever I had to do to get by, and if it were easy everybody would be successful. What you put in is really truly what you get out, and I worked my a-- off. I put everything on the line. I took the greatest risk: my future. I said I'm not going to college. And it's something I would never encourage anybody to do, but when it's in your blood, you have to do it. You can't do anything else. It's just what makes you, you. You eat, live and sleep what you want to be, what you can visualize with your life. And I always knew what I wanted to do. I always knew I wanted to create art and express myself through images that I create, and that's even true in the live show — the Criss Angel Believe show — it's really about my life and that process and it's about creating those tableaus that will connect to people, because I never cared about how something worked or how a trick worked. I cared about how people would feel when they watched it. And I think that's why people, thankfully, have connected with my television series Mindfreak. This is the best season ever, and I have so much to say artistically, and hopefully I'll always have an audience and thanks for all of you for watching me and supporting me because without all your love and support I wouldn't be here right now, so thank you. Q. Let me ask you something about that. You've got some of the most rabid fans of a celebrity I've ever talked to. I mean your fans are just — They're loyal. Q. My e-mail inbox is full. I could retire now if I could get all these people autographs for all the bribes I've been offered. (Angel laughs.) But why do you think your fans are so attached? No. 1, I am so blessed. And I think the reason we connected is so simple. People look at what I do and there's a connection, like with what Houdini had. When Houdini would hang upside down in a straitjacket and people would watch him escape, it wasn't about Houdini. It was more about the message that Houdini provoked and that was if I can get out of a straitjacket, then you can escape poverty, you can better your life, and people received that message wholeheartedly. They wanted to see the underdog succeed, and then they wanted to succeed. So the greatest compliment I get as an artist is when a fan comes up to me and says: "You know, I saw you hang from four fish hooks, and you know it made me realize I can confront my fear. I can live my life a little fuller. I can get on a plane. I can go in elevator, I can be that doctor — it's not too late." And I think when you have a message that's much greater than an enigma, than a puzzle, then you have that connection. And people also know that although I have this nonsense (he grabs his diamond-plated, long necklace that looks like a long chain attached by a pair of handcuffs) and cars and stuff like that, which are all nice to own, these things, everybody knows that they don't own me. That I'm just a person and that I try to be positive in the world, I try to do good, I'm very conscientious because success is not easy. I used to think that if I had success I would have freedom. But I have less freedom now than I've ever had. And what gives me satisfaction is not the jewelry and not the cars. What gives me satisfaction is doing things for others, like children. And for me the greatest honor I've ever gotten — forget about the accolades for Magician of the Year and nonsense like that — is getting the Criss-gracious award as the television celebrity who has done more for the Make-A-Wish Foundation than any other person. When I see a kid who has two or three weeks to live and he has a smile on his face, it just makes me think about how much I have to be really truly fortunate for, because they understand what the meaning of life is, and that's to live each minute to its fullest with love, happiness and — thank God I have my health — and those are the three things you can't buy. And I think people understand that's where I come from as a person. People mistake the image when they first look at me, but when they see what I'm really about and they don't judge me for what I look like, then they see that I'm really different than what they think I am. And they see that I'm trying to be positive in a sometimes very negative world. Q. What do you have to say to the people who are skeptical, who say it's like professional wrestling, that magic is all phony? Well, wait, the fish hooks were real, right? (Smiling.) I have lot of marks on my body that I'll be happy to share with people. But the truth of the matter is I have nothing to prove to anybody. The only person I have to prove anything to is myself. And the fact of matter is I said I was going to blur the line between reality and illusion. And you know what? I love the people who hate me just as much as I love the people who love me because without those people I wouldn't be here. People who write things negatively about me in the press? I love those people. Thank you all for talking about me because it has given me the platform to create art and make people talk about it. When you're at the top, and I worked my a-- to get there, they tell you how great you are. But when you're there, everybody wants to tear you down. And you know what? None of that stuff bothers me. I actually think it's funny because people who supposedly hate me so much will waste their life talking about me probably because no one will talk about them. And to me, I'm flattered that they would waste all that talking about someone they would hate so bad. But they don't really hate me. We all have our own insecurities, including myself, and sometimes some of us can't confront what they are. So instead of looking in the mirror, we look toward being negative in life and I say screw that. Life is too short, life is too precious. Let's try to be positive and try to be a positive force in this world. Q. OK, let me throw a few editors under the bus on this one. They want to know who is locking the doors (in the Spyglass) and who is flying the helicopter. (A stunt coordinator and friend will fly the helicopter.) As far as the locks … I'm picking someone randomly by throwing my wristband (into the air and whoever catches it) can come up … and they will proceed to check everything. … They can lock it. There is nothing to hide. There is absolutely nothing to hide. And that's the funny thing because people are so skeptical of an escape. … What people should be so skeptical of is the palm reader up the block. Q. Right, right. The people who will take your money and talk to you about your dead loved one, they're doing cold readings. They're doing nothing for you. What I do is, look, there are real consequences to what I do. And I have scars all over my body. (He points just below his right biceps, where he was burned when he lit himself on fire, and under his nose, where he was injured from being underwater for 24 hours.) I've never had a major catastrophe, thank God. But what I do is the real deal. This situation is an escape. … And when I'm doing illusions, those are illusions, but this is an escape. Q. You've talked about Houdini a lot and I know he's one of your idols and I've even called you the postmodern Houdini — Well, thank you. Q. And I know one of the things you don't believe in are psychics and he didn't believe in them, but have you ever gone to one of the yearly seances for him? No. Houdini was a smart man because when Houdini lay in his deathbed in 1926 on Halloween, he said to his wife that people are going to come out of the woodwork and that there would be a great opportunity for people to exploit this, and I'm going to give you a secret code word. So for 10 years that code word was in an envelope on the table and no one was able to produce what that code word was, so on the anniversary of the 10th year of his death (Houdini's wife) revealed what that word was, and it was the word "believe," which is the name of (my upcoming) live show, which incidentally has another word in it, which is "lie." It's kind of funny. Q. What you do is sometimes pretty crazy, pretty dangerous. Personally I hope you live a long healthy life — Thank you. Q. And you die a ripe old age. But is death something you think about? Are you afraid of it? And how do you think you'll die? First of all, I don't fear death, so if you don't fear death, then there's nothing to fear in this world. Right? Q. Uh-uh. I think that the problem is that people fear so many things and they don't live life to its fullest. And for me as an artist, if God should want me to come this Wednesday to the end of my life, so be it. I don't want to die. I want to be very clear, I've trained my a-- off and I am totally focused. Mentally, physically, I'm there. Spiritually, I'm there. And I'm going to do everything in my power to be incredibly successful. My life is on the line. As for how I will die? God only knows how I'll die, but I hope to live a long, fruitful life. I hope to do a lot of positive things in the world with my charity (It just started in his father John Sarantakos' name). I'm looking forward to raising $2- to $3-million a year for children, so I'm hoping I'm around a little bit. But once I do this (Wednesday night's event) and God willing, I'm successful, I vowed to my mother that I will not be doing things of this nature. I'll still be doing television and my show, where there's a lot of dangerous things, but I won't do things like this. I've done them enough. I've done a thousand demonstrations and I haven't killed myself, and I have nothing to prove anymore, and I'm going to move on to do other things. Q. The underwater kennel (where you almost drowned during practice)? The one where you didn't — I did it this season. Q. Ah, so you did get to do it. I did it. I trained, I was holding my breath for over six minutes, and I trained for a month so I could have much more time to get through any complications. I did it, but without giving the episode away, it was a trip. Q. So in season four we see it? Yes, there's a whole episode dedicated to that. Really, this whole season — and your readers are going to think I'm saying this to hype them up, but honestly I'm not — this season of Mindfreak is the biggest, the baddest, the most diverse. I do everything from two close-up shows, from really intimate close-up stuff, to the stuff like we're doing live, which we've never done before. We're really trying to shake things up, and I'm really trying to raise the bar and hopefully I can jump all the bars that I've set for myself. Q. Why did it take so long to do a live show? It's very hard to determine time frames. … So we needed to have under our belt 92 episodes of Mindfreak to really have the confidence to pull it off, not from just the escape portion, but the technical portion, to make sure things are prepared and people understand, and I think people are prepared … Q. Talk about your future plans. (Believe officially opens Oct. 12 and will include 4,600 shows). In the midst of all that I will be doing, obviously, more of what I do on television. There's a variety of things like movies. But there's just so many things that I'm working on right now that I'm really excited about. I'm basically booked, besides 10 years (for the Believe performances); I'm booked for other projects for the next two or three years. Q. How long is Mindfreak going? Well, Mindfreak (has 21 more episodes) and depending upon what A&E does, but I think there is a fifth season. And providing I have things to say artistically, and I have my little notebook of stuff I haven't done, I'll broach that. I'm fortunate because I remember the days when I had no opportunities and now I have too many opportunities, and I'm able to kind of pick and choose what I'm able to do and what I'm not able to do. Q. If you didn't have one of your insane days of two or three hours of sleep, workouts, thinking, writing, what would you be doing? A normal day? I don't know. I so badly want a break, I want a vacation. I just think if I can get to an island in the Caribbean somewhere, have a couple of drinks and think on and reflect what has transpired in my life, I think that would be something that would be a very healthy thing for me to do, and hopefully something I can do soon. But I'm not able to sit still, I have to keep moving, so I would probably get tired of that very quickly. Q. Hypothetically speaking, say you never got into magic, you never learned that first card trick — What would I be doing now? I'd be a fighter. Q. A fighter? Yeah, I'd be in (Ultimate Fighting Championship) or something. Q. No kidding. You do a lot of fighting? I love fighting. I love the whole kind of chess game that it is, and I studied martial arts as a kid for several years, and I just have such a respect for so many fighters who are out there and training really hard. And even though they have a team, at the end of the day when they're in the ring or the octagon, they're just depending on themselves, their skill level, how bad they want it, their passion, their determination. And when I go into (the Spyglass) and do this escape, that's exactly how I perceive it. It's me against what it is I'm doing. It's either going to be me that's going to be the victor or the outcome is going to be whatever that thing is, is going to win. And that's how I perceive it. I really do. I have a very competitive mind and I kind of equate everything as that if I don't succeed in this, then I fail, and failure is not an option for me because I lose my life. So when I'm training at the gym, I think about — I know it sounds crazy — but I visualize that building as what's getting in the ring with me and I have to beat it. And I know it sounds really strange, but it works for me. And I just kind of think of it that way. Q. Well that kind of segues into something I've been curious about. Watching your show, your brothers and friends are always pulling these jokes on you. And you're always saying: "You know I'm going to kick your a-- when this is done." So have you ever gotten into it? (Laughs.) Well, now that I'm in my situation, I have to be an example. I'm not a violent person by nature. … One of my sayings is there's no problems, just solutions. So I always try to find solutions. Q. Ah, come on, you get those guys back somehow, huh? I can't hit anyone unless it's my family (laughs because he's joking), and I've gotten into situations like that and I've had to restrain myself ... I knew people were trying to provoke me for that reason, because people sometimes don't want to work for their own money and they want to try to take it from somebody else, and I'm not that stupid. I think I pulled a coup on you the other day (people talking in the background) … Hey, guys, quiet down — hey (to the Times), want to see me kick someone's a--? No, just joking. Q. So, I think I stumped the master when I asked him, what's the one question he'd never been asked that he'd always wanted to be asked? (The Times did this last week.) You probably haven't thought about it, but you've been interviewed a million times. Anything you want people to know about you that they don't know? That's a great question, and you did ask me that on the phone, but I honestly haven't had the opportunity to think about. But I think people know a lot about me that's true and a lot about me that's not true. There's so much information on the Internet, I would just say to anybody that you can't judge somebody that you don't know and you can't judge somebody from the perception of the way they come off. Mindfreak is me, but it's just one aspect of me. Just like I'm meeting you right now. Your personality is one way, but I'm sure you have a lot of different sides to your personality — Q. Naw, I'm a jerk all the time. (Laughs.) I'm certain that some people say I'm a jerk sometimes depending on the mood and how much sleep you have. But at the end of the day, but I'm very different than what people perceive me to be. I know I'm not answering your question. Q. No, that's all right. I had to stump the master. Well you stumped me, but that's a great question. Q. I don't want to take up too much more of your time, but family is very important to you and you don't see that with a lot of celebrities. I'm not a celebrity, I'm just a person. I hate that word. Q. Well, how about someone in the spotlight. Can you talk about that? We have a major crisis in this country with kids and them getting into things that are not producing positive results in their life, and for me I was just so fortunate. In life, everybody is dealt a better hand than the one you have, and a worse hand, and you've got to do the best you have with what you have. And for me, the way I was raised, I'm a product of my environment and family was very nurturing, very loving, and it is important to have that as a foundation, especially growing up because kids today, a lot of times, their parents don't know where they are or what they're doing. I'm not a role model. I never claimed to be, never wanted to be. I just think that if you have a single parent or two parents that (they) should take a real interest in their child and get them involved in activities when they're young, whatever it is, whether it's playing the drums or martial arts or playing the flute — whatever the heck it is. Keep them occupied, keep them experimenting in the arts and in education and doing things as a family. Whether you're a single mom or a single dad, take an interest in your child's life. I think that nurturing that friendship and that relationship will allow more kids to grow up without drugs, without alcohol, without stealing and killing and robbing and live their life with a more positive force. I think a lot of our problems with society would be resolved if parents were involved. And that's what I love about Mindfreak. A great compliment I get is when I have a kid who is 13 or 15 years old with their parents and they say: "You know what, your show brought us together. This is the only thing I do together with my dad or with my mom." Q. Last question, an easy one. At the end of all your shows you always go 'Aaah' to the camera. Where does that come from? I've been doing that since I was a teenager. (Laughs.) Q. Yeah, so have I. A lot of people will come out and try to take what other people do, whether it's the way you dress or the nature of your art and try to mimic it. But the thing they don't realize is you can't steal someone's soul. It has to come from within. And that was just part of my stupid, nutty personality, and I'll just end off with this: (Jumps from his chair, races toward the Times camera, opens his mouth wide and) 'Aaah.' ======================================================================= FROM THE FASCINATION! ARCHIVES ======================================================================= To celebrate our 60th issue and the culmination of our 7th year, we've reached into our archives to pull out some of the best of Fascination. Within you'll find personal reflections, reviews and overviews of shows, music and television specials. Each of the seven featured writers at Fascination over the years has their mark here and we'd like to thank each and every one of them for contributing their heart and soul. Here's to the next few years! # # # ------------------------------------------------------- "Circus Reinvented, Restaged and Rethought" By: Jen Waldman {Originally Published: Issue #5 - January 2002} ------------------------------------------------------- By today's standards, Le Cirque Réinventé (aka We Reinvent the Circus) is a very simple and plain little show. The costumes were not fancy and the budget was $200,000, which left the Cirque penniless, But in 1987, a show like this--a circus without animals or brass band music--was new, and a great risk. Early shows by the Cirque du Soleil were unique and lovely in their own right, but certain aspects of Cirque (such as non- acrobatic choreography) were not complete yet. Le Cirque Réinventé was the first Cirque du Soleil show to tour outside Canada and the first in which all of the basic elements of a Cirque show were put into place. Several of the performers were new, but veterans such as Amelie Demay, Faon Shane-Belanger, and Denis Lacombe also participated. The show made its first tour in 1987. The first tour stop outside of Canada was the Los Angeles Festival--a complete success. Everyone who attended knew that history was being made, that this was THE show of the festival. Cirque du Soleil was on the map. This first production of Le Cirque Réinventé had several acts that echoed earlier productions, such as Balancing Chairs, a Bicycle act and Denis Lacombe's "Chef d'Orchestra (Conductor)." It also featured several winners of the "Circus of Tomorrow" competitions. Le Cirque Réinventé included the crowd of Ordinary People, masked Everypeople who opened the show and observed the goings- on with the same amazement as the audience. As they explored their strange surroundings, one of these Ordinary People was transformed into the Ringmaster. The Ringmaster was Michel Barrette, a veteran of earlier shows. Tango Handbalancers Eric Varelas and Amelie Demay performed together for a second Cirque season (interesting note: Amelie was "discovered" by Cirque people while she was spinning on her head, which seems to me an excellent way to be discovered). A slack-wire act was performed by Masha Dimitri-- the only Cirque show to date in which a slack-wire act appears. Christopher Suszek did a solo on chair-balancing high above the ground. Two separate bicycle acts were performed--the "Tower on Wheels," in which many acrobats did stunts of balance and precision and 15 rode on one bike all together, and the Zhao family from China displayed their talents in Trick Cycling. Eight acrobats from different backgrounds soared through the air for the famed "Penguin Step" (Korean Plank) number. Britishers Andrew Watson and Jaqueline Williams quit their office jobs and first joined Gerry Cottle's Circus (UK), and then came to the Cirque in which they performed an aerial Voltige, incorporating several styles of aerial acts. Benny le Grand (who would later appear in "Mystère") made his first appearance with Cirque, along with Mexico City native Catitan Cactus, and Denis Lacombe. Le Cirque Réinventé would be the last Cirque show in which Denis would perform his Mechanical Clown, in which he was a robot who discovered the joy of smashing pies in his face and gargling with soap bubbles, and Chef d'Orchestra, where he tried to conduct the 1812 overture from a Walkman that conducted HIM instead. 1988 brought some changes. Michel Barette's Ringmaster began the show as usual, then transformed into a character called Ti-Claude, a mystical guide into the world of the show. The Ordinary People expressed the amazement and wonder echoed in the audience, but a new addition called the Queen of the Night (Angela Laurier) drew them into the magical world. The Chair-Balancing act was performed by several acrobats, some of them children. In a new act, a juggler (Daniel Le Bateleur) manipulated five balls at unbelievable speeds. The notorious Penguins still flipped and twisted through a Yuppie's workday. The slack-wire act was replaced with a duo on a low tight-wire, acting out a gentle love story as they danced across the wire. Denis Lacombe added an "Invisible Man" routine- -he was beaten up by an unseen assailant. He also performed Mechanical Clown and Chef d'Orchestra. In addition to Denis Lacombe and Benny le Grand, punk clown Toniatuh Morales was on hand to harass the audience at every opportunity. Angela Laurier, a self-taught contortionist, adopted an almost-feral attitude as she twisted herself up in knots. Though not as flexible as some later Cirque contortionists, she moved from position to position with ease, and was spellbinding to watch. Eric and Amelie tangoed, Watson and Williams swung though the air with the greatest of ease, and the Bicycle acrobats did their Tower routine with an added solo by Luc Tremblay. The Queen of the Night lead her helpers and others out into the ring. As Ti-Claude took a bow, the Queen removed his hat and transformed him back into an Ordinary Person. However, as the colorful Queen exits, he realizes that he is still holding his hat--perhaps the shape of his Destiny. Perhaps it is the shape of our own... 1989: The year the author of this article started 6th grade, the year the local McDonald's moved across the street...the year Denis Lacombe did NOT appear in Le Cirque Réinventé. All right, so maybe only one of these is really worthy of note. (Not 6th grade, I hated 6th grade.) For many people, Denis Lacombe's crazy conducting was a signature act of Cirque, and its departure was sorely missed. But by replacing some older, well-known acts with new performances, Cirque was already showing its willingness to reinvent itself-- even on the road. The show began with the now-familiar but always magical Opening with the Everypeople and the Queen of the Night (Angela Laurier). Michel Barette was picked from the Everypeople to become the Ringmaster, the children cavorted, and then-- Four acrobat balanced precariously on the Chairs, not seeming to mind that the tower of chairs grew higher and higher. An old favorite, and most welcome once again. The tightrope duo left the show, so now Fil de Fer was a solo act performed by a lovely young lady called Pasqualina. Her tightrope act was very prop-heavy--she made use of everything from hoops to umbrellas! Next came an act called Acrobatic Dance, which had a strong base in rhythmic gymnastics. Two girls danced, "flared to the beats of their hearts" as the program said, all the while using ribbons to illustrate pretty patterns in the air. Another new-to-Réinventé act was the Rola Bola, performed by four young Chinese men. This Rola Bola act involved Acrobatics with Dishes; as the performers maintained their balance, sometimes in nerve-wracking positions, they also flipped bowls onto the tops of their heads. The world's restaurants should have waiters that dexterous! The Bicycles were back, only Luc Tremblay stepped (wheeled?) down as the soloist. He was replaced by Angelo T. Ballan, who was equally proficient in the art of trick cycling. Eric Varelas and Amelie Demay were on hand once again to perform their Handbalancing skills to the Tango beat. Apparently they fought a lot over the creative aspects of the act, but you would never guess it from their harmony onstage. Juggling was now performed by Frederic Zipperlin. This act included some manipulation/contact juggling, as one of his feats was to maneuver five balls into one line on his back. The Penguin Stompers (Korean Plank) were on hand to spread the mayhem and madness that occurs when you put yuppie penguins on a teeterboard. Antarctic scientists really ought to look into this. The British duo of Watson and Williams were gone, and in their place was a traditional trapeze act performed by five acrobats in pink and blue costumes. Aside from the costumes, it sounds like a forerunner to the Trapeze act in Nouvelle Expérience. Now you're probably wondering about the Clowns, since Denis Lacombe and Toniatuh Morales had left. Benny le Grand, the wonderful old clown who would later join Mystère, was once again on hand to bother the Ringmaster and harass the audience. He was joined by Balthazar, who would join La Nouba. These two spread cheer, sarcasm, and madcap tomfoolery all around. Presumably, Balthazar was a competent replacement for Lacombe and Morales. As the show came to an end (oh, darn) the Ringmaster became a plain old Everyman again, and thought that perhaps the spectacle he'd just witnessed was a dream. But then...why was he still holding that tall blue hat? In 1990, Le Cirque Réinventé became the first Cirque show to travel off the continent of North America. In 1992, it became the first and only Cirque show to include animal acts when it paired up with Switzerland's Cirque Knie for a 60-stop tour. By the way, the local McDonald's got a playplace. I survived 6th grade and graduated college. And Cirque du Soleil produced thirteen successful shows and has another in the works. As long as Cirque keeps reinventing, the everypeople will keep watching. And perhaps we'll feel as though we too could soar through the air in a pink and blue costume. Or perhaps some of us will wear the tall blue hat. ------------------------------------------------------- "From One Dream to Another - Quidam" By: T. Clay Buck {Originally Published: Issue #7 - March 2002} ------------------------------------------------------- By the Summer of 1998 I had seen Mystère twice and one earlier Cirque du Soleil show on a very poor quality VHS tape (it was so bad, I'm not even sure what show it was). So, when posters and newspaper ads began going up all over the city of Chicago announcing the arrival of Quidam, I was on the phone immediately to purchase tickets. Quidam opened July 22, 1998 in the parking lot of the United Center on Chicago's west side - under the shadow and watchful gaze of a statue to Michael Jordan. I was fortunate to see it three times that Summer, and am still in absolute awe of the production. Having seen Mystère, I thought I knew Cirque du Soleil, but nothing compares to that first encounter underneath Le Chapiteau. Quidam marks Cirque du Soleil's ninth production and premiered in Montreal on April 23, 1996. In the words of Franco Dragone, the show's director, it "casts light on our frailty and angst at the dawn of a new century." One assumes that somewhere during the creation of Quidam the concept and preliminary planning for "O" was somewhere in the back of Dragone's mind - or even in the very forefront. But, at least for the time being, Quidam marks the last collaboration of the quintessential Cirque team on a touring production. With Franco Dragone at the helm as Director and Author, it once again brought together the talents of Choreographer Debra Brown, Costume Designer Dominique Lemieux, Lighting Designer Luc LaFortune, Composer Benoit Jutras, and Set Designer Michel Crete all led by their Guide, Guy LaLiberte and Director of Creation Gille Ste-Croix. Quidam, too, in my mind, marks a major turning point in the realization of Cirque productions. From Le Cirque Réinventé through Alegría - and for the sake of this discussion, I refer only to touring productions - this creative team had been building up to the perfection of its concept of combining its incredible circus arts into a complete sensory experience - the co-mingling of lights, sounds, and visuals to tell a complete story thematically unified. Of all of Cirque's productions, Quidam probably accomplishes this feat most effectively. At least in my humble opinion. According to the shows program, the word "Quidam" comes from the Latin and signifies "a nameless passerby, a solitary figure lingering on a street corner, a person rushing past, a person who lives lost amidst the crowd in an all-too-anonymous society." And while the Quidam of the story could be interpreted as its main character, the young girl, the audience leaves believing that, even though they themselves may be the "Quidam" in this Everyman story, there is hope, joy, and a world in which the impossible does exist. Quidam tells the story of a young girl - initially portrayed by Audrey Brison-Jutras, daughter of composer Benoit Jutras - who lives in a drab world, completely bored, and ignored by her parents. A mystical creature enters her life and introduces her to two guides who carry her through a fantastical world of sight and sound until she is reunited with her family, realizing that the world is a beautiful, terrifying place after all. In typical Cirque du Soleil fashion, the show begins while the audience is still gathering. Our guide for the evening, "John," greets the audience as they come through the door, playing with their hair, stealing their tickets, eating their popcorn, and generally causing a nuisance. He is followed by a troupe of characters dressed head-to-toe in white, hooded suits. Of course this group picks an unwilling volunteer from the audience, takes him backstage and brings him out dressed as one of them. John harasses him a little and sends him back to his seat. As the house lights go dim, John takes the stage and plays snippets of songs on an old transistor radio - snippets of songs from previous Cirque productions, at which he sneers and turns up his nose. He reads us our instructions for the evening - no smoking, no pictures, and the like - and then leads us through this incredible story for the next two hours. The show opens on the young girl at home with her parents seated in typical family pose. The father reads the paper, the mother stares vacantly into space, Audrey tries to entertain herself and engage her parents. A knock at the door brings a character straight from a Magritte painting - a headless man, a Quidam, carrying an umbrella, who drops his hat in the center of this family scene. Thunder rolls, lightning flashes, and the family is carried away in one of the most amazing feats to occur under the Big Top. The entire ceiling of the tent is covered in a track that lifts characters and set pieces to the stage and carries them off. In blissful ignorance, the parents are carried off still in their chairs, seemingly unaware of what is taking place around them. At the same time, our young heroine's guides to this fantastical world are introduced - John, who we have already met, and hilariously portrayed originally by American comedian John Gilkey, and Fritz, an always-smiling, impish character brought to life by Austrian Karl Baumann. These two cohorts carry the young girl through adventure after adventure, beginning with the phenomenal German Wheel act by Chris Lashua. The Wheel rolls into place in what was the living room, and Lashua carries it through a series of rolls, twists, and turns that defy explanation. It flips from side to side, and returns to a straight vertical. It rolls across the stage at dizzying speeds. Lashua guides this huge apparatus through varying tricks in a display of athleticism unlike anything seen before - some even with his hands held calmly behind his back. What is also incredibly unique and well-done in Quidam is the transitions between the acts. Each act follows one after the other, yet the interludes between each one continue the through- line of the story. Each performer in the troupe plays many different roles throughout the show, helping to tell the story and further it along. I saw the show three times during its Chicago run, and each time the acts were placed in different sequence - on some occasions a certain act would be left out completely and replaced by another, a typical occurrence during the touring shows. Each time, though, the transitions were flawless and continued the through-line in a perfect way. (For this article, I am using the order of the acts as they are presented in the video, filmed in Amsterdam, which is my memory of the first time I saw it. Some of the performers had changed, but the acts were still the same). As the acts progress, the Quidam's world becomes more fantastical, more chaotic, and more beautiful. After the German Wheel rolls off, the troupe returns to the stage running, leaping, dancing across it with the young girl, Audrey, taking in all she can. Her parents appear, still in oblivion, her father with his head pushed through the newspaper lost in the confusion. Performers traverse the stage in a chorus of Audrey look-alikes, teasing her and John alike, while the remainder of the troupe come on with varying sizes of drums - from small, tinny snare drums to the large, thundering taïko drums, now an essential part of any Cirque production. Through this group come the four young girls carrying their Diabolos who perform a quartet of juggling by tossing them across the revolving stage, forming pyramids and seeming- impossible uses of the ropes and spinning tops. In one of the most beautiful uses of the stage, at the end of the act, the four girls spin their tops up ropes hanging from the ceiling of the tent, from which drop in synchronization streamers of white and blue. As they run off, again our troupe of performers comes through as we watch the Father traverse the tent suspended from the giant track, seemingly walking on air. I recently watched the video again, and while this particular segment appears there, it can't compare to what it looks like live. As our eyes gaze toward the top of the tent, a cocoon of red silk comes from behind the orchestra at the front, and the amazingly beautiful Isabelle Chassé performs the Aerial Contortion in Silk. To the best of my knowledge, this act had never been performed in a Cirque du Soleil show previously. For everyone in Chicago who had seen the show, this became the penultimate act of the evening. Not only is it an athletically astonishing act, but in context it was so hauntingly beautiful, performed to "Let Me Fall" from the soundtrack, but sung in Cirquish language. This act has been used again by Cirque in various forms, particularly in Dralion (jaded Chicagoans responded with, "Oh, we saw that three years ago"), but was particularly stunning in the red silk of Quidam. As a trio of Mother look-alikes, all dressed in red, come to carry Isablle off after her performance, they are followed by the remainder of the troupe who begin the languid Skipping Ropes section - at first a simple display of athletic prowess, led by soloist Renee Bibaud - then morphing into an eclectic, energetic display of skill and timing as the entire troupe performs together. The video shows a nice shot from the ceiling of the tent in an almost Busby Burklee display of symmetry. The Skipping Ropes were followed by the Aerial Hoops. I remember this being the most terrifying, dizzying act of the performance. The hoops, suspended from the overhead track, whirl in a blur as the trio of performers manipulate and climb over them. With intense synchronization and precision the performers twirl the hoops and stop them on cue, using the air and the stage to propel them around. I remember hearing after Quidam had left Chicago and moved on to Atlanta that one of the performers had fallen during the show. She was back on within two or three days. Following the Aerial Hoops came the Handbalancing act, performed by Olga Pikhienko. Elevated on a small platform and carried by the ever-revolving stage, she tackles pose after pose on the delicate poles in an ever-increasing display of difficulty. This was one of the most typical "circus" acts in Quidam, but was also one of the most virtuoso performances. After her leaving the stage, our guide John returns in his hilarious display of marksmanship with a set of darts. He wears a target on his head and tosses darts in the air to land on the target. Of course he misses, to our great amusement, and leaves the stage in a howl of agony as the overhead track brings a series of ropes onto the stage, each with a performer attached, high over our heads. And thus begins the incredible Spanish Web act, with acrobats climbing up and down the ropes, tying them around their bodies and flying through the air. In the live performance, the climax of this act was the character of Fritz, constantly wanting to be involved and meeting everything with a smile, climbing the ropes as the porter on the ground begins to spin the rope. Fritz flies off, attached to the main rope only by his ankle, flying and laughing hilariously over heads. Additionally, the character of the Father was a principal soloist in the Spanish Webs act, portrayed by Daniel Touchette. He was the one who originally tied the rope in many loops around his body, ultimately letting it roll him precariously down to the ground. As a part of the story, this act began the transformation of the Father character into a more open, carefree person. After the Spanish Webs have left the stage, our friend John returns and performs the bit that got him noticed by Cirque du Soleil in the first place. According to him, he had been begging Cirque du Soleil to hire him for years, but to no avail (More information about him is available at www.JohnGilkey.com). John performs a fun juggling act with a ball and a hat stand to the incomparable singer Yma Sumac's "Gopher." It is a light-hearted moment of frivolity and fun in this crazy mixed-up world of Quidam. A recurring element of Quidam is the nameless, faceless, ubiquitous characters dressed from head to toe in white medical-looking suits. These characters come in and out of the show, as they had participated with John at the very beginning, in various ways. After John leaves the stage they come rolling out in a group, form a clump in the middle and out of their midst come the next two performers, Yves Decoste and Marie-Laure Mesnage, to do the Statue or Vis Versa act. Reminiscent of similar acts in other Cirque shows, this duo balancing act is a Cirque trademark, particularly beautiful in Quidam as a counterpoint to some of the more frantic performances. It is slow and languid and displays the great strength and concentration it takes to perform it. It was designed by Yves Decoste especially for Cirque du Soleil. It also is one of the first times we see equal strength between male and female. In many cases, this act is performed by two men supporting each other, but the Quidam act shows equal strength between the different genders. Another unique act to Quidam follows with the Cloud Swing performed by Petra Sprecher of Switzerland. It is essentially a trapeze of rope, there is no solid bar in the middle, and Petra uses it in much the same way. It is a much more 'violent' performance than that of the Vis-Versa, and plays an important counterpoint to the slower elements of the show. At one extended point of the swing, Petra seemingly falls off the trapeze, attached only by a small guide-wire to her leg. But from the audience's perspective it looks like she's falling off completely. She regains her balance and continues flawlessly. The final act of Quidam is the Banquine, an incredible balancing and acrobatic act involving the whole troupe. They toss each other madly about the stage forming towers of four people high, and in daring jumps from one group to the other, landing on only the joined hands of the porter. This performance was also used in Cirque's IMAX Journey of Man film. It is, perhaps, the signature act of Quidam and features performances completely unlike anything else. It of course leads to the resolution of the show, with Audrey uniting with her joyful parents. The Quidam appears again and takes back his hat, proving that the magical world is really the world we live in and that all these fantastic experiences are part of it as well. Quidam has undergone many changes in its six-year history - performers have come and gone, acts have been replaced time and again, clowns have left and come back and left again. John Gilkey left the European tour for a time and even did a stint in Dralion - oddly enough while the show was playing Chicago. Karl left and rumor has it may return for the new North American Tour. Many others have contributed to this phenomenal production, and it is certainly a great pleasure that North American audiences will once again get to experience Quidam. Perhaps the show is best summed up in the words of the title song from the Soundtrack - "There's nothing left, there's nothing right, there's nothing wrong. I'm one, I'm two, I'm all yet none of you. The truth, the lies, the tear, the laughter, the hand and the empty touch. Here I am, alone, waiting for the curtain call." ------------------------------------------------------- "Barock Odyssey" By: Paul Roberts - Hamilton, Ohio (USA) {Originally Published: Issue #8 - April 2002} ------------------------------------------------------- The first time I watched the "Saltimbanco" video, I felt somewhat disappointed. At the time I had seen "Mystère" live and the "Quidam" video and initially felt that "Saltimbanco" lacked something. The music, however, absolutely knocked me over. "Saltimbanco" is the longest running current Cirque show and still a favorite of many fans. Developed in 1992, Cirque du Soleil's creative team took another step further from previous shows by casting Francine Poitras as the first vocalist to play an important role. She not only provided her splendid operatic voice, she also developed a frolicking character that meshed with the show's acts. Francine left "Saltimbanco" to become the vocalist for the "Free Willy 3" movie soundtrack in 1997 and hopefully is still displaying her talent somewhere. The live band also included changes to Cirque du Soleil's at-the-time limited tradition. Instead of a salvo of electronic keyboards, the lineup of percussion, keys, bass, guitar, and saxophone created a crew that jammed like no other. Normally Cirque du Soleil musicians as a whole are known as an orchestra, however, for "Saltimbanco" this lineup of traditional instruments could be classified as a progressive-rock band. The musicians shine with improvisations and for the first time a lead guitar is very dominant, and original live guitarist, Yvonne Caultier, provided some of the tastiest guitar chops I have ever heard. I compare him to one of the finest guitarists in the world, Steve Morse, with several styles and leads that are not only lightning fast, but also very melodic. Prior soundtracks had included only limited guitar usage, but in "Saltimbanco" the semi-sterile synthesizer dominance of the past had been replaced by the harder-edge guitar. And thus, let the rock show begin... The Baron recites the spoken word "Rideau," that begins with piano and then crescendos into a full-band triumph. The powerful ending entices the curtain opening as a bell tolls signaling the entrance of The Worms to slither to the melodic song "Kumbalawé." A welcoming theme sung by the cast. The first act is a beautiful contortion scene involving a representation of mother, father, and child that is called the Adagio. The song, with the same name as the act, features a haunting melody line backed by fretless bass and melancholy saxophone with a chorus that includes a memorable classical guitar line. The child then climbs into a large air-filled chair and grows older leading to the exciting act of Chinese Poles. The shuffling beat to the title track, "Saltimbanco" provides a majestic rhythm for the pole climbers and jumpers. This instrumental is just a preview of what is to come throughout the show as several improvised solos are provided from the musicians. Saxophone and distorted guitar play the major theme as interruptions of instrument solos are choreographed with the artists' exploitations. A Taïko drum introduces the next act and songs. Although separate songs on the CD, "Kazé" and "Norweg" are interestingly combined during the Double Wire act. "Kazé" is a subtle piece with synthesizer flute and a rich melody that continues throughout. A basic 4/4 drum pattern is laced with a kalimba-like sound and a choir "ah" sound from the keyboards. The subtlety ends and "Norweg" kicks in with a moving bass line that is reminiscent of a 1950's-like chord progression. During the intense moments of the high wire artist's jumps from wire to wire, the song evolves into a keyboard-fingered triplet section in a 6/8 time signature. As the audience breathes a sigh of relief following the artist's successful performance, "Kazé" is revisited to calm things down, then "Saltimbanco" enters into a world of fantasy. As a set-up act, The Sleeper experiences a dream sequence featuring a parade of characters. The music includes backward-masking guitar patches, echoing saxophone runs, dreamy synthesizer chords, and improvised fretless bass riffs, while the singer continues with the melody line from "Kazé". This short piece has a chilling effect that haunts The Sleeper. As he awakes the sequence segues into a high- spirited percussion attack that introduces the Juggling act accompanied by "Arlequin." "Arlequin" is absolutely Cirque du Soleil's jazziest tune and all the musicians get to show off their improvised talents. Each member of the band has a solo with the highlight of the song being a frenzied trade- off between guitar and saxophone. The jazz theme incorporated by an alto and baritone (synthesizer) sax combo bounces in unison with the juggler's multitude of balls. Groovin', Man! The blissful theme of "Arlequin" ends with a drastic dynamic evolution as "Death" makes an ominous appearance to set up the next act. The theme during this transition is dark and could easily be incorporated into "The Phantom of the Opera." A drone synthesizer note fills the darkness until a frantic barrage of random sequencer notes introduces the following act: Bolas. The accompaniment to the Boleadoras Flamenco act incorporates a percussion contraption that looks like some sort of bizarre octopus. This assortment of synthesized drums includes MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) connections that allow the percussionist to play various patches that enhance the performers' bolas and tap shoes as they strike the miked stage. The Bola Girls dance and twirl and the pace becomes so intense that the bola balls appear to be flying off of their strings as the percussionist seems to grow several arms to keep up with the multitude of drum strikes. Following the Bolas, The Baron slows down the pace as he steps onto another miked stage to perform a tap dance with percussion providing a tribal beat. As he dances and swings his white and black-striped cape he groans and screams an evil version of "Rideau" sounding as if he were alone in a vast cavern. When he completes his dance, a straight drum beat signals the beginning of one of Cirque du Soleil's most rocking songs, appropriately titled "Barock." "Barock" accompanies the energetic Russian Swing act and is another instrumental that features a myriad of instrumental ad-libbing. A descending guitar riff travels through most of the upbeat song as various instruments provide tasty solos. In the middle, however, the band quiets down to enhance the intensity of setting up for a flyer to land atop a chaired pole. With the safe landing, the tune then returns to its vigorous theme. During "Barock" the band appears to be having a lot of fun as they are seen dancing around like rock stars. Afterwards, comic relief is in store to be followed by the incredible double trapeze act. "Amazonia" is one of my favorite Cirque du Soleil songs. While accompanying the dual trapeze act, this piece goes through a multitude of time signatures and dynamics. The beginning includes Taïko drums beating to synthesizer sequences behind the vocalist's spoken-word in the famous Cirque du Soleil imaginary language. A bass guitar interrupts the intro and begins a steady pattern of full-band classical-like chord progressions. The climax of the song occurs when the one of the trapeze twins slides down the other twin's legs to be caught by her feet. Like the amazing routine, the high note hit by the vocalist is spine-tingling. And as the trapeze twins take their bow, the band plays a reprise of this wonderful song. Morphing into a pulsating synth bass line, "Urgence" provides a perfect backdrop for the Hand-to-Hand act of two strongmen, originally performed by the Lorodor Brothers, now of "Mystère" fame. A great representation of the bandleader's duties is represented in the video by keyboardist, Bridgette LaRouche. After several hand-to-hand movements, Paulo attempts to raise a hand-standing Marco by his feet, which is the climax of the act and thus the music rises to the occasion. However, Paulo has difficulty in raising Marco and has to give up momentarily. Bridgette notices this and directs the band to soften the song until he triumphantly raises his brother in the air. Then on cue, the music's chord pattern ascends with Paulo's legs. During their bow, Paulo expresses pain in his face. And to think they do this twice a night, five nights a week. The passionate side of "Saltimbanco" now ensues as one of Cirque du Soleil's most operatic songs "Il sogno di volare," compliments the beautiful Bungee Ballet. Franco Dragone wrote the lyrics and, as the flyers take to the air, a string ensemble escorts a soaring melody line. When the bungee artists descend, a sorrowful ambiance ensues. The end is near. To celebrate another successful show, all the performers gather on stage and take turns flying and flinging on the bungee cords. Some grab acrobats by the feet and sling-shot them so hard that they soar to the top of the tent. The band plays a quirky little song that embellishes the jovial mood, but with a sudden snap of the snare drum the finale arrives. Cirque du Soleil is known for rearranging live songs from the studio versions, but the closing song, "Horéré Ukundé", has one of the most distinctive changes. On the soundtrack this song is played with a slow 4/4 time signature; live, however, it is played to an upbeat 2/4 signature that almost seems rushed. This song includes some of the most interesting imaginary lyrics with words like "qwu-eggy" and "mah- leggy" that rolls off the vocalist's tongue. Maybe Cirque du Soleil could just create a universal language for all to speak. And...the bell tolls once again. The performers wave goodbye to the admiring crowd. On the soundtrack CD (RCA Victor/BMG Catalog #: 09026-61486-2), there is a beautiful piece titled "Pokinoï" that as far as I know has been never used live. Why? This song includes a wonderful staccato-string accompaniment to Francine's operatic melody line and a heavenly choir fills out the song's chorus. The Japanese version of the CD (BMG/RCA Catalog #:BVCF-31076 74321- 82877-2) also includes two live cuts: "Adagio" and "Arlequin." Even though the CD's liner notes gives no musician credits, I'm fairly certain that it is close to the same line-up as on the video and I un- mistakenly know that Mr. Caultier is playing the guitar. But, as a side note, the live cuts on the Japanese CD are not the same as the Saltimbanco video. " 'Saltimbanco', at first was going to be a rock show...baroque rock. Rock baroque," said an subtitled Franco Dragone on the Baroque Odyssey video, "but in the end, the show, instead of rock stayed baroque, but became tender. In a way, it was inevitable. The cast members were sensitive types. I tried to turn them into rockers...heavy metal...but they remained sensitive." The second time I viewed the tape, I seized the emotion of the complete show. There is a special energy in "Saltimbanco", but the sensitive passion that Franco found in the performers has allowed the show to stand the test of time and I hope to someday actually experience "Saltimbanco" live. ------------------------------------------------------- "Cirque du Soleil: Fire Within" By: Wayne Leung - Ottawa, Ontario (Canada) {Originally Published: Issues #14-17 - October 2002 through January 2003} ------------------------------------------------------- PART 1: "A GREAT FIRE MAY FOLLOW A TINY SPARK" *********************************************** Anyone who's ever attended a Cirque du Soleil performance, after recovering from the initial overwhelming awe and wonder, must have wondered about the complex creation process involved. They may also have wondered about the seemingly otherworldly people behind the magnificent performances and magical characters created on stage. For fans and newbies alike Cirque du Soleil has created a 13-episode documentary miniseries entitled "Fire Within" that will provide an in- depth exploration of the creation of a new show, in this case their latest touring production, Varekai. Fire Within debuted in Canada on Sunday, September 15, 2002 and can be seen each Sunday on the Global Television Network. The series is produced by Cirque du Soleil Images and Galafilm. Fire Within is written and directed by Lewis Cohen. Executive Producer credits go to Arnie Gelbart, Marie Côté and Vincent Gagné. Running time per episode is approximately 22 minutes without commercials. Each episode begins with a flashy title sequence set, fittingly enough, to the musical piece "Icare" from Alegría. The titles introduce the performers we will meet over the course of the series; Oleg (Acrobatic Pas de Deux), Stella (Triple Trapeze), Olga (Hand- balancing on Canes), Raquel (Triple Trapeze), Ashley and Gareth (Icarian Games), Kevin and Andrew (Aerial Straps). After viewing the first episode what struck me most about this series was how personal it was. The creation of Varekai serves only as a backdrop, the real focus is on the performers' human drama. The series follows their struggles, their challenges, their triumphs, and their lives, and tells their stories in an honest and surprisingly personal manner. The series' frank and candid approach is riveting. It shatters the illusion that the people at Cirque du Soleil are somehow super-human. We find out that they deal with everyday issues like all of us. Everything doesn't always go perfectly at Cirque and this series doesn't shy away from showing us the grittier side of the company that we've never seen before. I now invite you on a journey as we explore the episodes of this groundbreaking new series and search for the fire within. Episodes 1 & 2 (One hour series premier) ---------------------------------------- The first episode begins on Varekai's opening night in April 2002. We see the Grand Chapiteau in the Old Port of Montreal, clips from the show and some backstage shots. Director Dominic Champagne gives the performers a pre-show pep-talk; "Give your soul to touch their hearts, that's what we have to do". Then we flash back nine months to the artists' initial arrival in Montreal. An exciting but tense atmosphere is established right from the onset; the viewer is made aware that it is up to the artists to either make it or break it. "Not all who started on the journey made it to the end," the narration informs. We witness the performers meeting each other for the first time and moving in to the Cirque du Soleil residences in Montreal. This scene is reminiscent of my first time moving into residence at university and conjures the same feelings of excitement and anticipation mixed with a heavy dose of anxiety. Throughout the episode we follow the artists as they venture through the creation process at Cirque du Soleil. Studio Director Bernard Petiot warns them, "We're not going to avoid complexity. We all accept that it's not clear. That's your reality and that's our reality". We sit in on various workshops; "movement training" a dance/movement improvisation class, a rhythm and percussion workshop, and a characterization workshop lead by Director Dominic Champagne. We also get to come along on a weekend social outing as the artists unwind after an arduous week of the Cirque du Soleil regime and sing a version of the B-52's "Love Shack" in a karaoke bar. Where Fire Within really soars is in telling the personal stories of the people behind a Cirque du Soleil show. In this episode we are introduced to several individuals, each struggling to discover or rediscover his/her place within the Cirque du Soleil dynamic. We meet Stella Umeh, a Toronto gymnast and Canadian Olympian ready to become an artist as she ventures into new challenges and unchartered waters at Cirque du Soleil. "I'm apparently signed on for a trapeze number with five other girls and something called 'Body Skate', so that's all I know," she tells her mother. We later find out that although she is a talented gymnast, Stella has never performed on a trapeze. Raquel Karro Oliveira is one of Stella's performing partners. She hails from Brazil and is a seasoned trapeze artist. She is trying to deal with the strain of being away from her boyfriend. Raquel and Stella are introduced to a brand new apparatus that Cirque has created called the "multiple-trapeze". They both look at it with what seems to be a combination of wonder and intimidation. The multiple-trapeze is a large, rigid, cage-like structure that looks like several trapezes fused together. It resembles a playground jungle-gym that's been suspended in mid-air. This awkward new structure proves difficult to work with. We're introduced to Oleg Ouchakov, a veteran Cirque du Soleil performer from Russia. We learn that he has dreamt of being a dancer all his life and is now working to make the transition from acrobat to dancer. Oleg has been on the road with circuses for the past nine years and although his experience gains him much respect and admiration amongst his peers he must still face the challenge of breaking out of the old circus mold and working to create something original while adapting to the style of a new creative team. At one point during a characterization workshop Director Dominic Champagne critiques Oleg's movement style and urges him to innovate, "It's a little too 'Cirque du Soleil' for my taste. It's been seen so much, you could be the poster you know. I would like you to surprise me a little more." The first non-performer we meet is Michel Laprise, a Cirque du Soleil talent scout who is in charge of finding singers for the new show. When auditions in Montreal and Toronto fail to find the required talent he forges onward with an audition in New York City. His job is made doubly difficult by the fact that the show's creators do not exactly know what kind of singers they are looking for. The New York audition produces one candidate, a woman with a powerful, gospel-style voice. Michel presents a video tape of the audition to the creators who reject the singer outright. Although his search is once again fruitless he now has a better sense of what the show creators are looking for. His search proceeds to Sofia, Bulgaria where he auditions a slew of talented singers who can sing in the gypsy style. He eventually winds up in Paris for yet another set of auditions. But by the end of the Paris auditions he still has not found any suitable singers. Time is getting critical and Michel's situation is urgent. We are also introduced to Kevin and Andrew Atherton, of Manchester, England. Andrew and Kevin are identical twins, both are champions of the British National Gymnastics team. They meet with aerial acrobatics coach André Simard on their first day and proceed to rehearse their duo aerial straps number. Their act is already very polished and impressive early on and they are promised their own act in the show. Director of Creation Andrew Watson remarks how the twins aesthetic produced a very "interesting image". Even in the very early stages of rehearsal without lights, costumes, music or set the act is already breathtaking and the magic is apparent. Their act puts the twins at the head of the troupe, which could leave them susceptible to the pressures and possible jealousy that entails. Finally, we meet Ashley Beaver and Gareth Hopkins, performing partners from London, England. At 21, Gareth is one of the youngest members of the troupe and is away from his North London home for the first time. Ashley and Gareth train with coaches Pedro and Adrian to learn Icarian Games (foot-juggling), an ancient and rare circus tradition which is to be a center piece for the new show. Their progress is slow and difficult. The first day, Gareth attempts to land his buttocks on an inverted Ashley's feet (the starting position for Icarian Games) but instead lands on his "family jewels". Their progress continues to be slow and agonizing throughout the first few weeks, and we experience their frustration. Gareth finds the Cirque du Soleil regiment to be suffocating. He is at times temperamental and argumentative. Gareth's progress is also hindered by his preoccupation with personal matters. In a poignant moment he shares with us that his mother had been diagnosed with cancer before he left and had to undergo an operation. He also explains that his father left their family during his mother's illness and he harbors much bitterness towards him. We begin to understand that Gareth's personal demons are keeping him from succeeding at Cirque. He is withdrawn from most of the troupe and refuses to be a team player. The coaching staff holds a meeting and issues Gareth an ultimatum; either adapt to Cirque or leave the show. At the end of the episode Gareth is at a crossroads, he must decide whether he wants to stay with Cirque or give it up. He takes a sabbatical and returns home to Britain in order to see his family and to make his decision. Meanwhile, we see Ashley beginning to rehearse the Icarian Games with a new partner, Darren. Episode 3: "The Rise and Fall of the Trapeze" --------------------------------------------- ("Guy Laliberte, creative guide for the show, reviews the planned trapeze act." - TV Guide) This installment of Fire Within centers around the first performance of the budding new show for Cirque du Soleil President and Co-founder, Guy Laliberté, who acts as a guide for the creators and cast. The episode mainly deals with the performers' anxiety leading up to, and the fallout from, Laliberté's visit. The end of Episode 2 saw Gareth returning home in frustration after several grueling weeks at Cirque. Gareth surprises everybody (including himself) when he returns to Montreal and to Cirque du Soleil. The two weeks he spent at home with his ailing mother, his family and friends was the refresher he needed and he returns with a greater inner peace and a willingness to work to make it into the show. He credits his decision to "smart thinking", saying that if he had stayed home he probably would have eventually gotten into trouble and possibly ended up in prison. He now regards Cirque as his personal high road. Oleg throws a party to celebrate Gareth's return. Darren flips through Oleg's photo albums and shows us pictures from Oleg's Quidam days, posing backstage with celebrities such as Pamela Anderson and Sharon Stone. Meanwhile, the main buzz amongst the performers is their pending progress review by Guy Laliberté. We encounter the nervous performers on the day of the presentation. Oleg compares the stress and anxiety of being judged and having his performance evaluated to that he experienced as a competitive athlete. As expected, the Atherton twins' Duo Aerial Straps number fares well in the evaluation. Although, unbeknownst to the twins, the creative team wants to change the number. Cirque's previous show, Dralion, was lambasted in the Canadian press for its lack of innovation and minimal originality, the local media fearing that Cirque may have reached the peak of its creative potential. This was no doubt a prevalent thought in the mind of Director of Creation, Andrew Watson, "If we could end up with a strap act that didn't look like the hundred strap acts that we've all seen then I'd be a happy man", he admits. The creators hope to give a new spin to Aerial Straps and decide to pair the twins with hip hop choreographer Bill Shannon. Bill Shannon is an innovative dancer who turned his debilitative hip condition and his reliance on crutches into a new form of dance. He's taught this technique to cast members for a group dance act. Upon review, Bill is told by Guy Laliberté that what touched him most about the number in the first place was the "intimate moments" created by a solo crutch dancer. The act will be changed. As for creating new choreography for the Aerial Straps, the twins have a hard time working with Bill since he is from the world of hip hop music and break dancing and they are from the conservative world of competitive gymnastics. Their working styles clash and the twins become increasingly agitated. Bill works with the reluctant brothers and reinvents the originally graceful and balletic strap act as a fast and furious powerhouse reminiscent of skateboarding tricks, break dance and extreme sports. The twins dislike the change and are uncomfortable presenting the act to the creative team, "We were told we have a presentation [for the creative team] and I'm embarrassed totally to go out there and present something that I don't like and I know we're not going to like it," one of the twins confesses. The Athertons are surprised when the creative team loves the new choreography. "It has good energy," said Director Dominic Champagne. Like it or not the twins will continue to work with the hip hop virtuoso. Guy Laliberté's harshest criticism goes to the multiple-trapeze act featuring Stella, Raquel and four other girls performing slides and poses on the awkward cage structure. Upon first viewing it's obvious that Guy is beyond dissatisfied with how the act has progressed, "I don't like the act at all. We never see their full bodies. The structure looks like a pile of scrap metal." Then, semi- apologetically to André Simard the apparatus and act designer, "I'm sorry, sometimes you're brilliant but I'm not engaged by this at all. . .There are six people in the act, I won't have six people in an act unless it makes me go 'wow'." Ultimately, Guy lays down the law, "Do something fast or find another act," he tells the creators. The girls are very dejected at Guy's comments. In a moment in Stella's bedroom, she sews a dress and shares with us, "I wanted to be a [fashion] designer before I wanted to become [a Cirque] artist. Now I think I want to be a designer again." She forces a chuckle. Raquel's disappointment is compounded by feelings of longing for her boyfriend who is back home in Brazil. They've been apart for two months, causing Raquel much emotional strain. Her boyfriend flies to Montreal for a visit shown in a musical montage featuring the lovers sharing a touching and tearful reunion at Dorval Airport. The multiple-trapeze act is reworked to become more acrobatic and at the same time more dramatic, we see the trapezists manipulating red balls and making figures in a swath of red fabric a-la-Quidam. The girls perform the modified act for Guy Laliberté once more, this time privately, hidden behind large black curtains. The camera manages to catch little peeks in the crack. The second review fails to impress and finally, the decision is made to axe the awkward rigid trapeze structure. The girls take it hard. After training for so long the structure itself became the seventh partner in the act. Stella even anthropomorphizes the trapeze, "I call her Midge 'cause she's rad. I figure if she's got my life in her hands she'd better have a name." "We fell in love with the multiple-trapeze. That's why everybody's suffering," explains Raquel. Although she can see the producers' point of view that having such a large and commanding apparatus for an act that's merely pretty and short of spectacular could be disappointing for the audience. Stella is having a harder time accepting the loss. She laments, "I don't necessarily think that three months on a brand new object that's never been used before is enough research time." She later adds with a slight twinge of bitterness, "We were hired because we were believed to possess strength and aggressiveness and we were qualified for it beyond our reach, all of us, and there's little faith in that, that's what I feel like." At the end of the episode the multiple-trapeze is trucked away like a fallen comrade. Raquel, Stella and the other trapeze artists are right back where they started, three months of hard work reduced to a pile of scrap. With Cirque du Soleil Fire Within the viewer is presented with a fascinating mix of behind-the-scenes footage and real-life human drama. Fire Within finally presents a series that does reality television with the dignity and class the genre has sorely been lacking. Right from the start this series captures your attention and takes you on a voyage of discovery. I find myself eagerly awaiting each new episode. Be sure to tune in to the next edition of Fascination! as we continue our review of Fire Within. PART 2: "FIRE IN THE SKY" *********************************************** Every Sunday evening I find myself in front of the television waiting in anticipation for the first strains of "Icare" the Alegría borrowed, opening theme to Cirque du Soleil Fire Within. Fire Within is, of course, the compelling behind-the-scenes series that tells the stories of several Cirque performers and crew members as they work towards the creation of a new show. However, the series is much more than just that glib description. Fire Within isn't one of the typical Cirque behind-the-scenes documentaries that usually present the creation process via the views of the creators, usually featuring interviews with the Director, Director of Creation, Choreographer, Composer, etc. Instead Fire Within opts to present the point of view of the performers and staff members at Cirque du Soleil. The creators are still there of course, but they are not the main focus, they stay in the background of the series and are never directly interviewed on camera. The series has a candid and intimate style that brings viewers right into the daily lives of the performers. This is a video diary; the characters are frequently willing to honestly and openly share their feelings allowing us to vicariously fulfill our dreams of running away and joining the circus. It is humbling to watch the struggles and challenges faced by these super athlete/artists, and I find myself often affected by the honest and raw view of the Cirque du Soleil creation process that the series presents. Each episode weaves several storylines together around a central theme, and frames them with creative editing and an eclectic and evocative soundtrack. Let us continue our exploration of this exciting new series from Cirque du Soleil. Episode 4: "Shooting Stars" --------------------------- (New members of the troupe sign their contracts; the show's name is chosen. - TV Guide) Episode four opens about four and a half months prior to the show's premiere. The recent evaluation by President Guy Laliberté has initiated some significant changes to the show. The creative team is now shifting into high gear. In a montage set to the song "Stella Errans" we see make-up artist Nathalie Gagné creating several new designs on the performers' faces and drafts people working on computerized 3-D CAD models of various set elements. We meet Louise Mercier of the Cirque du Soleil Marketing department. Louise is the Brand Director for Touring Shows, which means she is in charge of finding a name for the new production. "It's something emotional, a name, a visual, it's something [Cirque] is really protective of," she explains. At a meeting the marketing team comes up with a list of dozens of potential names including Tsunami, Bomboula, Gromm and Vigie. Director Dominic Champagne pushes for a Russian name to reflect the cultural background of the majority of the show's house troupe. He suggests "Praznik" (we celebrate) and "Vstavaï" (awakening), neither of which the marketing department likes. Marketing is at odds with Dominic Champagne over the new name. Louise and her team push forward to find a name that both they and the director can agree on. The team creates a short list of four names that they will essentially force Dominic to choose from; L'Envol, Volte, Kesali and Varekai. Eventually, they whittle the short list down to just the latter two. Andrew Watson, the show's Director of Creation does not like "Kesali", "It's too weak for the show. It lacks strength." Champagne agrees, he adores the name "Varekai". The word "va" in French means "to go", and "kai", the director says, sounds like an explosion. "It's exactly what we wanted; it takes off and then explodes!" Though "Varekai" is not the marketing department's favorite, they accept the director's choice. The show has found a name. Kevin and Andrew Atherton continue to work with choreographer Bill Shannon to perfect their Aerial Straps number. Their progress puts them at the head of the troupe. Guy Laliberté chooses them to be the icon for the Cirque du Soleil corporate Christmas card. The Athertons pose inside a German Wheel during a photo shoot. Kevin and Andrew realize they are quickly becoming Cirque "stars" and want to negotiate a better contract. "It is business for [the Cirque] and they'll try to get us two as cheap as they possibly can," one of the twins argues. We walk with them through the Cirque's massive headquarters to the management offices, where windowed cubicles overlook training rooms so workers can watch artists rehearse while working at their desks. We leave the twins for their private meeting with a Cirque business manager and catch up with them later while they are training in the gym. The meeting didn't go as well as they would have liked. "They really make you feel guilty for asking for certain things and you actually start to feel guilty," one of the twins tells us. The Athertons will try playing hard to get with Cirque, "If there's no give and take then we're fully prepared for the consequences. . . Things have got to change, they've got no choice, or we will go." Weeks later, when they have not heard from management about a new contract, they call their father at home and update him on the situation. Ultimately, they talk and realize what course of action they want to take. "We realized that if we [were] willing to walk away from it . . . to do with our pride and things like that, then we're gonna miss out on a massive opportunity. And, we realized that we wanted to be on stage, and the act that we're doing here, this is what we've always wanted to do. We both decided we couldn't really give it up." So the twins stay on with their original contract. As the cast members train feverously to be ready in time for the premiere, Stella, Raquel and the rest of the trapeze team wait on the sidelines. Their multiple-trapeze apparatus was cut from the show, a casualty of Guy Laliberté's progress evaluation. Finally, their new equipment arrives; the Triple Trapeze; a long steel bar suspended from four ropes so it, in effect, looks like three trapezes fused together. The girls are giddy and excited to be on the new trapeze . . . except for Stella, who still harbours some bitterness and trepidation. "I always have to try something to figure out if it's for me, but right now, in my heart, I don't want to do it. I'm angry, I'm frustrated, I'm sad, I'm just pouting. . ." Stella confesses. The other girls are all seasoned trapeze artists, Stella is not, she has never been on a trapeze before. "I have never wanted to do trapeze and I'm sort of disgruntled that I'm being forced into doing trapeze. I'm not qualified now for my job at all . . . I'm not interested." Stella is also upset that she was not given the choice to perform in another act in the show after the demise of the multiple-trapeze, "My choice was either I do trapeze or I don't do the show." We watch as the other girls joyfully swing and climb on the trapeze and then see Stella off to the side watching with uncertainty and apprehension. Raquel has confidence in Stella, "[Stella's] very strong, she's very courageous. I'm sure she'll get it very fast." Stella gives the trapeze a try. We see her smart as she gets burned by the rope. She falls while attempting a figure and struggles with the basics. The other girls teach her and Stella perseveres. She gives her all but the odds are against her and the trapeze team as they work furiously to catch up. They are three months behind the rest of the troupe. Finally we catch up with Gareth, an Icarian Games performer who is making great progress. He has gone from being "a worry" to his coaches to being a model Cirque du Soleil performer. He and his performing partner Ashley are training very hard to make up for time lost during Gareth's sabbatical, when he returned home to be with his ailing mother. In marked contrast to the difficult and argumentative young man we met in earlier episodes, Gareth now seems happier and more comfortable at Cirque du Soleil. He rehearses with newfound determination and wants to "earn his place in the show". Gareth is among the first to sign a contract for the new show and is the first performer to get his measurements taken. We accompany Gareth as he is measured and photographed. A total of 62 taken, a thrill for Gareth as he has never even had measurements taken for a tailored suit. We also watch as his head is covered in plaster to make a mould, a process which all Cirque artists must undergo as all wigs, headpieces and masks are custom-made to perfectly fit each performer's head and face. Gareth gleefully relishes the image of his plaster cast head, "That's weird seeing my own face like that!" Then, in a touching personal moment, we listen in as he phones his still ailing mother back home in London. They try to arrange plans to see each other at Christmas. The episode ends with Ashley in an impromptu performance in the alley behind the Cirque du Soleil residences. In the original spirit of the circus he juggles flaming clubs in the crisp, late-autumn air as light snow flurries fall on Montreal. Episode 5: "Christmas" ---------------------- (Cast members visit family and friends at Christmas. - TV Guide) It is December 22, 2001. We pan across the frozen headquarters of Cirque du Soleil covered by a white blanket of snow. The troupe is preparing for their eagerly awaited Christmas holiday; they have not had a break in four months. We will accompany them as they relax with family and friends. This episode provides a temporary reprieve from the hectic and stressful feel of the others and provides an opportunity to get to know the performers in a more casual setting. Before leaving for the holidays, Director Dominic Champagne sits down with talent scout Michel Laprise and watches a video tape of an audition for the new show's singer. Over 100 candidates have already been rejected. This candidate is Adrian Berinde, a large, middle-aged Romanian man, with a low, husky and guttural voice which particularly stands out. The director describes him as "the Tom Waits of Bucharest, the Leonard Cohen of Romania." Dominic Champagne is still a little doubtful, "He's got no technique. He can't read music." But Michel counters, "He plays guitar, he's in a band. He's launching his fifth album this week and he's ready to drop everything for us." Not wanting to prolong the start of his holiday, the director relents and accepts the new singer. Before everyone leaves for the break, Dominic Champagne calls a group meeting where he will unveil the title of the new show. He explains his inspiration. "These are people without countries, without roots but they have [such a] strong culture inside themselves that they can survive without a country, carrying their culture inside themselves. So, I have the same respect and admiration for that culture [as I do] for people like you; acrobats that have the key to open any door and to enter the king's court. So that's why I suggest to call this show 'Varekai' which means, in the gypsy language, 'wherever'." The group applauds their show's new name. Then, everybody splits off for their respective celebrations. We see the Atherton twins on Sainte-Catherine Street, Montreal's main shopping district. They are waiting for an airport shuttle as they will be spending their vacation in Las Vegas. Ashley reunites with his girlfriend, Sarah, whom he has not seen in four months. She comes to Montreal to live with him. Ashley shares some of his concerns for their future, "It's all up in the air at the moment with work and touring, 'cause I don't know what it's going to be like and she's been asking me questions and I can't give her answers 'cause I've not toured yet." He's been considering marriage but is uncertain what the ramifications of life on the road will be, "I don't even know what the show's going to be like and I've just signed three years to do it. I just don't want [Sarah] to come here and for it not to work." Ashley and Sarah share a joyous reunion at the airport and some tender moments during the ride home. None of the performers have relatives in Montreal, so show choreographer Michael Montanaro throws a Christmas Eve party at his home for those who have stayed in town. Acrobatic Pas de Deux dancer Oleg regales his fellow artists with stories of his nomadic life. We watch as the performers eat, drink and make merry. Stella has gone home to Toronto for the holidays and has invited two of her fellow trapeze artists, Zoe and Helen, to join her and her family for a nice Christmas dinner. After dinner, the phone rings and as Stella picks up, she eyes the camera and says, "I'm switching phones." She facetiously rolls her eyes and says, "Ah, you think I'm letting you guys come in on my conversation? You've got to be joking." The camera playfully chases Stella to her bedroom where she slams the door on it as she taunts, "Get out camera boy." We instead join her mother, washing dishes in the kitchen, "Is that her boyfriend Sam calling?" her mom asks. "Her most recent flavor . . . oh well, poor Stella," she sighs. We then join Gareth sleeping in his bed on Christmas morning. Or should we say Christmas afternoon, he apparently had a very good time at Michael Montanaro's party the previous night. He receives a call from his mother in London. Gareth could not afford to fly home to see her. He speaks briefly with his sister and baby nephew. His mother is still not well, she must go back to the hospital for more cancer tests. She informs Gareth as the melancholy song "Rideau" from Saltimbanco plays in the background. Gareth wipes a tear from his eye and we share his sorrow in a genuinely touching moment. Meanwhile, we cut from snowy Montreal to rainy London, England, Gareth's home town. We meet Russian hand-balancer/contortionist Olga Pikhienko as she rides the bus to work. We pass Big Ben and posters advertising the Cirque du Soleil show Quidam where Olga has performed since she was 15 years old. She is now nearing the end of her five- year run with Quidam and will soon move to Montreal to star in Varekai. She arrives at the white Quidam Grand Chapiteau. Backstage, Olga is wearing a new, two-piece costume and proceeds to apply her make-up and paints temporary arm band and thigh band tattoos. The soft-spoken and radiantly beautiful Olga shares her apprehension about leaving Quidam, "I'm a little sad, I feel it more and more coming that I have to leave this tour and leave my friends behind. There are new people that I will have to hang out with and work with and I don't know them yet, I don't know how they are inside and it makes me nervous a bit." Christmas Eve is just another night for Olga and she gives an absolutely electrifying performance for the London crowd. From the few short clips of her performance it's evident that she has gotten even better since Quidam was filmed in 1999. She gives her heart and soul in a performance that's sexier and edgier than ever before. Olga says goodbye to the group of performers who have been her family for the past five years. However, working in Montreal will allow her to reunite with her actual family. Her father is an acrobatic coach with Cirque and they will work together for the new show. After the much needed rest and relaxation of the holidays the performers go back to the Cirque grindstone and once again start furiously rehearsing for the ever-encroaching premiere. In a montage set to the music "Terre Aride" from "O" we watch the Russian Swings, Triple Trapeze and several interstitial sequences in rehearsal. The show's magnificently intricate set will be constructed in the studio over New Year's and the performers will work to transfer their acts into the new environment. Finally, we attend a New Year's party with the performers at Stella's boyfriend's stylish loft. They count down and jubilantly greet the New Year with hugs and kisses all around. "Happy New Year Lewis," Gareth exclaims as he reaches toward the camera and shakes the hand of Fire Within director Lewis Cohen. Episode 6: "New Blood" ---------------------- (The cast assembles for rehearsals, seeking Guy Laliberté's approval. - TV Guide) January 7th, 2002; 107 days to the premiere. Several new artists join the existing cast. The new artists can afford to join the show late since they are already established performers. Director Dominic Champagne introduces the newcomers at a cast meeting; the Georgian Dancers, a team of Icarian Games specialists, hand- balancer/contortionist Olga Pikhienko, and Adrian Berinde, the show's singer. We flash to the previous night; Adrian Berinde arrives in Montreal and is picked up at the airport by Cirque talent scout Michel Laprise. Adrian is already a bit apprehensive, concerned that his position is still being advertised on the Cirque website. Michel reassures him it is there erroneously. The next day Adrian is introduced to Varekai composer Violaine Corradi and proceeds to rehearse the demanding vocal score with a team of voice coaches. As he sings the song which accompanies the show's Acrobatic Pas de Deux his voice is very harsh, wild and tense. It is obvious he has had no formal vocal training. He also complains that the score forces him to sing in a range that is too high for his voice, forcing him to strain. The coach explains the composer's reasoning, "She doesn't want you to be in a comfortable range, we can feel it when you strain. If we modulate we'll lose that urgency." Obviously, Adrian must work hard to adapt his singing style to meet the requirements of the Cirque. He must also cope with adapting to a new culture and new surroundings. In his native Romania, Adrian is a well-established artist. In Montreal he is just another performer in residence. It will take time for him to adjust. Olga Pikhienko comes to Varekai directly from Quidam. She has been cast as the female lead. Olga began her career at the age of six in her native Russia, her father Sasha has been her coach ever since. He now works with her to refine and adapt her Hand-balancing on Canes act for Varekai. Olga is already well-known and highly regarded in circus circles, head coach Boris Verkhovsky comments, "I don't think there are any women equilibrists anywhere in the market that can compete with her." However, with reputation comes pressure; the creators' and coaches' expectations for Olga are very high. She attends a one-on- one characterization and improvisation workshop with Director Dominic Champagne. Olga's challenge is to develop a character that can convey emotion in the show. She writhes inside a cocoon-like body sock and is coaxed by the director to improvise movement, "This is a skin that you don't like so you'd like to get out of it but you're not able to, it's a conflict between you and your skin. So, in the story, suddenly there will be a liberation when you will be able to be yourself in another state," the director explains. Olga works with choreographer Michael Montanaro to create movement for the show's interstitial sequences. Her remarkable flexibility is astounding to watch as she bends her body into various figures. Carrying the double load of training to perform a solo number and act as a main character weighs heavily on Olga. Her days are long and draining. Her fatigue is betrayed during a choreography session where she seems spaced-out and inattentive. The choreographer explains a procedure but she stares off, he notices and brings her back to Earth. "Hello!? Do you want to take a break? If you're too tired we should just take it easy." Her performance worries the creators to the point where a meeting is held between a Cirque administrator and head coach, Boris Verkhovsky. Olga is constantly complaining that she is too tired. The staff thinks that her daily habits may be the cause of her fatigue; massive coffee consumption and a taste for chocolate snacks which cause her to go from major highs to major lows. Boris is unforgiving, "She cannot have [that] problem, it's not an option. She's in the show from beginning to the end, she's a principal character so that problem cannot exist and she knows that to start with. I don't think there's any un-clarity in the assignment." The coaching staff will tell Olga that she must change her attitude and her habits. This segment really gives a strong sense of the sacrifices Cirque artists are required to make for their careers. As someone who absolutely relies on caffeine to function every morning, I can really empathize with Olga's struggle. Meanwhile, the expanded Icarian Games team rehearses together for the first time, Gareth and Ashley watch as the new team, the Santos-Leal brothers; identical twins Pedro and Ramon along with their older brother Javier, execute brilliant and complicated maneuvers. Gareth and Ashley have improved greatly at Icarian Games but are nowhere near the level that the Spanish "Rampin Bros." are at. They must hurry to catch up since there is a pending progress evaluation performance for Guy Laliberté. The two teams exchange ideas and there is a lot of good will on both sides. In a private moment Gareth and Ashley admit that they are very humbled by the Rampin Bros. "You learn from the best, lets put it that way, and these guys are the best," Gareth admits. Ashley is a little more apprehensive about sharing the act with a team that is much more advanced, "Because they've been doing it like 15, 16 years and compared to our five piddly months, they're the Dons!" After an exhausting day of trying to keep up with the Rampin Bros. Ashley goes home to his girlfriend Sarah. They've settled in their home life. We watch as Ashley is tricked into preparing dinner as Sarah goes off to rent a movie which Ashley is sure he will dislike. In a private moment with Sarah she confesses that she is sometimes envious of Ashley since she too is from a gymnastics/performing arts background. She is happy for Ashley but almost resentful that he is at Cirque and she is not. The world premiere of Varekai is fast approaching, we visit the ticket distributor's office on the first day of sales and watch as a room full of operators is swamped with calls. The show is already beginning to sell out performances. There is no turning back for the performers and the creative team. The immediate hurdle they face is Guy Laliberté's progress review. "It's like a professional, really well-performed rehearsal," Choreographer Michael Montanaro explains. Being the President of the company, Guy can make or break any act in the show. Stella and Raquel's multiple-trapeze number was a casualty of the previous progress review and they have only now begun to catch up with their new Triple Trapeze act. Understandably, all the performers are very nervous. Olga shares her anxiety, "I feel very stressed. I don't know why, like I've been doing this for seven years, but I just feel like this is the premiere." Guy arrives in the studio and the artists stage their numbers on Varekai's elaborate set. We watch as Guy views Oleg's Acrobatic Pas de Deux, Olga's Hand-balancing on Canes, the Atherton twins' Aerial Straps, the Georgian Dance and Stella and Raquel's new Triple Trapeze. During the Icarian Games presentation the Rampin Bros.' spectacular performance is juxtaposed with Ashley and Gareth's fumbles. Their coach looks down disappointedly and Guy Laliberté sits back with an exasperated scowl on his face. The episode ends with a bleak, exterior, night-time shot of the Cirque du Soleil in the snow. The narration informs, "Guy's verdict is delivered to the coaches. It's gonna be a long winter." Episode 7: "Pushing Acrobatics" ------------------------------- (Cast members deal with limitations and insecurities as the world premiere approaches. - TV Guide) This is the most hectic and stressful installment yet. It is February, 68 days before the premiere. Following his review of the troupe's progress, Cirque CEO Guy Laliberté's impression can be summed up in two words, "Not enough." Everybody has been working hard but the show is nowhere near the level it needs to be at this time, two months before the April premiere. Oleg, a veteran performer with Cirque, is aware that the troupe is desperately behind schedule as he compares his current situation to his past experiences during the creation of Quidam. "Six years ago it was a little more strong. Not even two months before the show, like five months, I remember my number [Banquine]; we started to run through it in September compared with right now, where all the big numbers don't even do run-throughs yet." Cirque's make-up, costume, and props shops are working well into the night. The cast and creative team accelerate their work in order to be ready in time for the premiere. They work 15 hour days, six to seven days per week. Everybody is stressed and the strain is starting to show. Director Dominic Champagne is becoming increasingly agitated with the troupe's slow progress. At a group meeting he berates the cast and asks them to start working with a more focused attitude. During a late rehearsal of the group dance number that opens the show the entire troupe seems tired and dispassionate. Choreographer Michael Montanaro vents his frustration to the cast, "Listen! Listen! Look, do you know what I want? I want to go home. I can't stand to think that you're gonna be there opening night doing this [mocks the cast by dancing around flimsily] Please, I beg you." Accelerating their work is not easy for the already weary cast members. Oleg is starting to show his age. As he rehearses his Acrobatic Pas de Deux number with his partner Tatiana he has a surprisingly hard time with many lifts and figures. During Oleg's struggles, Tatiana must endure his frustration. However, Oleg's experience tells him to take a break. He is burnt out from all of the work so he takes a day off and goes to a spa. We watch as he gets pampered with a massage and a haircut. He comes back to work relaxed and rejuvenated, immensely improving his performance. Two other veteran Cirque performers, Olga (Quidam) and Anton (Saltimbanco) work with Dominic Champagne to develop one of the show's interstitial sequences. Anton, a 16-year old Russian contortionist will perform an aerial contortion act in the new show as well as the lead character, the mythical Greek Icarus who flew too close to the sun on wings of wax and feathers and fell to his death in the sea. One of Anton's biggest challenges is to create an emotionally engaging character who will thread through the show's narrative. Particularly, he must develop a good on-stage relationship with Olga who plays his love interest. "In the show I have to fall in love with [Olga] but in real life she's six years older than me and . . . I don't know, we'll see," Anton says bashfully. Later in the episode Dominic Champagne directs the two leads in an underwater photo shoot where they film images to be projected onto the set during the show. The underwater filming produces some beautiful and evocative images. Evocative imagery is just what Marketing Director Louise Mercier must find. She is in charge of producing a poster and main icon for the unfinished show. She works with a Montreal marketing agency which creates several designs based on the show's Icarus theme. She is under pressure to finalize the graphic since Guy Laliberté is leaving for a month and wants the show's poster to be completed before his departure. Louise meets with a group of the show's designers to review the candidate posters. Louise's favourite design features a sky of dark clouds pierced with a man-shaped hole set against the moon, "This one would sell more tickets," she says. However, Guy Laliberté prefers an eye-catching design with a yellow background. Stella and Raquel's trapeze team works day in and day out to improve the Triple Trapeze act. Guy Laliberté still has not approved the act for the show. The team members have exhausted themselves trying to catch up to the rest of the troupe and must now push even harder. "It's painful because we do too much," admits aerial acrobatics coach André Simard. Stella is frustrated and visibly fatigued. She expresses her dismay during dinner with her boyfriend. "We have a lot of work to do and we're not even close to doing any of it so that's a little frustrating cause it's all going to come in one huge explosion." On top of having to improve the acrobatics, the trapeze team needs to work on their on-stage chemistry, the artistic and dramatic elements of the act are not as strong as they need to be. Director of Creation Andrew Watson encourages the team to be more expressive, to make the act more sensual. Dominic Champagne motivates, "I think your characters are sexually mature. This is a key, also. It's quite important to assume that presence. Trust yourselves and go make decisions, do your own homework and try to come here with more decision. If you really want to stand up, now you have the opportunity but you have to push yourselves a little more." The artists come to a realization; to save their act they must take matters into their own hands and give it absolutely everything they've got. Stella explains, "We took control of our act, we took control of our destinies and said 'y'know we're kinda being placated but we're gonna show you that we're stronger than that, we're bigger than that and we're gonna come up with stuff ASAP.'" Their coaches are impressed by the progress due to their newfound determination. At the end of the episode we see that the troupe's hard work is beginning to pay off, the disparate elements that make up a complete show are finally starting to come together, and slowly but surely the show is starting to take off. After viewing the first half of the series I can honestly say that I'm absolutely hooked on Fire Within. The deeply affecting human stories that the series weaves actually make me care about the characters. With the degree of intimacy achieved I feel as if I'm getting to know these people personally. Fire Within is really more about the human condition than Cirque du Soleil so, far from being a show strictly for hard-core Cirque fans, the series is simply good television that is open to anyone, and successfully avoids the "promotional video" feel that some of Cirque's other documentaries have. Now, at 22 minutes each, the episodes are short and the series focuses on only a very small group of Cirque performers. Of course, as a fan I wish I could hear about more performers and that each episode could be longer, but that doesn't mean the series is lacking, especially considering that the producers had to work within the constraints of producing a show for network television. Besides, isn't that what good television is supposed to do, leave you wanting more? And, "Fascination!" will give you much more of Fire Within in upcoming issues so be sure to tune in next month, same Cirque time, same Cirque channel. PART 3: "L'ENVOL SANS FILLET" *********************************************** Fire Within is reaching full flame. These next few episodes are full of tension and excitement as the cast and crew of Varekai scramble to ready the show for opening night. The level of stress and drama reaches its highest during these few episodes and it feels as if the earlier installments were meant to set the stage for these climactic ones. The characters we have met and become familiar with during the first half of the series are tested and challenged here. As viewers, we empathize with the artists and urge them to overcome their challenges. It remains to be seen who will triumph and who will falter. Not only does the series provide exciting and original content, but Director Lewis Cohen infuses Fire Within with subtle but effective stylistic touches that at times heighten drama or highlight nuances in any given scene. The director makes use of many rapid-fire montages of performers in training to give an ever-present sense of urgency. Sometimes he'll emphasize an important object such as the big top or the show's poster by making it the only colour object in a black and white frame. Cohen will also interlace matted shots of the Varekai performance to provide brief mystical moments in a very realistic and down-to-earth series. Fire Within also features very eclectic and evocative music. The series makes good use of the entire Cirque du Soleil Musique catalogue. "Meandres" from Nouvelle Experience plays in the background of a scene to establish an ominous mood. "Il Sogno di Volare" plays during Stella's family's quiet Christmas dinner. Saltimbanco's operatic aria is contrasted with the raucous drums of Dralion's "Bamboo", used as the background for the energetic cast Christmas party. Musical pieces are also used as recurrent themes; the melancholy "Rideau" from Saltimbanco is used as Gareth's theme and "Terre Aride" from 'O' accompanies training montages. Live selections from Varekai's score are used sparsely throughout the series, usually in context. For example, the Acrobatic Pas de Deux music will be used when the singer is learning the score or the performers are rehearsing. To round out the musical landscape of the series, a varied selection of non-Cirque music, ranging from folksy ballads to Eastern European dances and even Hip Hop is also used. As in Cirque's live shows, the music of Fire Within serves to set the tone of the series. Let us now journey deeper on our quest for Varekai as Fire Within continues. Episode 8: "Moving On" ---------------------- (Costume-fittings and mounting sets coincide with plans for dress rehearsals. - TV Guide) Varekai is scheduled to premiere in 45 days. The atmosphere at Cirque headquarters is aptly described by the show's Lighting Designer Nol Van Genuchten, "I think the stress is hitting the fan in here." As spectators, we all have a vague sense of how hard Cirque performers must work to make it in the world's best circus but it's still humbling to watch them struggle with the challenges that they face. After weeks of struggling to accelerate the progress of the show and improve their performances, it is once again time for the performers to show President Guy Laliberté what they've got. The stage is set, the theatrical lights are lit and Guy is presented with fragments of the opening sequence and several numbers including the rousing Georgian Dance. For Icarian Games, Gareth and Ashley are relegated to the back of the scene as the Rampin Bros. take center stage. Guy watches the spectacular skill of the Spanish brothers with a big smile across his face. This presentation is also the moment of truth for Stella, Raquel and the entire Triple Trapeze team. Laliberté axed their original Multiple Trapeze structure and it has taken them months to develop a new act. The performers have exhausted themselves trying to improve their shaky number, both acrobatically and dramatically. After the presentation, Cirque's Chief Operating Officer Lynn Heward gives the verdict; "I have to say to you I know you were sad when you lost your multiple trapeze but this [apparatus] does more for you than the other machine did. We see YOU in this performance and I think that's great." Then, turning to address the rest of the cast, "There are still lots of things to work on, tons of things to work on, but your movement forward is there and I just wish you all courage in the next few weeks, a lot of hard work and above all, give all of your attention and your focus to [Director] Dominic, he needs you, he can't do this show alone." The performers will need all the good wishes, the next few weeks will be the grueling final stretch to the premiere. But for now, they celebrate the acceptance of the Triple Trapeze into the show and a successful presentation. Adding to the list of reasons to celebrate, it is Gareth's birthday. He holds a party in his apartment at the Cirque residences. He's been trying unsuccessfully to phone his mother all day, we find out why. She has come from London with Gareth's sister and baby nephew Tyler to surprise him for his birthday. Gareth has not seen his family for almost six months and is elated. We witness their heartwarming reunion. The comfort of family gives Gareth the strength that he'll desperately need to survive the next leg of his journey with Cirque. "I've never worked so hard before in my life." Gareth professes. But he will soon be asked to work even harder. Also working at full steam is Cirque's marketing department. They have still not finalized a poster for the new show and time is running out. The original designs were tossed out when Marketing learned of an underwater film shoot with the show's lead performers. The still photos from the film are beautiful but their quality is not high enough to be reproduced as a poster. Marketing is at odds with Creative Director Andrew Watson over the poster design. The team looks at a group of about 10 candidate posters featuring Icarus, clouds, wings or any combination of these elements. Andrew Watson still likes the poster of Icarus underwater, a marketer disagrees, "I find it really soft . . . Andrew, you see it; I don't think the consumer sees it." The group debates for hours before deciding to look at some designs featuring a stylized puppet Icarus that Guy Laliberté originally approved. "It's less cerebral, it's more fantasy," says the marketer. As marketing debates the poster design, the Grand Chapiteau is already being erected in Montreal's Old Port. The performers will make their move to the show's venue and accelerate their working pace for the final stretch to the premiere. Stage Manager Armand Thomas prepares the performers, "So now we go through to the next step: Showtime! People are gonna get angry, people are gonna get angry at each other, we're gonna get really stressed out, we're gonna get tired, we're gonna get very frustrated and all that is normal for what we're gonna live through." An exhausted Gareth is concerned about the ramifications of the next step, "I don't know if I can handle it, I don't know if I can handle that life. When they started talking about 'things are gonna get really hectic and tempers are gonna fly' I'm like, I'm the worst person for temper." Gareth has been stressed and is having trouble sleeping. He is not progressing as quickly as he wants or needs to. Pedro, the Icarian coach, is frustrated at Gareth and Ashley's lack of consistency in their performance. At Cirque du Soleil if you aren't able to keep up with the best there will be consequences. Andrew Watson meets with Gareth and Ashley. They narrowly escape being fired. Gareth has been giving his best and it still doesn't seem to be enough. He is visibly upset, "I think I'm working well . . . What can I do? It makes me feel quite angry. I feel I am working hard. I feel training is going well. It's the final warning basically and if we have to have a meeting with him again, that's it." Then, with a sigh he concedes, "But that's life, y'know what I mean? That's show business." Episode 9: "The Grand Chapiteau" -------------------------------- (The circus stage, the Grand Chapiteau, is finally ready for a press performance. - TV Guide) T-minus 30 days to the premiere of Varekai: The artists move from the studio to the Grand Chapiteau. The big top is pitched in the Old Port of Montreal and covered in a light dusting of snow. For their first day of on-site training the performers arrive at a yet-unheated backstage tent. We see Olga and Anton huddled under a blanket and Stella working out on an exercise bike while dressed in her winter coat and hat. Everybody is busily preparing for the world press launch of the show; a press conference for over 200 journalists. After weeks of debate and many long hours, Louise Mercier and Cirque's marketing team have finally decided on a poster and main icon for Varekai, and not a moment too soon, she delivers the yellow poster with the stylized stick puppet Icarus to Andrew Watson just a few days before the press launch. She expresses her relief to him, "I feel like a pregnant woman who has just given birth." "I have another 28 days," the Creative Director replies with a laugh. Rehearsals continue under the big top. Adrian Berinde, the show's male singer, is incorporated into the staging for the first time. During a run-through of a group scene it is painfully obvious that Adrian has never acted before, he has absolutely no performance quality. He just goofs off and waves his hands. Fortunately, others are having more luck. The Atherton twins' Aerial Straps act has really come together. The new choreography is spectacular. The twins are determined to make their act one of the show's most memorable. "We don't want to be a standard apple, we want to be the best we can be on the stage and we want people to talk about our act when they've left. But that's all been sorted now, all that's left for them to talk about is our costumes," one of the twins says with a laugh. The Athertons are excited that their act has been chosen as one of the few that will be presented as a teaser during the press conference. Icarian Games, another act to be presented in the teaser, still has some major kinks to be worked out. Ashley and Gareth's futures at Cirque are hanging by a thread; their performance is still weak and inconsistent. Head coach Boris explains the ultimatum issued to them, "The buck stops here and the next decision will be a drastic one." With so little time left there is no tolerance for Gareth and Ashley's fumbles. Boris talks to Icarian coach Adrian about their performance, "[It's] not acceptable and the next step is, if we can't rectify it, we take it out." Stress is causing Gareth to become short-tempered and argumentative. During a training session he is defensive and constantly argues with his coaches. Ashley, on the other hand, just sits dejectedly and listens. Adrian lays down the line, "Training doesn't mean anything if you come last in a competition . . . We're not changing your routine unless you drop him next time and then I'm gonna take it out [of the show], end of story." Later, Gareth works with Director Dominic Champagne to fine tune his Lizard character; a menacing, dark figure which will open the show. With the Icarian Games quickly slipping from his grasp the Lizard character may be his redemption and his only chance to save his job. Gareth goes fishing in the St. Lawrence River on his day off. He seems pensive; a young man caught between a troubled past and an uncertain future. On top of problems with Gareth and Ashley, the Icarian Games proves to be an immensely difficult act to create a lighting design for. The inverted Icarian catchers are being blinded as they stare up into the over-head stage lights. Varekai's frustrated Lighting Designer Nol Van Genuchten admits, "Icarian Games is a really tough act to light. By no stretch of the imagination do I have a good relationship with them now." Press Conference day arrives; the cast must temporarily put their daily struggles aside and flash their rehearsed smiles for a room full of jaded reporters. All the artists are on edge; even veteran performer Olga has a case of stage fright. As she puts on her semi- finished costume she tells the dresser, "I don't wanna go out there! No!" Raquel relishes the challenge presented to her, she relates it to Varekai's theme, "It makes you a survivor. Life gives you opportunity to learn how to fight; if you make it then you're more special than people who don't have anything to fight for." Ashley catches the flu and cannot perform in the press conference show. Guy Laliberté and the show's creators greet the journalists. The mini-performance goes off without a hitch but little do the reporters know that just beneath the Cirque's slick veneer is a team desperately trying to salvage a show that is simply not ready. At the end of the episode Dominic directs a full dress and technical rehearsal of the show's opening sequence. It is less than three weeks to the premiere and he has not yet done a run-through of the show in its entirety. With the clock ticking down the final few days, it remains to be seen whether all the disparate elements of the show can be pulled together in time for opening night. Episode 10: "The Lion's Den" ---------------------------- (The cast is tense with the first performance of the Varekai. - TV Guide) Crunch time has arrived. The world premiere of Varekai is only 15 days away. In a Cirque tradition appropriately dubbed "The Lion's Den" the cast will give a preview performance to an audience of 500 Cirque du Soleil insiders including head honcho Guy Laliberté, the Lion in Cirque's proverbial den. Head Coach Boris explains, "This is the first time we have a run-through for about 500 people, a very friendly but critical 500; the creative department. Definitely a friendly audience but boy, an opinionated one, we know that, so that's the little challenge of the day." The Lion's Den is effectively Cirque's qualifying competition, performers who make the grade will see opening night and those who falter, in the eyes of Cirque's big wigs, won't. Sadly for Ashley and Gareth their verdict has already been decided. They will continue to train for Icarian Games but will not perform in the show. They have been judged as not performance-ready. Ashley is obviously very disappointed and disheartened that his months of excruciating training were ultimately fruitless. Understandably, he is in a bad mood before the performance, "I just got asked if I'm bringing the [Icarian] chairs out [on stage] . . . Yeah . . . that's ALL I'm doing . . . I so wanna do Icarian, I feel like I've done half a job." Before leading his cast into the Lion's Den, Director Dominic Champagne hopes to inspire their performance by reminding them of the show's Icarus theme, "A man is dying and he's sure he's dead. All the family around will show him, 'No, it's not the end of something, it's the beginning of something else.' This show is just that, so the lesson that everyone has to share with [Icarus and the audience] is 'Something else is possible.'" The audience arrives. Guy takes his seat. The show begins. The performance is still rough around the edges but resembles a finished show. Guy watches stoically and scribbles down pages of notes as the cast, dressed in half-completed costumes, run-through the show. Afterward, the camera watches from afar as Guy has an intense meeting with Dominic and Varekai's entire creative team. We sense that the show will see some major changes. Oleg is the first to hear the outcome of the Lion's Den. He is told that his Acrobatic Pas de Deux with Tatiana will not be featured in the premiere. Oleg is disappointed and on edge, he was not told why his act is being left out. He contemplates his future with Cirque, "No, this sounds crazy. Of course I'm not staying if I'm not doing my act. Nobody can prove to me that my act isn't good." Oleg feels betrayed; he has sacrificed much of his personal life to be in Cirque du Soleil. He has not even phoned his daughter in almost seven months. The axe falls hardest on the show's singer Adrian Berinde. The Lion's Den was his first performance in front of Guy Laliberté. Unfortunately, it was also his last. Adrian did not fit well into the show's staging or aesthetic and after 100 days at Cirque he has been fired. It is obvious that his working style clashed with the Cirque's. Adrian sums up his experience, "The Cirque is an exceptional place to be for some people but it can be a prison for others. I came here to be useful but in the end I think it didn't matter. In fact, I don't think anyone matters to them. What matters is the show." And the show must go on. A new singer, Cirque veteran Mathieu Lavoie, arrives to take Adrian's place in Varekai. Cirque Talent Scout Michel Laprise goes to the airport to say goodbye to Adrian. Varekai's ex-singer shares his thoughts on Cirque with Michel, "Let's be frank. The fact that I only met with my composer for half an hour during my hundred days at Cirque, that's not normal. I don't think it's anybody's fault but I think that the Cirque must stay grounded if it wants to continue to thrive." In the aftermath of the Lion's Den, Michel is a very busy man. He must fill some major holes in the show's lineup. "The show is evolving into a new artistic direction so that implies new players," explains Michel. Guy feels that the show is lacking in high-calibre acrobatic acts. Michel is charged with finding a "spectacular" act. He spends days trying to hunt down an available high-wire act. Unable to find one he instead decides to cast a world-class Mexican juggler named Octavio Alegria. Stage Manager Armand introduces Alegria to the Varekai cast just days before the premiere, "He's in the wrong show but he's got the right name," Armand jokes. Varekai is being shaken apart and rebuilt with major changes occurring only days before the premiere. Rigging designer Jacque Paquin worries, "We start having shows in ten days, we're not going to re- paint the planet in ten days, there's just no physical time to do it." With a displeased company president, an exhausted cast and virtually no time left, the odds are stacked against Director Dominic Champagne as he reshapes and fine tunes his creation for the pending unveiling. Episode 11: "Countdown to Premiere" ----------------------------------- (Guy and the director try to calm tensions as the world premiere approaches. - TV Guide) With each subsequent episode of the series the stress level increases. This installment opens three days prior to opening night. Tension is high, patience is low and big changes are being made to the show with little time left to smooth over the rough patches. Director Dominic Champagne is charged with the monumental task of locking down all the elements of the show. The Director is not seeing enough performance quality from the performers. He lectures the cast members about their overall performance up to this point, "It's your show. It's clear what you have to do. Do it and give it to the audience. Ok, I know now this show is very demanding for you and I know you're scared about doing that show ten times a week for years. Now we're doing the best show we can do in the amount of time that we have. When you are [on stage] you've got to participate, 'What's the action? What's the focus? Where's the focus?' So you don't upstage but you're alive." Gareth and Ashley have been removed from the Icarian Games act and now perform only minor supporting roles in Varekai. They are both obviously unhappy about their new reality. Gareth and Ashley's replacements arrive; the Stevens Brothers are a world class Icarian team from Italy. They will have to move extremely quickly to integrate into the world of Varekai in the two days before the premiere. Olga is struggling with the choreography for her Hand-balancing on Canes number. The acrobatic aspect of her act is flawless but her dramatic performance lacks quality. Stella speculates, "Olga's act is beautiful. She's an amazing and talented hand-balancer. She's good on her hands, not so good on her feet . . . Maybe it has a lot to do with her being the Cirque baby and being protected by her dad and everybody sort of takes care of her that's kind of stifling her maturity." After struggling through the dance portion of her act Olga leaves the stage and is obviously distraught. We meet up with her backstage, "It's no one's fault, it's just me, I'm just frustrated a bit and I shouldn't be. Something goes wrong and I get just like freaked out. So I have to be patient." Raquel and Stella's Triple Trapeze number is finally blossoming after months of hard work. The act is becoming fluid and aesthetically pleasing. However, the women now have other concerns. At Cirque they not only perform their trapeze act but appear as supporting characters throughout the show. Raquel and Stella perform roles in the Body Skating act which opens the show's second half and assist Olga during her number which leaves the trapeze artists with very little time to focus on their own act. Raquel and Stella express their concerns to Head Coach Boris. They complain that having all of their duties concentrated in the show's second half puts them at risk for injury. Boris promises the problem will somehow be rectified. At 11:00PM the night before the final invited dress rehearsal Dominic stages Olga and Anton's wedding, the show's finale, for the first time. The tired performers finish work at 1:00AM and relax with drinks in the dining trailer. Tomorrow they will perform the show in front of an audience for the first time. Luckily that audience will mostly consist of Cirque staff and invited friends and family members. The morning of the final dress rehearsal Olga looks exhausted and has lost her voice. "I didn't sleep good, my throat is killing me. Oh well, I still have to go." She says. Before heading to the big top she must make a stop at Cirque Headquarters for the final costume fitting of her yet-unfinished wedding dress for the finale. Kevin and Andrew Atherton pick up their family at the airport. Parents, sister, Grandmother, aunt, uncle and cousins, the entire Atherton clan has come from England to watch their boys perform. One of the twins confesses, "It's gonna be a bit weird to perform in front of my parents, there's a bit of added pressure but I wouldn't say a lot." Joining the Atherton family in the audience will be Stella's parents, Raquel's boyfriend and Olga's parents. Oleg and Tatiana receive some good news; their Acrobatic Pas de Deux act which was previously shelved for the premiere will be performed after all. They are elated. Before the final rehearsal begins, Dominic Champagne informs the performers that their brand new big top has just been christened, "We're starting the life of a new big top tonight and the name of the big top is Vivia which means 'full of life'. Viva Vivia!" With Vivia full of invited guests, the lights dim and the stage comes alive. Backstage it is pandemonium, performers scramble to make their cues. On stage the performance does not go well, riddled with errors and missteps. There are falls during the Icarian Games, the Solo on Crutches dancer takes a spill, the Athertons fail to catch each other in mid-air during Aerial Straps and then stumble on their landing. For all her worries, Olga's hand-balancing act is one of the few that is performed flawlessly. Afterward, the artists give the performance mixed reactions. The Atherton twins are disheartened, "The audience is just silent, it's really crappy." Olga gets a verdict from her mother, "There has to be that sense of magic. You can't fake it. You have it or you don't." At this stage of the game there is not much that can be done to fix the flaws in the performance, the performers and creators will have to rely on a Cirque dictum: Bad dress rehearsal, good opening night. Tomorrow they will premiere Varekai to the world and see for the first time if it will fly or fall. All of the struggles, triumphs and tribulations of Fire Within have lead up to this point, Varekai's opening night. Be sure to check out the next issue of "Fascination!" for the thrilling conclusion of Fire Within! PART 4: "RESOLUTION" *********************************************** The time has come; all of the ups and downs, struggles, triumphs and setbacks of the artists of Cirque du Soleil's newest show have culminated in this event, the world premiere of Varekai! As viewers of Fire Within, we share in the performers' excitement and anxiety as they aim to impress with the new show. The final two episodes of Fire Within represent the climax and resolution of the series. It is in these episodes that we accompany the performers whom we've met and become familiar with throughout the series as they finally take their place in the spotlight and shine. Then, as Cirque packs up its Big Top in Montreal and heads on the road to start the North American Tour of Varekai, we bid a fond farewell to the artists and staff whom we've met along the incredible journey that was creation of Varekai. Fire Within is a groundbreaking series allowing fans unprecedented access to Cirque du Soleil. It allows us to go deep inside the company's creation process and witness the magic in the making. Fire Within also allows us to see the human side of the Cirque. The series' raw and honest portrayal of the performers and staff shows us a side of the company that we've never been able to see before. The series is not without its weaknesses. Fire Within focuses very heavily on some characters while only showing momentary glimpses of others. For instance, the series focuses heavily on Gareth and Stella's characters while Oleg and the Atherton twins have smaller roles. Understandably, this is because of the way the stories developed. Stella and Gareth are the two most animated and open characters of the bunch and also two individuals who had a particularly challenging time during the creation process. Following their struggles provides solid stories for the series. Conversely, the Atherton twins, while fascinating individuals, were for the most- part always on top of their game and at the head of the troupe when it came to performance, which is good for them but it doesn't make for very exciting television. The effect, for the characters that we did get to know well, is that we start to root for them. There were several times when I felt sincere emotion for these people as I empathized with their struggles. Still, as a fan I would have liked to have seen more of the other characters. Although this is by no fault of series director Lewis Cohen, since his challenge was to work within the confines of documenting reality and doing so within the limitations of creating a series for network television. For the most part Cohen does a wonderful job with the material he got. According to the Cirque website, over 1000 hours of raw footage were filmed for Fire Within and each of the thirteen episodes took nine weeks to edit. The hard work is evident in the quality of the finished product; a series that is as respectful as it is informative, insightful and honest. The Fire Within series as a whole is a monumental achievement for Cirque du Soleil. Admittedly, watching Fire Within does take some of the mystique and mystery out of watching Varekai live. I now see the performers as actual people and not the fantastic super-creatures and magical characters portrayed on stage. In a way, I now see through the illusion. But on the other hand I have a profound respect and much deeper appreciation of the artists because I've witnessed the grueling work and immense challenges that these extraordinary individuals had to overcome to become part of a Cirque du Soleil production. So, for the final time, let us marvel at the hard work of the series' creators and complete our journey through Fire Within. Episode 12: "Opening Night" --------------------------- (A focus on the premiere features highlights. - TV Guide) It is April 24, 2002. We open on a time-lapse shot of a bustling, pre-dawn Montreal and visit several performers as they prepare to leave for work. We check in on a tired-looking Olga who tells us in a raspy voice, "Today is a very special day; it's the premiere of Varekai! I'm not nervous, I'm just sick." Raquel rides the Metro (subway) to the Old Port of Montreal, Oleg and Ashley walk toward the Grand Chapiteau on the Jacques Cartier Pier. Throughout the day final touches are made to the show. All the technical equipment is checked and last-minute adjustments are made to the costumes. Every little detail must be perfect for tonight's premiere. The sun goes down and the invitation-only crowd, a cross-section of society representing Montreal's cultural elite, starts to arrive. The Cirque's ability to transcend boundaries is evident as the opening night audience consists of politicians, famous musicians, actors, sports heroes, Hollywood stars, "jet-setters" and, of course, a slew of media reporters. All are eager to be the first to catch a glimpse of the newest Cirque du Soleil production. A Cirque premiere is truly Montreal's equivalent of Oscar night. "It's like a movie star land out there," comments choreographer Michael Montanaro. The backstage tent is full of nervous energy. The performers are haunted by the previous night's bad dress rehearsal and are determined to give everything they can for a successful premiere. Director Dominic Champagne gives the troupe a final pep-talk before the show, "It's gonna be a tough audience tonight but remember; there [are] three things to make this show happen; emotion, emotion and emotion. What is in your hands now is your eyes for the audience. Share this show [with] the audience; give your soul to touch their hearts." Before the show, Stella is experiencing a small crisis. Her parents have gotten separated on the way to the Big Top and her father is now lost. This is obviously the last thing she wants to deal with before her big premiere. An edgy Stella yells at her mom over the phone, "How do you two always manage to lose each other!? Well, you left the poor little man standing out there with coat in his hand and no ticket!" With only a minute to go before she takes her place for the show's opening, Stella is boiling with frustration. When asked if she found her father Stella fumes, "He called me and said, 'I can't find your mother.' I said, 'I'll call you back.' He turns off his phone!" Luckily, her parents are re-united before the show starts. The rest of the performers are nervous but excited. Head Coach Boris describes their state of mind, "It's an interesting energy in the artistic tent right now. It's a calmness that you know is not a result of calmness. It's either the result of fatigue and when it hits them they will go bananas. They'll be bouncing off the wall." Director Dominic sits outside and smokes nervously, "I'm going to nervous breakdown," he tells us. The performers storm the stage for the opening dance and the show begins to the thunderous applause of an excited and energetic crowd. During the show, the performers, creators and support staff can watch the performance via a closed- circuit television monitor in the backstage tent. The Icarian Games team makes their entrance; the Spanish Rampin' Brothers and the new Italian team, the Stevens Brothers. Backstage, the premiere is a bittersweet moment for Ashley and Gareth as they were replaced in the Icarian number. When asked how he feels, an obviously disappointed Ashley replies, "It's shitty man. 'All dressed up and nowhere to go' sort of thing. I've been here the longest trying, well learning this act and now I'm not in it." The performers huddle around the monitor and cheer the performance of their fellow artists. Stella gleefully applauds the complicated flips and catches of the new Icarian team. In contrast, Ashley watches with a blank expression. He experiences a melancholy moment as he watches the Italian brothers and realizes that his dream has slipped away from him. The Atherton twins go on to perform their Aerial Straps act. The crowd gasps in awe at the image of a man leaping into the air, soaring and then splitting into two identical copies of himself. The twins touch down at the end of their act to an enthusiastic standing ovation - they are a hit. Next Oleg and Tatiana take to the stage to perform their Acrobatic Pas de Deux. Oleg holds Tatiana in the air for the opening figure when she slips and falls. The crowd gasps, they tumble into a heap on the floor. The artists and coaches backstage watch the monitor worriedly. Olga glances at us with a concerned look on her face. Mooky the clown nervously bites her lip. Coach Boris, his eyes still on the monitor, informs us, "Apparently Tatiana fell and Oleg managed to catch her at the last moment but I did not see it so I cannot tell you." Thankfully, the dancers are not hurt. They are able to overcome their initial fumble to put on a passionate command performance. Afterward, they return to the backstage tent and are obviously disappointed in themselves for their mistake. They dejectedly walk towards the changing area. Choreographer Michael Montanaro stops them and offers his encouragement, "One little thing like that doesn't matter, it was beautiful." Next, Stella, Raquel and the other trapeze artists perform the Triple Trapeze act. The months of hard work, the loss of their initial multiple trapeze apparatus, the struggle to develop an act that would be equally aesthetic and acrobatic has all amounted to this moment. Their movements are sinuous and graceful. The trapeze artists exude a beautiful sensuality. Afterward, they return to the backstage tent to the applause of their fellow artists. It is now Olga's turn to hit the stage. She descends from the rafters of the set and performs her Hand-Balancing on Canes act. Olga's costume glitters like a diamond under the lights, she moves fluidly through the choreography. Her performance is sublime and the crowd falls in love with her. The show ends on the highest of high notes; the spectacular Russian Swing finale. During the act, the celebrity crowd leaps to its feet in a rousing, extended standing ovation. Afterward, all the performers return to the stage for their curtain calls. This is the reward for the months of grueling work, the highs and the lows have culminated to this very moment. Varekai is a triumphant success. Backstage, after the show, the performers are positively elated. Guy Laliberté comes to cheer them. He is ecstatic about the success of opening night. An exhausted and emotional Dominic congratulates his cast on a spectacular job. Even the movie stars are themselves star-struck by the Cirque performers. Supermodel and Hollywood actress Milla Jovovich gets a backstage tour. Upon meeting Varekai's star Olga, Milla breaks down to tears and sobs excitedly. The episode ends with Guy Laliberté driving up to Dominic and the Athertons in his limo and offering them a ride to the big after-show party. Episode 13: "The Aftermath and Departure" - Series Finale --------------------------------------------------------- (Casting adjustments are made as the three-year world tour begins. - TV Guide) The final episode of Fire Within opens on a miserable, rainy June afternoon, a fitting pathetic fallacy for the tone of this last installment. After seven weeks and over 60 shows in Montreal it is time for the performers to pack up their lives and leave for the three-year North American Tour of Varekai. The artists, once nervous novices have all become set in the routine of Cirque du Soleil and are now seasoned professionals. They get a briefing at Headquarters about the tour schedule and life on tour. They are all obviously excited to have this opportunity to travel and see the world. On the morning of the final two shows in Montreal the performers once again go through their pre-show routine. However, noticeably absent are Gareth and Ashley. We ask one of the Atherton twins who replies; "Well they're not here today so they must be at the Studios. They've got a meeting with [Director of Creation] Andrew Watson. I'm hoping for them, I've got my fingers crossed that it's not bad news." Raquel elaborates, "They didn't make the premiere and now we have these Italian guys [The Stevens Brothers; Roni and Stiv Bello] [who] are great but it makes us scared to lose [Gareth and Ashley]." Gareth arrives from his meeting and we catch up with him at the make- up stall. He tells us, "I'm feeling alright considering my contract's getting terminated after Montreal." Stiv Bello, who replaced Gareth in Icarian Games, is applying his make-up in the neighboring stall. He overhears what Gareth has said, looks over and asks in disbelief, "What did you say? Are you playing a joke?" Gareth tells him that it is all too real. Stiv asks about his future, "What are you going to do, stay here at the studio?" "No, no I'm going home," Gareth replies. "I'm sorry for you," Stiv consoles. There is still no word about Ashley. Finally, he walks through the door with a grim look on his face. He doesn't tell us the outcome of his meeting but we can pretty much decipher it from his expression. Varekai's Artistic Director Nicolette Naum leads a Tapis Rouge, a meeting of all the performers. She informs them that Gareth and Ashley are being let go after today's two final Montreal shows. The performers are shocked and dismayed. Raquel reacts, "Unbelievable, I can't believe that they do this. I don't understand. It can happen to anyone at anytime? That's not respectful." One of the Athertons shares with us, "Every time I've spoken with Ashley, this is his dream. He's not like, 'I'm doing this for three years then maybe something else.' He's like, 'I'm doing this for life.'" For Ashley, the year of excruciating training was ultimately not enough; it is the end of a dream. The show begins. Gareth takes the stage for the final time as the Lizard character that opens the show. He explains, "That's my favourite part, terrorizing the audience . . . Yeah, I'm really gonna miss that bit." As he does every night, Icarus falls from the skies and loses his wings. The Varekai family must help him learn to fly again. Only this time, there is a parallel story happening backstage. The artists pull together and support their fallen comrades. Gareth sits on the couch in the artistic tent and stares deadpan into the air, contemplating his future. One of the Water Meteor boys comes and gives him a comforting pat on the shoulder. The show ends to yet another standing ovation from the hometown crowd and closes one of Cirque du Soleil's most successful runs ever. Afterward, emotions run high as the performers celebrate their success, but at the same time feel the loss of Ashley and Gareth. Guy Laliberté, Dominic Champagne and the Varekai creative team come to say goodbye to the performers. They pop open a bottle of Champagne for Gareth and Ashley. Along with the celebration, there is work to be done. The artists must pack up the entire artistic tent and stow the contents into several trailers to be taken to Quebec City, the next stop on the tour. Olga will once again be on the road. Even though she has already toured for several years, she still finds it difficult to leave her parents. Stella must leave her boyfriend Sam behind. "I have to leave my relationship and all, I'm an emotional basket case," she confesses. "The smartest thing would be to not get into a relationship when you're only in town for eight months. But obviously I missed that fact." Sam will drive her to Quebec City before saying goodbye. Raquel and her boyfriend Ricardo pack up their apartment and prepare to leave. After living there for almost a year, Montreal feels like home to them now. They will miss it, although they are both excited to be going on tour. The Varekai tour is their opportunity to travel the world together. They will begin their adventure by taking a boat cruise on the St. Lawrence River to Quebec City. The trip is a sort of pre-honeymoon cruise for them. They will soon be getting married. The rest of the performers pile their bulging suitcases onto the luxury coach that will be the Varekai tour bus. The bus hits the road along with the numerous tractor-trailer rigs emblazoned with the "Varekai" and "Cirque du Soleil" logos carrying the tour's equipment. This is the beginning of an exciting adventure for our performer friends. One of the other artists is traveling as well. We meet up with Gareth at the airport. He's packed up his life and will fly back home to London. This time, he won't be returning. "Doing this was like a hundred steps forward for me and now I've just fallen a hundred steps back," Gareth laments. But he admits, "There's been some hard times but the good times outweigh the bad times by a million." In a touching final moment, his plane takes off as the soft, plucked violin melody from Varekai plays and we hear the words from the soundtrack album, "Fall of an angel, you can see the fall. . ." As for Ashley, we see him back where it all began; Cirque Headquarters. Michel Laprise and other members of the casting department watch as Ashley auditions for a part in the next Cirque du Soleil show. Ashley refuses to give up on his life-long dream. As the melody of Patzivota swells, we fly up and away from Cirque headquarters, symbolizing Varekai's take off and flight away from its home and into the world. ------------------------------------------------------- "The Houses of Cirque" By: Ricky Russo - Orlando, Florida (USA) {Originally Published: Issues #18, 22 & 27 - February, June & November 2003} ------------------------------------------------------- Cirque du Soleil's main houses of performance have been, are currently, and will remain to be the formidable "Grand Chapiteaus". But in the early 90's a fusion of design and intuition thrust Cirque into a new era where their creations were also presented in permanent venues, multi-million dollar theaters specially designed for their productions. In our exploration of "The Houses of Cirque", we will peek into each of these houses - from Big Top to Theater. We begin with the Treasure Island ("Mystère") theater. We'll follow up with the Bellagio ("O"), Walt Disney World ("La Nouba") and Beau Rivage ("Alegría") theaters. Then we'll move on to the various signature big tops, either all white, white and gold, or blue and yellow (striped or swirled), used on their world-wide tours. # # # The Mystère Theater, at Treasure Island --------------------------------------- Researching the creation and implementation of the theater and set designs for Cirque is no easy task, but in doing so one will find two prevalent names: Michel Crête and Scéno Plus. Michel Crête has been Cirque du Soleil's scenographer, or one who "paints the scene" using the art of perspective representation, for many years now and is hailed as a talented, one-of-a-kind individual. Monsignor Crête came to Cirque in 1986, putting his knowledge of creation and design to use as Costume Designer. In his tenure, he created stunning and innovative (not to mention colorful) costuming for Le Cirque Réinventé (1987- 1990) and Nouvelle Expérience (1990-1993). But "within a few years," says the Cirque du Soleil website, "he traded fabric for the media of wood, metals and plastics." The change resulted in many stunning sets for both Cirque's permanent and traveling shows. In 1992, Michel Crête left the world of fabric behind and designed the sets for the mega-production known as Fascination (a combination of Le Cirque Réinventé and Nouvelle Expérience) that appeared as a special limited engagement in Japan. He went on to design the sets for Saltimbanco (1992), Mystère (1993), Alegría (1994), Quidam (1996), "O" and La Nouba (1998). Through it all, Michel has worked closely with Scéno Plus, a Canadian company founded in 1985 with the quest to be innovative in their design and construction solutions, for the realization of his visions. The first vision of this partnership was the Treasure Island showroom, a beautiful 1541-seat theater within the $430 million expansion of the Mirage Casino-Hotel in Las Vegas. Rumored to cost approximately $20 million, the theater comes complete with comfortable seats, a wonderful view for all, and an interesting story of compromise with its design. You'll find the theater in the back of Treasure Island through a couple of sets of white and red wooden doors, but you won't mistake their purpose; for beyond the ornamented doors lies Mystère, a mega-production by our favorite circus. The theater has several interesting points about it, many of which are too technical to discuss here. However, one of the first things people notice upon entering is its openness. The Treasure Island Theater lacks a divider, or curtain, between stage and audience that is usually found in most theaters. Thus the stage is completely open to the audience, allowing the action to be thrust upon them. This was the goal from the initial meetings between the Mirage staff and Cirque/Scéno. The idea was to make the environment feel as if you were in the intimate setting of a Big Top. Did they do a good job, or what? In fact, upon further study you'll find that there's also no Proscenium Arch, the technical name for that division. The lack of this arch is what gives Mystère its life, but it almost wasn't to be. The Mirage staff feared that without this arch (i.e. a more "standard" design) they would have to shut the entire space down for costly modifications if the show had failed. Because of this, the theater almost didn't get built. Thankfully, quick thinking came up with a series of catwalks built into the ceiling of the theater that allow for quick (and relatively cheap) modification to a normal theater. Without the arch, however, there also would be no "fire curtain," a fire-retardant cloth made to help contain smoke, heat and flame in case of a fire. This absence meant that the theater would not adhere to the fire code, which the Fire Marshals could not understand. Cirque/Scéno had to haul in a scale model of the theater to the fire marshal's office just to get approval! There were other problems to overcome as well. In the original plans, Cirque/Scéno envisioned a series of lifts that would raise and lower the performers at will. In order to incorporate the lifts, they would have to be buried in the ground. But Las Vegas sits on a crust of what is called "caliche," soil particles that have been fused with lime. This fusion created a substance that is as hard as (if not harder than) cement, which made burrowing into it quite difficult and costly. Since they couldn't dig down in the bedrock without elevating the costs of the theater prohibitively, the solution is actually one of the most ingenious and visible parts of the Mystère experience - the Deux Machina. The stage floor sits on specially designed spiral-shaped lifts called "Spiralifts". The Spiralifts were designed by Gala, a division of Montreal's Paco Corp., and employ a "coiled, flexible, flat steel spring that expands with the insertion of a thin, vertically-oriented spiral steel band." This allows for big savings in space while providing a rock-solid system for lifting and lowering stages. The use of the Spiralifts also meant that they wouldn't have to spend a lot of money digging through the tough, solid ground, which greatly pleased the Mirage developers. I find once I'm in the theater I can't help but look at the set and ceiling. A simple thing the ceiling is, but here too Cirque/Scéno provided something beautiful and interesting. The ceiling is a cloth mural specially crafted by Sky Art out of Colorado. The print on the cloth is just as fanciful as the production below it - a fantasy map of the world with ships at sea! And hidden up in that sea of ships is the O-Daiko drum, the heartbeat of Mystère! The set is also an interesting piece of mechanics, consisting of a hunk of metal as a backdrop that can be rotated by a simple flip of a switch. The 10 musicians are housed on either side of the stage, with drums and percussion on the left and everyone else on the right. A sophisticated communications computer allows the musical director to speak with all the musicians and a monotone "click track" keeps everyone in sync. Underneath the stage is a round turntable that can revolve at 10rpm, and of course those slinky-lifts. Believe it or not, the Mystère set still retains some of the elements that were part of the theme first presented to Caesar's Palace back in 1991 (Caesar's turned them down, but Mirage called soon afterward). For example, Crête says that the set "suggests Ulysses, and the mythical obstacles he had to overcome on his own journey. The two towers represent Scylla and Charybdis, two of the perils Ulysses faced". All the trappings of Rome (although Scylla and Charybdis are the names of sea monsters in Greek mythology.) Many challenges faced the design team for Cirque du Soleil's first theater, but one by one everyone worked to resolve these issues no matter how heated the debates became. The addition to The Mirage, Treasure Island, opened on October 26, 1993. Though the public had to wait another two months to have a seat in the theater, patrons were lined up on Christmas Eve to bear witness to a unique event in Cirque du Soleil's history. In 1994, Scéno Plus was awarded the Las Vegas Best Theater of the Year award for their ingenuity. Not bad for their first Cirque outing, wouldn't you say? The "O" Theater, at Bellagio ---------------------------- "O", a phonetic play on the French word for water - "eau", is a baroque world filled with disturbing images, impressive acrobatics and amazing technical design. The theater built for the show, Cirque's first aquatic show, is also a revolutionary conceptual space. Taking approximately two years to build (February 1996 to January 1998) and reportedly costing $42 million US (70 million CAD approx), it sports an innovative theatrical design making the 1800-seat space the first of its kind. What makes the theater so special? At the heart of the 155,300 square-feet show space is a 1.5 million gallon (6-million liter) pool used for its stage. And that is pretty innovative, if you ask me! You'll find the Bellagio theater "tucked away in a seemingly normal looking hallway on the casino floor," but nothing can prepare you for what you'll see inside - a marvel of innovation masked by exquisite beauty and detail. Take for example the Cupola, or rounded ceiling vault. At some point your eyes will dart skyward and you'll find a breathtaking ceiling washed in turquoise, indigo and blue. But take another glance... underneath that beauty lies an innovate framework of galvanized metal mesh with a trellis (or frame of latticework) that allows for an infinite array of lighting effects to be used. Cirque uses this space to place scores of different colored lights to not only light the theater but also the stage below. The Cupola also comes with a space used for overhead performances, which is utilized during the beginning of the show. A winch by Fisher Technical makes the performance possible. While the ceiling itself is a wonder to behold, how many of you have sat with mouths agape as the curtain is drawn back into the depths of the theater for the show's explosive beginning? If so, you're not alone. The curtain impresses many who have seen the show. So, how does it work? That amazing feat is done by another winch by Fisher, a 20- horsepower F200 model that draws back at a speed of 14-feet per second! At that velocity one would imagine the curtain would flutter noticeably. But believe it or not, Cirque keeps the curtain from fluttering with a series of weights that hold it in place timed to release with the curtain's upward motion. This keeps the curtain taught throughout the entire drawback sequence. It moves away to reveal another innovation of the theater, the pool itself. The stage consists of a 150-foot by 100-foot pool reaching a depth of 25 feet. While the pool itself is an interesting marvel, haven't you ever wondered how the pool becomes a stage? Below that liquid surface lies a series of hydraulic lifts built specifically by Handling Specialty of Grimsby, Ontario. There are four of these lifts, each with a 1-million pound capacity. What's in them? Vegetable Oil! The lifts can quietly rise, thanks to temposonic probes, and lower the pieces of the stage in mere seconds (5 to 25-feet per second). Those pieces are made out of a resilient rubber-like material in a series of 4-foot by 8-foot panels. Each panel contains 5,000 plus holes to allow water to pass as the stage is raised or lowered. But the speed of their disappearance and sudden reappearance can fool you into thinking that the lifts and the stage are quite light. In fact, the combined weight of the system is a hefty 460,000 pounds! But the lifts are only part of the innovation. Many of the problems with the show's development came because of the water itself. Ask yourself a couple of questions: How would the noise of the splashes be contained? How could the temperatures between the water and the air be comfortable for both the performers and the patrons? How could the smell of chorine be contained? They are all important questions to solve, because, even with all the technology surrounding the theater and the pool, the answers would determine if the two could be fused together. The solutions are novel in their own right. First, the noise of the water is absorbed by a series of rocks scattered around the ring of the pool. The rocks, used in conjunction with special matting from 3M called Nomad, help absorb the sound of the water as it splashes about. Second, the 87-degree Fahrenheit water is counter-balanced with a special HVAC (Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning) system design that pumps 55-degree Fahrenheit air directly under each seat. This mixture of air keeps the humidity down while resulting in a comfortable 72-degree temperature. Thirdly, using Bromide in the water averts the chlorine smell. There are many other technical advances of Cirque du Soleil's theater at the Bellagio that remain secret behind Cirque's closed doors. And perhaps that's the way it should be. Giving away too much takes away from the marvel of the show, does it not? The Bellagio opened on October 15, 1998 to much fanfare and press, opening the theater of "O" for the very first time. The spectators were taken to it, awarding Cirque du Soleil and Scéno Plus for their ingenuity. For their collaboration on the Bellagio theater, the pair has been awarded: New York's prestigious Eddy Entertainment Design Award in 1998, the Canadian Institute for Technology's Award of Technical Merit in 1999, and the Las Vegas Best Theater of the Year Award. The La Nouba Theater, at Walt Disney World ------------------------------------------ The La Nouba performance space is a collaboration of four entities: Cirque du Soleil, Scéno Plus, Walt Disney Imagineering and the Rockwell Group. All four worked together to design and construct what would be Cirque du Soleil's first (and currently only, but that will change shortly with the construction of the Tokyo 2008 project) freestanding theater built exclusively for their needs. Armed with a budget between $20 and $30 Million (USD), Scéno Plus designed the approx. 75,000 square-foot (7,000 square-meter) drum-shaped theater that is a wonderful testament to both structure and beauty and a shining example of ingenuity and design. Let us take a peek into this amazing performance space, shall we? On the outside, the Cirque Theater is like a "castle" standing prominently on the shores of its kingdom, in this case on the shores of Village Lake in Downtown Disney's West Side. The structure, accented in white Teflon-coated canvas fabric, stands approximately 160 feet tall from the concrete sidewalk to the tops of its spires. Atop the theater rests the namesake of the company in big blue lettering and even higher still, the castle is topped with four fluttering flags featuring the famous sun logo of Cirque du Soleil. And while the outside is something to marvel, the interior is no less so. On the inside of this concrete-canvas behemoth, on the second floor, rests its performance space. Like many of Cirque's theaters, the first thing you'll notice upon entering is the set and out-in-the-round stage. The set, which has been referred to as an "Elizabethan-style" stage due to its symmetrical style, is said to be reminiscent of a well-traveled path or trail. While that may be true, many see the insane nature of an asylum, and certainly that too is true. That asylum-esque nature is created with a 60×200 foot trellis construct made of PVC panels and scrim, which allow for wonderful projection and shadow play conjuring up uncanny images of Orwellian reminiscence. The wonderful backdrop is overshadowed by mountainous outcroppings, jetting up from the floor on either side. These rocks stand approximately 60-feet tall and are constructed of hard steel, but padded using wood and bleached velour (a velvet-type material.) Even the showroom seats are abound with detail; modeled after old- fashioned auditorium chairs, these seats are steel and wood constructed and covered in red velvet. They were built by American Seating of Grand Rapids, Michigan especially for La Nouba. But look up from your red-colored seats and see the seven cloud-like "Fabulous Figures" that decorate the ceiling of the showroom; their whimsical dance about the tops of the theater forever captured. These "figures" are manufactured out of copper tubing and wrapped in mesh and measure approximately 30-feet in length. You may not know, though, that these fanciful leapers were designed by Michel Crête, the set designer. You may spot the musicians next, resting upon two platforms housed in the 75-foot towers rising on either side of the stage. Separated but not disconnected from the performance, these musicians play the various notes of La Nouba's live music. They do so by staying connected via a complex audio system that allows each musician to speak with the bandleader, their other band mates and take direction if something were to happen. Usually the tick of a metronome is heard throughout their setup to keep everyone on the same beat and time. The platforms themselves are nothing more than steel planks welded together (among other various pieces) and contain an external elevator (which performers rise and lower from during the show. The stage has many technological achievements also. The retractable Power Track, as it is called, is 60 feet in length and fully automated, which means computers control the retraction (at 2- feet-per-second) of this enormously powerful trampoline. But don't let that quick retraction fool you into thinking the floor is light; it's not, it weighs over 10,000 pounds! The Power Track was specially designed by Cirque du Soleil (and Paco Corp.) to allow the performers to jump higher and faster than ever. The PowerTrack is the next evolution of the FastTrack as seen in Alegría. Ironically the PowerTrack became so popular that it was installed in Alegría, taking the old FastTrack's place. The stage comes alive during the performance by a set of elevators commonly referred to as lifts. There are five in all, resting just below the stage surface. The ascent and descent of these lifts are controlled by numerous motors (45 in all!) that must be in complete working order for the lifts to even function. The five lifts themselves rise to a maximum height of 16-feet; the center stage lift is also capable of descending 16-feet below the stage for a 32-feet range of motion! And they each have a 3,000 pound weight capacity. The stage itself is protected by an impact-resilient material called "Mondo Sport Floor" applied over wood in order to avoid injuries to the acrobats and dancers. Two télépheriques (or tracks) installed along the back wall of the stage are 78-feet (24-meters) above the ground and are capable of moving props, scenery and acrobatic equipment during the show at 4- feet-per-second. These tracks provide an easy system for moving objects in and out of view of the spectators. You'll find various strange props, lights and chairs gliding by throughout the various acts including "The Grand Monument," a 40×30 foot structure of aluminum and painted scrim. The set is fully automated as well. The 25×60-foot Trapeze Net (designed by Doug Kiddell of Cirque du Soleil), for example, is protracted and retracted by eight motors, including two 40-horsepower tensioning winches with up to 5,000 pounds of force. Not one soul comes out to set up or tear down the trapeze net. Additional set pieces are operated using a motorized counterweight system, such as: the trampolines (which descend from the ceiling), the flying doors (of which there are 9), the petite fenêtre volante (or New York Window,) two pedestal platforms and the four trapeze grips. The JR Clancy Company of Syracuse, New York installed the 44-line set rigging system and 35 of the winches used for these props. The lifts were designed and installed by Showmotion of Connecticut in partnership with Disney Ride and Show Engineering. Westsun Scenic Edge, Inc. of Winnipeg actually designed and installed the computer control system, which makes the space come alive using a Windows NT based program called Dynatrac. With fixed tiered seating in a 180-degree semicircle around the stage, the auditorium has neither a proscenium arch nor an architectural ceiling, which makes it similar to many of Cirque's other theatrical ventures. To some, the first glimpse provides the image of a traditional big top; to others, it is Cirque du Soleil's greatest achievement. Regardless of how you see it, it is a one-of-a-kind structure for Cirque du Soleil in that it's Cirque's first stand-alone theater complex, but also a self-contained Cirque world. What do I mean? For the first time, a show space, ticket booths and Boutique (which Scéno Plus also designed) are housed directly in the same complex. {Sources: Cirque du Soleil Press Room and the Cahners Magazine Division of Reed Publishing USA Nov 1999 - Abby Bussel} The Alegría Theater, at Beau Rivage ----------------------------------- Cirque du Soleil would leave the trappings and lights of Las Vegas behind in The Beau Rivage Theater. From May 20, 1999 until October 2, 2000 Cirque du Soleil found a home at the Beau Rivage in Biloxi, Mississippi, "a place where genuine Southern hospitality and charm go hand in hand with meticulous service." The Beau Rivage was Steve Wynn's then-newest resort (now held by MGM Mirage) and with its opening on March 16, 1999 came another collaborative effort between Wynn and Cirque du Soleil. Within this $685 Million (USD) resort was a 1,552 seat theater reflecting the "warm welcome inspired by the climate of southern France." For those who bore its splendor, the design of the venue was simple and elegant, featuring a wonderful splash of color. And, unlike the "O" theater the Alegría Theater was ornamented with an elegant display of the show's name - right above the door. Inside, the ceiling was a vibrant shade of blue, representing the skies of the village Alegría played upon. Here, Sky Art also provided designs for a 15,000 square- foot mural "reminiscent of Claude Montet's water paintings." Below the skies were the theater seats, bright yellow, creating an allegory of the beaches where the Beau Rivage was founded. And then there were the walls, adorned in oranges and reds, bringing meaning to the rising and setting sun. Besides the wonderfully adorned space, the Beau Rivage Theater incorporated a no-proscenium arch design quite similar to its Mystère counterpart. Like the Treasure Island Theater, the Beau Rivage Theater also had no obstructive poles, providing a limitless viewpoint to all spectators. The set and stage retained its familiar squarish form, complete with the Fast Track built into the floor. Overhead an enormous dome that for designer Michel Crête signifies "a sign of imposing power," which reflects the theme of the show - an allegory about power; who has it and who does not. On October 2, 2000, Alegría packed up its troubles and prepared for a journey to a continent it had never before played - Australia. Today, the "Beau Rivage Theater" has been completely renovated for more standard fare - such as Lord of the Dance and STOMP. Since it left many of its secrets went with it, which is unfortunate because the theater and its space were very beautiful. While Cirque du Soleil and Scéno Plus continued to have a working relationship on their permanent venues and other upcoming works in progress, in January 2002, Cirque withdrew from Scéno Plus to make way for a new company - Capital Communications - which is an affiliate of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec. Le Grand Chapiteau ------------------ "In just 150 seconds, 134 side poles will be raised and the mass of material will rise into the sky and shape itself into an enormous space..." Le Grand Chapiteau. For Cirque du Soleil, their main house of performance has been, is currently, and will always be the formidable Grand Chapiteau. Over the years Cirque has performed in a variety of venues, and while perhaps their most ambitious projects are housed in specially designed theaters, it's the mobile big top that strikes Cirque's signature colors. Perhaps it's the smell of popcorn wafting through the air. Or the sounds of patrons excitedly filling their seats. Or perhaps it's just the fact that you're under canvas that makes the Grand Chapiteau's so magical. Today Cirque du Soleil has a half-dozen big tops roaming the globe supporting various tours, each with a capacity of more than 2500 spectators. But did you know that in the beginning only 800 spectators could see a Cirque show in their small blue and yellow big top? And perhaps more perplexing is the fact that the big top did not have theatrical-style seats like they do now... spectators sat on arena- style benches and even folding chairs! Believe it or not the benches were a staple even through Alegria's first North American tour! The numbers surrounding the chapiteaus are impressive indeed, but ever elusive. If it's one thing Cirque du Soleil prides itself on it's not giving away too many of it secrets. And while dimensions of a big top may not be something you would consider privileged, information in any form is held closely nevertheless. However, by piecing together bits and pieces that have been released through the years in numerous programmes, press releases and articles, Fascination will conclude its exploration of the "Houses of Cirque" by reviewing the variety of signature big tops, whether all white, white and gold, or blue and yellow (striped or swirled), the Cirque du Soleil has toured the globe with throughout its history. By now the famous "make-or-break" story has reached the hearts and minds of Cirque du Soleil fans everywhere. How Cirque du Soleil had everything riding on top billing at the Los Angeles Festival in the summer of 1987, with absolutely no money left to fill the tanks of their trucks with petrol in order to return home if they failed. Cirque wagered everything on their success in Los Angeles and luckily for them (and for us), Cirque du Soleil became an instant hit and thus history is sewn. Before long Cirque began to spread across the United States with the as-yet-unnamed Le Cirque Reinvente tour! The tour sported a blue and yellow-striped big top seating approximately 1700, which was a big step up from the first touring chapiteau. By 1989, Le Cirque Reinvente's final year in North America, approximately 1750 spectators could watch the show in all style of benches and folding chairs. The dimensions of the big top were quite impressive for its time with an overall diameter of 40 meters (130 feet). The four masts, or supporting columns, rose 17 meters (56 feet) into the air with the cupola, or vaulted ceiling, at a height of 13 meters (43 feet). French sail makers Voilières du Sud-Ouest of Bordeaux, France made the canvas tent and Mr. Marcel Rossel, a 40-plus year circus veteran, helped design the monstrosity. It took dozens of people anywhere from 30 to 44 hours to assemble, but only 14 hours to dismantle, the 18,145 kilo (40,000 pound) structure. Believe it or not, anywhere from 30 to 58 vehicles were needed to transport the 450 tons from site to site, and no wonder, with the entire site occupying 8,750 to 15,000 sq meters (94,185 to 161,460 sq feet)! In 1990 "Le Cirque Reinvente" was replaced with a darker, more theatrical style show in "Nouvelle Expèrience". This new experiment featured many of the same cast and crew, more sophisticated costuming, a more melodramatic musical accompaniment, and a brand new big top with a capacity of 2500 spectators. The canvas and masts were manufactured in various countries, including France, Italy and Quebec, and it took 50 vehicles to transport the 600-ton site from location to location. The new big top was so sophisticated (and big) that it took 36 hours to dismantle and pack-up the site and a number of days to set it up. "Nouvelle Expèrience" toured North America for approximately 19 months in a blue and yellow striped big top, but when a shortened version of the show landed at the foothills of the Mirage resort in Las Vegas the big top lost its signature colors and adopted a more "desert" motif -- a special white and gold striped version. It was the first (and last) time this interesting color variation was seen as a Cirque du Soleil Grand Chapiteau. But it wasn't the last time Cirque would perform in an interesting venue or setting. As an example, in 1992 Cirque du Soleil smashed together "Le Cirque Reinvente" and "Nouvelle Expèrience" to showcase the very best it had to offer to spectators in the land of the rising sun, Japan. "Fascination" was a spectacle for the eyes featuring an entirely redesigned and modernized set, more colorful and sophisticated costumes, new music and even a brand new venue. The Japanese took the "theater in the round" concept to new heights -- literally! They removed the masts that would have obstructed the view and constructed a multi-level background so artists could appear and disappear at will. Seating for Japanese performances was somewhat different than for other non-Japanese showings, which is why I group Japan differently into a "more interesting" category. In Japan spectators did not sit in a 270-degree semi-circle as they would elsewhere; instead the audience sat on pew-style benches in a square-like pattern in front of and on either side of the circular stage. This pattern was also used for Saltimbanco's 1994 Japanese tour in which the contents of the big top were set under a specially designed "blue special tent" by sponsors Fuji Telecasting and Nissan at Yoyogi Olympic Plaza. And it was to the "Yoyogi White Theater" that Alegría came to when it toured Japan in 1996. Yoyogi White Theater and the theater used for Saltimbanco in 1994 were similar, sitting 3600 patrons. Probably one of the greatest examples of ingenuity is the "New Big Top" for Quidam's 2003 Japanese tour. This is an all-white dome structure built by Fuji that contains no masts, so every seat is unobstructed. There are 2900 seats with a complete 270-degree view. What's impressive is the height of this big top at 28 meters (96 feet) high, and a diameter of 57 meters (187 feet)! I say impressive because there's nothing supporting the center of this enormous big top except its steel frame! Today Cirque du Soleil has five big tops that tour the globe: Alexis, Bellinya, Funambule, Gaïa and Vivia. Each has its own style and flair. Some are of the standard yellow and blue striped variety, and some are of the yellow and blue "swirled" variety, while only two are white as fresh fallen snow. Of the standard striped variety there is only one, Gaïa, which premiered with Dralion in 1999. Gaïa stands approximately 19 meters (61 feet) high with four 26 meter (85 foot) masts holding it in place. 2500 patrons can catch a show within this 50.5 meter (166 feet) diameter Grand Chapiteau. The other two "non-white" chapiteaus are the newer, groovier "swirled" type, so called for the ice cream-like swirl of blue and yellow stripes that adorn them. Both Bellinya and Vivia fit within this swirled category. These big tops feature a venue that is 19 meters (61 feet) high and 50.9 meter (167 feet) in Diameter with four 26 meter (85 foot) masts keeping them straight and tall. Approximately 2600 patrons can sit inside these structures without breaking a sweat. Bellinya premiered with Quidam during its second North American Tour in 2002 (in Miami) the same year Vivia premiered with Varekai (in Montreal). Cirque du Soleil has two other big tops in its collection, and these two are truly are the grandest of the Grand Chapiteau; Funambule and Alexis. Both are all-white and were originally detailed for tours held outside of the North American continent. Of the two Alexis is the eldest, which premiered with Saltimbanco on its European tour in 1995. Alegría and Quidam also occupied this big top during their European tours (1997-1998 and 1999-2001 respectively). Funambule also accompanied Alegría across Australia before returning to the North American continent for it's current second NAT tour. These two big tops boast a total area of 20,000 square meters, with 3,500 square meters just for the main tent. They are 50 meters (164 feet) in diameter, 17 meters (56 feet) high and have four masts that are 25 meters (82 feet) high. Approximately 2500 to 2600 spectators fill the theatrical-style seats inside. On the outside approximately 450 pegs are hammered into the ground to support the facility with 609 meters (2000 feet) of nylon cord to secure the big top to the asphalt. Amazingly enough it's pretty self-sufficient. The site is powered by three 350 kilowatt diesel fuel-powered generators and electricity is distributed with approximately 3 to 4 kilometers of cable which wire the site. There's a lot of technology that goes into today's modern Cirque du Soleil big tops, which is a topic for another time. However, in comparison between the white big tops verses the yellow and blue (striped or swirled) varieties are how the concessions stands differ. For example, in the yellow and blue variety, the concessions and boutique are split up amongst two smaller tents with empty space between them unused (except perhaps for tent anchoring and/or the ticket truck). But, for the white grand chapiteaus, the concessions and boutique are one structure with the concessions at both ends with the boutique running the length of space between them. It may be something simple, but it sure makes for a magical evening when one can step outside of the big top and still remain under canvas! I hope you have enjoyed our three-part series on the Houses of Cirque. As always there's much, much more to explore, and as time permits and information becomes available, Fascination! will explore these facets of tour technology. Regardless of which variety of venue you enjoy watching Cirque in -- big top or theater -- one thing is certain: you'll always be welcome in Cirque du Soleil's house. ------------------------------------------------------------- "An Evenings Chat with BJ, Quidam's Percussionist" & "BJ, Live from Japan! - An Online Chat" {Originally Published: Issues #25 & #32 - September 2003 & April 2004} ------------------------------------------------------------- PART ONE: "An Evenings Chat with BJ, Quidam's Percussionist -------------------------------------------------- It was a daunting challenge involving weeks of planning and several authorizations but we finally achieved our end result... a chat with a Cirque du Soleil musician! How would it be done? Which communication program would we use? How would I keep control over the chat? These and many more questions arose as those weeks began melting away. But, on August 17, 2003 at 8:00pm Eastern Daylight Time, the chat began and all the troubles of bringing it together were quickly forgotten. With a "Good Morning from Japan," our guest, BJ, a percussionist with the Quidam tour currently in Japan, joined us for about 2 and a half hours that Sunday night and spoke about who he is, what he's doing, and where he may be headed next, not to mention that he enjoys Sushi, Sake, Pocky and a good Irish Pub! At one point the chat was opened up to everyone in attendance to get a chance to speak directly to BJ - it proved not only successful, but a highly active time. Now, I would like to share with you the log of our chat in a more easy to read Question and Answer format. So, take it away BJ: BJ: With pleasure. BJ: As you said, my name is BJ. I am 29 years old and currently with Quidam in Osaka, Japan. I am the drummer since December 2000 and therefore did parts of the European tour, the entire second North American tour, and now the Japanese tour. I was born in Germany; I am German, grew up in Spain for a couple of years and then moved back to Germany. I also have family in the Boston area. And my favourite colour is blue. Richasi: In the Quidam Japan programme, your name is listed as simply "BJ". Does BJ stand for something? Is it your full name? BJ: It does indeed stand for something: My middle initials. Richasi: Fellow Fascination writer Keith Johnson wanted to know: What first attracted you to drums? Who gave you your first drum kit? BJ: That is a complicated story. I started drumming when I was six. My mother is a music teacher and I had a lot of music around at home. At five she put me in some elementary music education course. After a couple of months the teacher told us that she was from a bigger music school and that we could all learn an instrument if we wanted. I instantly shouted "drums", ran home and told my mom. She sighed and there we went. It is not clear what made me say that. Richasi: Wow, so at a pretty early age then. Were drums the only instrument you wanted to play? Do you know how to play others? BJ: I was never really interested in any other instrument until the age of maybe 15-16. Then I started to learn the guitar and a little later the piano. Richasi: Multi-talented then. :) Do you just play drums with Quidam or do you double with another instrument? BJ: I hope there's talent involved... I just play drums. In Quidam that is already a pretty busy job. Richasi: No doubt. Sometimes twice a night, etc. Do you ever get tired of it? Do you ever tire of playing the same music all the time? BJ: That is a deep question because when I feel tired it is hard for me to tell what I get tired of. I have spent quite a great deal of time thinking about that one. I still enjoy playing Quidam. Most mornings I wake up and get really excited to play on that day. When I get tired of it all it is mostly due to the circumstances. The travel, the pace of different cultures that I have to get used to, the unbalanced way of life. Richasi: Do you enjoy the travel or is it something you'd rather not have to deal with? BJ: The drumming part is a pleasure 99% of the time. The surrounding stress might be hard on us. I love traveling, seeing things, and exposing myself to different surroundings. But sometimes the culture in the country we go to is so different that the adjustment alone will eat a great deal of energy. Richasi: When you feel the stress, and as you say you enjoy playing the show, is there a piece you enjoy more above others? One you look forward to playing each night? If so, what is that piece? BJ: I used to see the show as a collection of numbers with individual pieces of music. But as I grew into it my perception changed. I see and feel Quidam more as two halves with waves of intensity and energetic levels. I really love German wheel for the way it gets me into it. If I get through German Wheel all right then I am pretty much set for the rest of the show. I love diabolo, Tissue. Gee, just about everything. Richasi: Most fans would say that as well. Do you find yourself being caught up in the emotion of the show? BJ: On certain days I might enjoy Banquine less than Cloud swing. But generally I try to look at it from a larger perspective - as one thing. Various emotions. Every day is a new emotion. Mostly - due to my specific job - I try to feel intensity. It's not a specific emotion I try to have but I try to be as intense as possible in my performance. The drums are a very powerful component of Quidam. I better make it right. ;-)) Richasi: Is the emotion of the performance/music what drew you to Cirque du Soleil and Quidam in particular or was it something else? What made you decide to join CDS? BJ: I did a tour with a German circus in 1996 and there I met two artists from CdS. Before my experience with the German show I was not into circus at all. They introduced me to cirque. I then saw Alegría in Hamburg and soon after that I applied. Mainly because I liked the music. Then I did not hear from Cirque until late summer of 2000. I had almost forgotten about it. Richasi: Did you audition for Alegría? BJ: No, I received a specific call for Quidam. They were in need of a drummer for the rest of the European tour. I guess they liked my drumming. Richasi: So, you auditioned for Cirque in general? BJ: No, I auditioned in Frankfurt, Germany on stage with the Quidam band specifically for Quidam. Richasi: Wow, and it must have gone great because you're on tour! :) BJ: I guess I played a short piece of diabolo and then skipping. I jinxed them to hire me ;-)) Richasi: Jen (JenJeninLA), who is not here tonight, wanted to know whether being in Cirque was what you thought it would be...the experience, the work, the training, the traveling, everything. Do you feel excited to be part of CDS? BJ: I remember that I was very confused with the setup and with the way the music is conducted. I almost had to cheat my way through it but I eventually made it through. Very much so. It is a special work environment. I like touring, I like performing and I like the way most Cirque shows are put together. There's a bunch of very special people on tour with us. It's a lot of work. A lot!! But my reward is the fact that people leave the show with a big smile. Richasi: I understand you've made some good friends, one of whom is leaving soon. Does that make you sad? Will you still hear from this person? BJ: At present it is his plan to work on a solo project after he leaves and so far I'll be the drummer. Other than that we are already scheduled to meet in Ireland and have a pint of Guinness together. We are indeed great friends and I guess that will continue. Richasi: Do you think Quidam will get back to Europe after Japan (and Canada)? (I know, a hard one to answer) BJ: very hard to answer. Usually we are the last to know. Richasi: And we, meaning fans, are usually the first to know - lol! BJ: That seems to be very true. ;-)) It is not my main occupation to think about next year or the tour plans for the rest of the decade. I am very concerned with my everyday performance. I try to focus on what I do now. Richasi: Must you renew a contract each year or is it two/three/four years? A particular tour? BJ: We sign for specific tours, i.e. the European tour, the North American tour, the Japan tour. If a tour is longer than two years it will be divided into shorter contracts. I will negotiate my next year soon. And I know where we will be going ;-)) Richasi: So, if the tour were going to go to a few Canadian cities (which we understand is a possibility), this next contract would probably cover that? BJ: I believe so. If it did indeed go to Canada. Maybe it does, maybe not ;-)) Richasi: Albert (Treb, who is online here) wanted to know -- Exactly how much of the music is live? Is there any bit that is pre-recorded and played as a track every show? Or is every sound we hear live? BJ: Most pieces are partially sequenced, i.e. a computer runs a couple of tracks. Mostly choir, percussion, strings, extra sound effects. The main structure of each number is played live. Skipping and some shorter pieces between acts are absolutely live. Diabolo is sequenced (percussion), hand to hand is sequenced (strings), so is the opening (choir). Richasi: Albert also asked, Does the music continue to evolve even after the show's been on for all these years? And do you find that you are allowed to make certain changes to fit your style? BJ: As new artists join their acts and choreography changes we have to adjust the music. I actually have a great deal of freedom to play more "in my style". I need to make sure that I transcend the essence of Quidam. But individual grooves or fills are left to my taste and style. We constantly try to improve. The composer visits every once in a while and alters things. Richasi: What happens if you are ill? Is there someone who can fill your place? Or, as I know they have for "O" and Mystère, do they have your performance recorded... do you just get replaced with a recorded you? BJ: If I get ill the show is in serious trouble! We had to do one performance with just recorded music in Tokyo because I was so ill that I almost collapsed on stage and they literally pulled me off the stage. I wanted to go on but I guess the fever clouded my brain. Richasi: Really? Wow! Did the audience know the difference? BJ: Well the audience does not know how the show is supposed to sound. But the artists and technicians feel a great difference. The acts have to be perfect. A tape cannot react if something in the act goes wrong. Richasi: If you don't mind me asking, what did the musicians do? Hang about? Appear to play but not? BJ: That's what they did. Perfect playback and never stop smiling. It only happened once and I hope it will never again. Richasi: Yeah, it's no fun hearing it taped. BJ: I was lying backstage and the mere thought of hearing the show run and not being able to perform drove me crazy. Richasi: We've had a couple of inquiries about... is anyone looking over your shoulder right now? :) BJ: No. I am alone in my room. I guess everybody else is still sleeping. Craig (the singer) said he might pop in and check on me but that might not happen. I don't know when he got to bed. Richasi: Do any of the other musicians/performers get online that you know of? Are they aware of fan groups and/or keep an ear to what is said on the official forum? BJ: Not really. I believe that a few do but generally we are more concerned with life on tour. We email with friends and family, some might chat but as far as I know this is the first ever chat between a performer and fans. Richasi: Speaking of the tour, what do you think of the new Fuji big top? Is it better than the regular touring chapiteau? BJ: It blows my mind. It is huge (2,900 seats) and has no masts. That means it has no restricted view seats and looks even bigger. I love it. It's quite a deal to tour it because it actually is a semi-permanent structure that is set up on a concrete foundation. There will be photos of it on www.bjpercussion.de soon. Richasi: I also assume Fuji placed you in a great housing facility? BJ: They take good care of us. We live in the middle of the city. In the heart of a network of shopping streets. Richasi: I know you've said you've enjoyed touring... is there a specific tour/city you've enjoyed above others? BJ: London, Copenhagen, Boston, Pittsburgh, Nagoya. Most cities have something interesting. Tokyo was hard because of the culture shock. At the end of this year back again in Tokyo that will be different. Richasi: AmberrGrey (Carrie) had a quick question: What helps make a good show so memorable for the artists and musicians? BJ: Could you rephrase that question a little. I am not sure what she means. Richasi: I believe she's asking is there a particular aspect of a show/performance/city that makes it memorable to you as an artist? Say, makes you think of that particular city as the tour goes on? BJ: That usually is linked to the private life on tour. I like simple things. I like to be in a city with spirit - a heart. And preferably an Irish Pub. A good hotel also makes things easier. Richasi: Other than sitting at an Irish Pub during your off hours... do you have any other hobbies you indulge in? BJ: I like to spend my time with friends on tour discovering the city. I read a lot. I also like to write little stories about tour life and other things. But I don't know if that collection will ever be published. At present I am reading a lot of books that are related to Japan. "Memories of a geisha" for example. I also read Nabokov, or Douglas Adams. Richasi: Have you, by chance, taken in any Taiko drumming while in Japan? BJ: I will soon. A couple of people wanted to do it and we finally found a possibility to do it. I am really excited about that. Richasi: I hope you get to see Kodo. They're just wonderful. I highly recommend them! :) BJ: I did see them but I haven't had a chance to try it myself yet. Other than that: I am currently very busy working on a couple of projects. Craig Jennings album requires a lot of attention recently. I have just recorded some overdub drums in Nagoya. After Osaka Craig will fly to the US and start mixing the beast. I also work with a couple of people in New York or L.A. Technology is fascinating. Richasi: Any specific technology you find fascinating that you work with on tour? BJ: I can record drums in Osaka and send them to NY through the Internet. I don't know how specific I can get with you guys. You're not all crazy musicians, are you? Richasi: Some of us might be, and those who aren't here, may be interested in the details... BJ: I like a hard disk recording device called Pro Tools. We have used it for Craig's things. I also like my new mixers that I have just installed at the beginning of the Japan tour. Richasi: Kaliwolf wanted to know what kind of music does Craig do? BJ: That's hard to describe. It is both very electronic and very acoustic. Every track is different. A great challenge and a wide range of styles. Richasi: Any particular type of music you like? Have you listened to other soundtracks from other CDS shows? BJ: I know most soundtracks. I recently spent a couple of shows in the drum booth with La Nouba's drummer Joe. I really love that music. I also love Saltimbanco's soundtrack. But mostly I listen to "non-cirque" music. Peter Gabriel, Toto, Miles Davis, Keith Jarrett, Gino Vanelli, Beethoven, Zepplin, and Green Day - whatever comes my way and touches me. It keeps me alert and helps me tolerate different styles and play them. Richasi: Changing gears a bit -- do you find that the Quidam crew is tightly knit? BJ: Extremely! Through thick and thin. We do a lot together. Mostly smaller groups but if we have a reason to get together and have a festivity - we sure show up. We stand together. In some situations the life of someone depends on the reliability of a fellow artist or technician. You need a great amount of trust to deal with that. Richasi: Would you give up your drumming role with Quidam to be with another Cirque production? BJ: I will always welcome new challenges in my life. The band just did a gig together in Nagoya. only the music we liked. A lot of rehearsing but a great gig. I guess the photos are on psioui.com. So we do actually spend a lot of time on extra stuff. Some artists have just started to rehearse for a cabaret that we will stage at the end of the Japan tour. Only for ourselves. Just for the sheer fun and excitement. Richasi: If given the opportunity, would you want to change to another Cirque show? BJ: That very much depends on the show. I like some more than others. Richasi: Other than Quidam, do you have a particular favorite? BJ: La Nouba. And Alegría. I have not had the chance to see any of the Vegas shows but I hear that they are really good. Being on tour does not really allow me to see the rest of our shows. Richasi: What about La Nouba do you like? And Alegría? BJ: I like the poetry of Alegría. It is a joyous and beautiful show. And I love the soundtrack. In La Nouba I love the power. It reminds me of Quidam. It is a bright and fast version of Quidam. The creative team behind it was the same so you recognize the trademark. Richasi: Speaking of other shows, have you heard any buzz on Zumanity? Interesting concept I must say... Have any thoughts on it? BJ: None whatsoever. I know almost nothing about it. We discussed it in the kitchen yesterday. We are trying to get more information but Japan is far from Vegas. Of course I hope that they are doing fine. Richasi: All of the people (fans) I've spoken with thus far about the show have glowing reviews of it. Looks as if Cirque has another hit on their hands. BJ: We did send them our best wishes for their premiere. But that happens between most shows for every premiere in every city. Richasi: Random question: Do you get any time off on tour? BJ: Between cities I usually have 8-12 days off. Depending on the tour. The Japanese Big Top takes longer to tear down and set up. I think we tour with 60+ trucks. They need six big auto- cranes to set it up. It's the biggest structure Cirque has ever toured with. Richasi: Fans were able to see the big top being constructed in Tokyo over a webcam. It fascinated me. Hopefully I'll get to see it someday. I hear they'll use it for all Japanese Cirque tours. BJ: I love it (but I said that already). Yes. They will use if for all further Japanese Cirque tours. Have you seen photos of the outside? Richasi: I have, I think on your website if I'm not mistaken (but I might be). Might be Pascals as well (psioui.com). I'm sure he has some. It's a great looking bigtop. I bet it has a state-of-the-art sound system in there, right? :) BJ: The sound system is basically the same we used in the States and in Europe. But we had to alter it slightly and add some speakers and amps. The Dome is bigger than the Big Tops in the US or Europe so we need more power. Richasi: Nadia (Morpheus, who is with us) asked: Is there a marked difference in the Japanese audience with relation to other cultures that's he's perform to, ie, the reaction to certain acts or clowns that is quite different than what they had anticpated? BJ: The Japanese have a totally different way of reacting. They are very quiet and polite. They find parts of the show exciting that are considered "normal" or "unspectacular" in other countries. Applause is generally much quieter. But that is not related to the excitement they feel. Richasi: Do you find that changes your perspective of the performance? As in, I know some performers become unsettled if an audience doesn't react to what they do. BJ: We have a greater amount of people crying out of emotion here than anywhere else. I certainly appreciate it if an audience reacts. It gives me energy. In our case I had to learn to take the Japanese way of admiring and reacting. Some people have more problems with that than others. Our clowns can suffer sometimes. They need participation. Richasi: I remember hearing a remark that they didn't like coming to the US because of that fact. And yet, audiences in the US seem to react to just about everything (not always, though). Japanese are reserved. BJ: Japanese like to watch and silently take it in. US audiences are very loud but I sometimes ask myself what that indicates. It is not the volume of the applause that reflects the appreciation. It is unusual for Japanese audiences to get on their feet at the end of the show. Richasi: And for the last moderated question, what type of equipment do you use in the show? BJ: I use Sonor drums, Sabian cymbals, Pro-mark sticks and Remo heads. Micophones are mostly Shures with a couple of AKGs. I mix on two digital Yamaha desks. For the electronic stuff I use mostly Roland gear and samplers. (At this point, the chat was opened up.) KaliWolf: I was wondering, what was the composer's idea behind the music? What was the core sound he was trying to convey? BJ: The main idea behind the music of Quidam is eastern. Ukrainian, Baltic music. Treb: Do you know for sure if Richard will be compiling his independent work any time in the near future? If so, will you have any involvement in the project? BJ: I will probably drum a few tracks on the album. But I cannot say when that will be. He will leave soon and then take his time to approach it. Richasi: Katie (who isn't here I don't think) wanted to know about your schooling background. As in a particular college/field of study? BJ: Well I studied philosophy and German literature. For the drumming part of my life: I was in music school for 9 years when I was 8-17. The rest is pretty ramdom and always slightly chaotic. Pedro: What happens in the process of a new "Zoe" joining the show? BJ: New Zoe's will do training in Montreal for several months after they have been cast and join us about three weeks before they start performing in the show. They then start to perform the show with an "old" Zoe standing backstage singing and always ready to jump in. So they lipsync. The next step would be to do one half and then the entire show. Treb: What happens when singers themselves become sick? BJ: On the Japanese tour we have both Craig and Richard with us and both sing in every show. Some shows Richard will sing most, the next day they switch. That helps them save their vocal chords. If one is out the other takes over but we've never had that so far. Treb: Is there a particular piece that you LEAST like to play? BJ: The exit of the clowns right before cloud swing is not always my favourite pat But it's only 20 secs so I guess it's not so bad. The precision of the music with the acts comes from a rather complicated system of cues behind the music. Amberrgrey: For instance, what kind of cues? From watching the artists? BJ: Our bandleader wears a head microphone and counts in individual parts of the music when he sees that the artists are ready to move on to the next segment of their act. We can cut, extend or repeat individual parts of every piece. Treb: Do you find yourself struggling to communicate on your off hours sometimes? Like, finding the right bus, etc BJ: Communication here is really not easy. especially because they also have a different way of body language. And my accent is probably terrible. Pedro: Has anyone ever offered money to get a Cirque band to play for them privately, maybe at a party? BJ: I have never heard of such an offer. But I guess that would be really expensive. Treb: You have mentioned that some parts of the music are pre- recorded. If you have to repeat a segment of the music due to a mistake in the act, how do those pre-recorded segments "work" out for the whole music? BJ: We work with a system called RPS. Realtime Programmed Sequence. Treb: Can you explain how that works? Maybe elaborate a bit? BJ: Each number is cut into 5-20 pieces that are assigned to individual keys on the keyboards. The keyboard player can - at anytime - name the cue that comes up and "punch" it in with the groove. It is my job to make it sound rythmical and logical. Most cues have a fixed order so he does not have to announce them. He just counts them in. Banquine is quite a bit of talking behind the music. Amberrgrey: Wow- how long did it take you to get used to that? BJ: It took me nine days to learn it but I stopped having heart attacks after two months. KaliWolf: This may have been asked, I'm not sure. Do you have a favorite act or segment of the show (not a favorite song)? BJ: I do not see the show as individual numbers put together. For me it is more loke a wave. Treb: Do the acts every become "boring"? Does it get to the point where any of the acts just become, "Eh, okay, I've done this a million times -- this is just work now." Does it get to a point where it just seems routine, or do you feel the magic every day? BJ: Some get tired but we always find ways to motivate ourselves and our colleagues. Most people get really excited when it is time for them to perform. A few moments later we ended the chat on a high note. I wish to extend my thanks once again to BJ and his associates for making this chat happen and to BJ himself for taking the time out of his busy schedule (not to mention getting up early in the morning) to speak with us. On October 3, 2003, BJ will celebrate his 1000th performance with Quidam and in his words... "It's getting better and better." BJ: Mesdames et Messieurs: Bonsoir! PART TWO: "BJ, Live from Japan! - An Online Chat" ---------------------------------------- On a wonderful Sunday evening in March, BJ, the drummer on tour with Quidam, once again took a few moments out of his busy schedule to chat with Cirque du Soleil fans via the Internet. Like last time, BJ joined about 10 Cirque fans from across the globe on the IRC (Internet Relay Chat) network. He spoke with us about Japan, his current feelings about the tour, projects he's working on and various opinions about where he is in life. The chat was not without its hiccups, however, as the broadband provider compromised Internet service two or three times. Regardless of the intermittent problems with the network, the chat was a success and I hope everyone who attended had a great time! For those who could not make the online chat, don't fear, as before we've taken minutes to present for your enjoyment. Thus, once again, take it away BJ! BJ: Ohio gozaimasu! Richasi: Ohayo Gozaimasu! (Good Morning) How is the morning? BJ: The morning is cold and slightly cloudy. Yet also extremely hung over from last night's sumo party. We had our final Goodbye-Japan-Party yesterday night. It involved a lot of Sake and a (fake but entertaining) sumo fight. Richasi: So when do you leave Japan? BJ: We leave in exactly two weeks. I fly out on April, 5th in the morning. Not even 12 after tearing down. Richasi: How has your week been, to start out? BJ: Well, our week - my week - has been extremely busy. I have played ten shows, done a lot of final shopping for the folks at home and also worked on Craigs album for the last time before it goes into the mixing stage. Richasi: Have you figured out the art of Japanese gift giving? BJ: Well, have the Japanese even figured that out? It's complicated. But I guess that I have learned a little. Richasi: And, a Q from the stage (from Quidamgrl): When will you update your site? BJ: Uhh, my site. I know. I feel extremely bad about that. I am working so much and the guys in Germany who deal with the design and the actual updates are constantly bothering me. I guess soon is the time to update it. In fact, there are massive updates on the way. Richasi: Cool! So we can expect some goodies from your site soon, ne? BJ: Yes, in fact you can expect quite some goodies. Richasi: Q from Treb -- How are you and Craig coordinating the project now that he's over at Varekai? BJ: There will be more music, some videos and some conversations with fellow artists and other musicians - not only from Quidam. The coordination of this project is not very easy. I work on a Pro Tools system that I tour. Craig has a Logic Audio system on his side and our producer, i.e. Michael Picton who was our keyboardist in Europe, also works with Logic. We send tracks back and forth on burned DVDs and try to have everything as seamless as possible. Richasi: As a review for those who weren't here last time, can you explain the project? BJ: The project is simple. Craig has written an album. The idea and the musical style are a cross mix of rock, pop and trance, with very deep lyrics and the whole thing is sort of a concept album. Richasi: Q from Treb & Quidamgrl: When do we get it in our hot little hands? :) BJ: Almost two years ago we started recording it in Ohio but because of the "other" job that we have, it takes a long time to finish it. But we're close. The final mixing will start in April. I personally hope to have a result in the late summer. Maybe August. So far it sounds pretty cool. Richasi: Will the album be commercially available via Amazon or other online retailer or direct from the source? BJ: As of now Craig does not have a record label for it but we are working on options. One of them is Cirques new music division, another is to create our own label but the easiest way would be to just sell it to a big label. I hope that works. The album really grew on me. I love the music and I feel incredibly blessed that I was allowed to play such a big part in it. So far we have a lot of bits and pieces and I think that I am safe when I tell you that it's quite good. Richasi: You said in one of your communications that you were exhausted... circusboy wants to know what your average day is like now? BJ: My average day is busy. I get up in the morning (depending on what time the first show is), shower and fight my way through one million Japanese to work. Then I will have a meal, a sound check and two shows. After that I might return straight to the hotel or stay to make some alterations or discuss some ideas with other artists or technicians. The evenings vary from going to a sushi bar to going straight to bed. Richasi: Rod_digga wants to know if you're enjoying Japan and whether or not you're ready to leave? BJ: That's a difficult question. I am very ready to leave. In fact, I want to leave as soon as possible. But that has nothing to do with Japan. I love Japan and most every thing I have seen here. But with our relentless schedule I have almost no time to see Japan and explore it. So I am not tired of Japan. I guess I am just tired of our schedule and of the fact that it is extremely difficult to communicate here and that many things within the Japanese culture will always remain a riddle for which I never had the time. Richasi: Have you found the Japanese people to be patient with you? Have you attempted communicating with any Japanese? BJ: Japan is beautiful. Above all I love Kyoto but also Nara, Hakone or Nikko. Everybody should go there and learn that there is a different world on this planet. I have communicated with many Japanese and just because I am an entertainer their patience is almost unlimited. But it is unthinkable not to be patient in Japan. You cannot push anybody! Patience is politeness and that means a lot here. Richasi: Q from Quidamgrl: Have you learned to read/speak much Japanese? BJ: Unfortunately I have not had the time to learn much Japanese. I guess I have picked up some words and phrases but I have to admit that my Japanese has remained poor. I think that we all are excited to go back to a territory where we can understand and comprehend and where our schedule is less demanding. {Editor's Note: The chat barely got started when we were rudely interrupted. It took about 15 minutes or more but we all hung in there and before long the chat started up again. The rest of the chat time from here on out was open forum, which meant any of the fans could ask their question directly to BJ. While this can turn chaotic, it can be quite fun. This section has been edited to remove comments and/or questions not for BJ.} Q: Will Richard Price be performing with the show in Vancouver? BJ: No, he will leave us in two weeks. He just came back to help Andree, the new singer. But trust me: Andree is quite up to the job. You will be pleased. The show sounds excellent at the moment. We have a new sound guy since Fukuoka and he really knows his job. We have also started to do multi-track recordings of every single show. There might be a Quidam live album ahead. I am serious. There might be a live album. THERE MIGHT!!! Don't quote me on that one. Richasi: BJ, what did you get to see out in Kyoto, Hakone? BJ: I saw the Gion quarter in Kyoto and I actually saw a Geisha. Other than that I saw many shrines and temples and other sites in Kyoto. I went there several times. It's just beautiful. My favorite place in Japan so far. Richasi: Did you happen to see the movie "Lost in Translation" and if so, can you relate to it? BJ: I have not seen it. It's banned in Japan for its racist content. Some of my colleagues saw it and they did not actually appreciate it for its unbalanced view. The Japanese are strict with that stuff. Richasi: Reading any manga or watching any anime while there? BJ: Well, there are no translated mangas and I can't really read Japanese. But most everybody here reads them. Q: Did ya make it up Fuji-san? BJ: Fuji was on the agenda a couple of weeks ago. Went there with Laetitia, our young singer. Q: BJ, are you going home or on vacation after Japan or are you going straight to Vancouver? BJ: Home! There is no food like moms food. I will have about three weeks with friends and family and no drums. Home for me is a small city by the name of Aachen about one hour west of Cologne. But I will not spend my entire time in Germany. Just after flying into Germany I will pack a small bag again and fly to London and do a short bike tour with Richard Price. Just for fun among really good friends. Q: Does Andre sound completely different than Craig/Richard? BJ: Yes, he does. But he has his own beauty. I am quite happy about the fresh air he brought to Quidam. And trust me. Quidam is nothing like the DVD anymore. Q: Do you think it'll be weird adjusting to a smaller big top after getting out of Japan? BJ: Quidam has changed and evolved. It might be weird for a short while but I know that old big top so well. It will probably feel like coming home. Just bare with me. I don't play like Raynald who is on the DVD. I sound quite different. Q: BJ, any new equipment upgrades since our last chat? BJ: New overhead microphones, new mixing desk for me, new room microphones different snare drum and new socks for my costume. Q: Are the crowds picking back up for the show? I know you mentioned somewhere along the line they were thinning out. BJ: At the moment we are sold out straight. The Japanese take the end of a run very seriously. I hear that there are tickets for the very last show in the black market for over $1000. Q: How would you compare Marina Trouchina's handbalancing to Olga's? BJ: Marina is more straightforward with her act. She does a couple of things that Olga would never have been able to do but she is a craftswoman. Olga was more poetic. Both have their beauty. I can't decide whom I prefer. But the music for the act is stronger than ever. Q: Same music I assume, that Elena Lev performed to when she was contracted? BJ: Elena was great to work with. What a nice girl. I think she preferred Alegría as a show because she could smile more but she loved Quidam for the friends backstage. Over all I think she misses Quidam a little more. At least, that's what she told me. Q: Has the music for the Aerial Hops changed any? BJ: Aerial Hoops sounds the same. The funny thing is that you will hear Craig Jennings on that. Richard always used to play didgeridoo on that and Craig did an impression of a monk voice. Andree had trouble with that so we sampled Craig's voice and in the very beginning and end you will hear Craig's voice for some seconds. Q: What's the name to the Handbalancing song again? (Quidam) BJ: I have no idea what the name of the handbalancing song is. We don't use the commercial names of the record. We just call the tunes by the names of the act. Q: BJ, you ever work with Jutras on Quidam's music? BJ: Of course I worked with Benoit. [. . .] BJ: Peter Jackson just came to see us the other week. Really nice guy. Q: How is he to work with? BJ: He is very specific with certain things. But I guess that after 3 and a half years and after being the longest serving drummer on Quidam we know each other well enough. He trusts me quite a bit and I have a lot of leeway. If he feels that you give your best he is very easy to work with. He sat with me in the drum booth and I had no comments from him other than that he loved to be there. After that we got pretty drunk with Irish beer. So what can I say? Q: Does Benoit visit the show regularly to see how things are kept up? BJ: Benoit is currently busy with MGM so he does not have a lot of time. But he likes to check on things every once in a while. The band at the moment is pretty good. So Benoit feels safe not to show up. Q: Any clue what Audrey's doing now? BJ: I have no idea what Audrey is doing. Unfortunately! But I'll let you know as soon as I know. Q: What other show would like to play in? BJ: I could see myself playing Alegría and La Nouba. Q: How are Daniel and Asa doing with the show? BJ: Daniel and Asa are doing really well. Q: We heard Roman got injured. Is he doing ok? BJ: Romans right foot is broken so he is out of the show until late in Vancouver. Dima fell on it when the big tower in Banquine collapsed. Very unfortunate incident. Q: How is everyone taking the fact that Guy is now on the list of billionaires? Does anyone care? :) BJ: As long as Guy drinks Guinness with me, I'm fine. I think that most people are happy about it. In the end it indicates how successful we are. I personally don't care about how much someone earns. But he is a nice guy and still knows his vision. That's worth much more. Q: What genre/style will Richard Price's solo project be? BJ: Do you know Steely Dan? That would be the style of music for Richard. Just VERY intelligent Pop with lots of influences from Jazz, Rock and various other styles. Moments after the chat came to a close. He did have 4 suitcases to pack he said, and to call his mother. And, even though we were sad to see him go we understood. Before he left, however, we advised him how much we looked forward to hearing him play on our pending CirqueCon 2004 trip to Vancouver. To that he replied, "I will be there, on stage, dressed in blue, drumming like never before." BJ: Mesdames et Messieurs: Bonsior! Hai, arigato gozaimasu, BJ! Thank You! ------------------------------------------------------------- "Who Has What It Takes?" By: Keith Johnson & LouAnna Valentine - Seattle, Wash (USA) {Originally Published: Issues #41-44 - February 2005 through May 2005} ------------------------------------------------------------- PART 1: "ARRIVALS" *********************************************** The Audition. Job interview of the entertainment arts. Where years of training, sweating and pain come together in a burst of creative energy. And all too often for an artist their hopes are dashed immediately, in front of a large group of people including the "winners." Yet they subject themselves to the process again and again, sometimes with success, more often with failure. But how better to judge an artists' training, capability, stamina, and creativity in a physical art than to see it, performed in real time, live in front of you? The audition is a time-honored tradition of the entertainment industry, and though it has evolved as performance arts have evolved, the stress on the candidate has stayed largely the same. It speaks to the courage of artists that they are willing to repeatedly subject themselves to the likely potential of rejection. If you're a different kind of organization, with a different ethic and mindset, must you continue to use the old audition model? If you're Cirque du Soleil the answer is a resounding no. Taking advantage of their desirability by artists looking for opportunities to expand their creativity, Cirque has, as it has with circus arts, reinvented the audition model. One that combines the search for technical excellence with an examination of the artist's inner soul. When Fascination! started and we began tracking the fannish Internet network, we quickly found there wasn't a week that went by when there wasn't a post on Cirque Club or somewhere else that took the form of, "I'm in (gymnastics, dancing, acting, juggling classes - take your pick) and one day I want to work for Cirque du Soleil." Or "I want Cirque du Soleil to be my first job." A lofty goal and worthy of struggle, but often obvious in those messages was that the writer had little knowledge of the challenge involved in making it onto a Cirque stage. Being the premiere circus company it is many artists would like to be employed by Cirque. And the numbers illustrate the challenge they face. Each year, Cirque receives thousands of demo tapes for its many disciplines (dancing, acting, singing, musicians, acrobatics and circus arts). Of that number many will come to one of Cirque's auditions in the hope of becoming part of the larger Cirque du Soleil family of about 3000 employees' total; of which 720 are artists and the rest are office employees, technicians, cooks, coaches, etc. Their ages range from 13 to 72. Auditions are held in Montreal as well as in various cities around the world each year. In 2003 there were about a dozen trips for a total of about 100 days of general auditions. And there can be even more, especially for specific disciplines. More specialized auditions are held regularly for acrobatic and circus disciplines. Cirque's casting FAQ list (at < http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/ CirqueDuSoleil/en/jobs/onstage/specialities/artisfaq >) describes the audition process this way: "It is a very exciting time for everyone. Because no one knows what's going to happen, it's like the suspense before discovering a new world! It's very important for Casting to meet the artists in person. At auditions, we assess technical performance, along with artistic potential. We also pay close attention to the individual's personality. Open-mindedness and generosity are the key words, and you should be ready to experiment. Please note that the audition period includes several elimination processes." Results of auditions are entered into the expanding Cirque database. Each artist invited to an audition has a profile with all his or her personal information in the database. Files are kept on those that are "chosen" as well as those that are not (you'd need to know why a person wasn't chosen). There are also QuickTime movies showing the best parts of their audition. These movies are for casting purposes only. The entire file can be accessed at any location, so a candidate from Montreal could be seen by an Artistic Director in Las Vegas. So what exactly is this unique Cirque du Soleil audition like? What makes it so different from others? It was this question that we as Fascination! wanted to explore more deeply. And when it was announced that Cirque would be holding auditions in Seattle, Washington, we were quick to ask Corporate Headquarters if we could cover the auditions for our readers, to give them a better idea of just what it takes to be a Cirque audition candidate. And we were delighted, and a little surprised, when they said yes. But, they advised us, there were some rules for allowing the media to view auditions. (How exciting for us to finally be considered "media"!) These had to do with making sure the audition process was not disturbed by media presence. And no flash photography. No problem for us! Friday, April 23rd, 2004 8:40am - A cool dry spring morning in the Emerald City. My wife, photographer LouAnna Valentine, and I arrive at the football stadium parking lot at Seattle Center, where remnants of the 1962 Seattle Worlds Fair have been converted into museums, performance halls, and open space. Wearing our blue denim Cirque jackets we proceed to the north side of Center House to find the doors - locked! We knock loudly and a security guard lets us in, informing us we should have come to the south side of the building this early in the morning. Zipping in as the door closes is a young lady in her early 20's with blond frizzy hair, black exercise shorts and a powder blue top. Between LouAnna and I we refer to her throughout the day by the city from which she hails, "Toronto." She had sent her audition tape to Cirque a year and a half ago when she lived in Alberta, Canada. But by the time she got her audition callback she had moved to Toronto. For her it was quite a long and expensive flight. Her sweet personality and excitement make us root for her throughout the day. The 4th Floor of Center House is dedicated to offices and low-cost rehearsal spaces. Theatre 4, where the auditions are to be held, is hidden behind a thick white fire door, and down a long narrow hallway with brickwork on one side and pipes overhead. To us it looks so stark that we don't think anyone would ever come here to see a performance, though it is touted as a performance space. But it looks like a place for work, not for show. Others arrive slowly. Soon after we arrive an Asian lady from LA appears, as well as a lady from Phoenix (whose feet, with calluses and a sore, bear the marks of a dancer). Conversation is more camaraderie than competition or psyching out. They all stretch, contorting their legs and bodies into incredible pretzel shapes; impossible positions most people could never achieve but which they do as a simple part of warming up. 9:20am - People keep arriving. Yet nobody from Cirque, they are now 20 minutes late. The chatter level rises; the natives are getting restless. There are 13 people now - 5 men, 8 women. They have survived the first day of auditions, which started with 27 people - more than half of whom were cut. 9:31am - A man in his early 20's, wearing jeans and a polo shirt with a lanyard hanging from his neck comes down the hallway from one of the business offices to use the restroom. He looks at the group with a bemused expression; he's seen this many times before. 9:35am - The Cirque audition team finally arrives. A tall man in his late 30's instantly spots us as the reporting team from Fascination! - we are the only ones not wearing tight fabrics and stretching. This is Richard Dagenais, who welcomes us into the audition room and helps us set up. Theatre 4 is a sparse room about 60 feet deep and 30 feet wide with windows high along the wall to our right and full-length mirrors on the wall to our left. Curtains that allow the room to become totally dark hang on both walls. The floor is littered with strips of gaffers tape. Stage lights and speakers dot the ceiling. This room has been well used. A small room behind the near wall has an elevated platform where the tech crew sits. The lighting console and sound equipment are here as well as a long plywood table and some stools. A window of glass separates the platform from the rehearsal space. It is from here we will watch the day unfold. LouAnna sets herself on a box with her camera; she will use this vantage point to take pictures. I set up my note-taking equipment to her left. Richard, to my left, operates the sound and light equipment and helpfully answers our many questions. We are introduced to the members of the Cirque audition team: Richard Dagenais - Head of Auditions and Logistics, Casting Charles St-Onge - Audition Coordinator Anne-Marie Duchène - Artistic Scout Charmaine Hunter - Dance Evaluator Charmaine is a free-lance external evaluator based in Las Vegas. Her role is to run the dance part of the audition, show choreography and judge the candidates' technical ability. She can tell Anne-Marie if a candidate has good technique or weaknesses. "She's wonderful and great for the artists," says Richard, "It's very easy to work with Charmaine with her openness and expertise." Anne-Marie is also a dancer, in her role as Artistic Scout she knows the profiles of all the shows and what Cirque is looking for. She will be running the afternoon session. As Audition Coordinator, Charles deals with the logistics of the auditions, from welcoming the candidates to renting the hall to booking hotel rooms, as well as running the camera and sound/light systems. He's been with Cirque for four years and comes from a ballet jazz dance background. And Richard? "I supervise the auditions and all the logistics for casting in all its various aspects. I need to look at the audition process every once in a while, analyze how we do it as a whole. See if it's still valid, if it still works, see if there are things we can improve or add. I attend the auditions in Montreal and at least once a year I try to go on a trip with an audition team. This year Seattle, last year I was in Berlin and New York." In Montreal, Richard supervises nine people. Casting has grown a lot. When he first joined Cirque there were about 18 in the department, there are now 37. Richard started his career as a dancer for the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, and was there for 10 years. Upon finishing his dance career he went to work for Canadian Actors Equity in contract negotiation and as a union rep. After being away from his hometown of Montreal for 18 years he was looking for an opportunity to be back with his family when a contract negotiator position opened in Cirque casting. In the department he was involved in contracts for the artists on several productions. Now 40 and married, he lives in a Montreal condo with his wife, a popular yoga/Pilates teacher, and counts photography and being a Big Brother as among his interests. The candidates pin numbers to their outfits. The numbers don't have any sort of order to them, just three digits with "Cirque du Soleil" across the top. The audition team sets up on the far side of the room, facing us. Anne-Marie opens a laptop and begins to tap away. Charles sets up a video camera on a tripod; most everything this day will be recorded. Charmaine waits and watches. Richard hops onto the technical platform and prepares the sound/light equipment, which he will control for Charles all day. He will lead us step-by-step through this second day of the dance audition process. Having arrived three days ago, they will be auditioning dancers, actors, singers and musicians during their two-week stay in Seattle. "Auditions are one of the first ambassadors of Cirque du Soleil," explains Richard. "We (auditions) are the first contact artists have with Cirque. Even [though there are] scouts that go to festivals and shake their hand and make contact with a lot of them, this is really the first Cirque du Soleil experience they have. So it's important that the process be an interesting and positive one for them, because they will leave with that impression." "[Artists] discover a lot during our auditions. They have probably never been asked to do these kinds of things. So they learn and a lot of times surpass themselves, they will go beyond their limit and discover new aspects of their talents. So far we've had very good feedback and they love our auditions. Sometimes they want to come back just because they love the process." But wouldn't a more traditional "cattle call" casting process bring a wider variety of talent? "We don't want hundreds and hundreds of people to come in. We'd rather work with a smaller group of people and go into very specific things. Our auditions are different from any other audition. We want to go further with them, to see how far they can go. Because all of them have something. They've come a long way just by getting to this point. We like to treat everyone with respect. And we want them to have fun and learn something, because the artists that we do not select could potentially be selected during the next audition they attend." "It's not like a Broadway audition where they show choreography, the director is there, and people are chosen on the spot. We try to make [the selection process] as simple as possible, considering that we don't have the artistic director with us. If you look at a ballet company or Broadway show the artistic director of the show is at the audition table. He makes the cuts, he makes the decisions. So people that are picked at the end of the audition are the artistic directors' choice. With us, we have to be [the artistic director's] eyes and ears. The reason we videotape everything is to be able to show these images to the Artistic Directors or the Creators in order for them to decide who they want in their show." Of course, along with the joy of telling a candidate they have been chosen to be part of the database, there is the sad job of disappointing those who aren't chosen? "It's part of the process. We try and do it as respectfully as possible and give them a little bit of feedback. We try to open the door for them to write us if they want more feedback about the audition and why they weren't picked. If we give someone specific corrections, in two years they may come back and impress us. And eventually they might end up on our stage. It makes good business sense for us, and they leave with a good feeling. They leave the audition and they have a smile on their face even though they may not have been selected. And they've learned something." Anne-Marie agrees. "Very quickly, especially in the audition process, if people aren't prepared, we know right away. If they choose to accept [our feedback] and accept that they didn't prepare, it's all good. It's a learning experience, they're going to go back and get all their tools and create a really solid foundation, a great toolbox, and in another year they're going to re-apply. And they're going to remember that scouts name because they're going to call him/her. We scout for new artists but at the same time we have a precious database of artists that we go back and review. We know that if they've already auditioned for us there's a maturity, knowledge, an acceptance that they know, "I'm going to get my booty kicked, but it's worth it." Can the pressure of an audition really show a scout an artist's true personality? "Auditions are nerve racking," Richard admits. "And sometimes an artist isn't at his best because of his nerves. We try to get them to forget they're in an audition and feel relaxed. The more comfortable they are the more they'll let go and the more we'll see who they really are, what they can do, what they have to offer. So the more comfortable we make them, the better it is and the better results we get." "We don't look for "cookie cutter" type of artists. We like the fact that they're different, that they have personality and quirkiness, little "weird" things that they do. We ask them, "Is there anything you do that is different?" What's the most fun about going to an audition? "Contact with the artists. There is openness when they come to our audition that is fun to see. Singers for example: sometimes somebody comes to the studio and touches you with their voice and their choice of songs and you're almost in tears; it's wonderful." So what exactly is Cirque du Soleil looking for in an artist? "We're looking for talent, of course. And we have specific things because we have specific profiles for each of our characters, so sometimes there are height and look requirements. There's a fullness to an artist that we're looking for which includes talent, maturity, openness, and experience. Sometimes, especially with acrobats, we get lots of competitive experience but they've never stepped on stage before. But they're incredibly talented as gymnasts. That's why we have general training for acrobats every year so we can teach them a little bit of how to be an artist Cirque du Soleil style and what it's like to be in front of an audience. We try, in the short amount of time we have to work with them, to make them a more complete performer." The Cirque casting website is also to-the-point: "We want to get to know dancers of every background and origin. Avant-garde, new dance, solo creators, performers... the basic requirement is technical mastery. The pace of 8 to 10 shows a week requires sustained commitment and self-discipline." While positions for circus acts and acrobats might be obvious in their needs, dancers and actors are less so. Where does Cirque utilize dancers, we asked Richard. "The dancers in our shows are characters. In Mystère for example, we have Green Lizards, the Black Widow, the Bird of Prey, and the Beauty Queen. They are all dancers, but they all have their own character to play in the story. We also have some pure characters that could be played by a dancer. Eugen in "O", is played by an actor, but could potentially be done by a dancer. Target in Quidam is presently played by a dancer." PART 2: "THE AUDITION BEGINS" *********************************************** 9:47am - "Kumbalawe" from Saltimbanco plays on the sound system as people continue to warm up. The kinds of artists Cirque is looking for is heavily influenced by what the creative teams and artistic directors of a show are looking for. For example, Richard explains, Dominic Champagne is one of the creators of Varekai, along with the rest of the creative team (Andrew Watson, choreographer Michael Montanaro, composer Violaine Corradi, and so forth). "Once the show is up and running there's an Artistic Director that will keep the artistic integrity of the show alive. Dominic is not going to go on tour with the show, although he might visit once in a while and give his comments." "Our scouts meet with the artistic directors and get to know them, their tastes, what they're looking for. So when they are in an audition they're not seeing artists through their own eyes but through the artistic directors' eyes. It's difficult but that's what they have to do, to see whether these people are going to be able to satisfy what the artistic director is looking for. You have to strike a balance between your own opinion, your taste, and putting yourself in a room with somebody watching a movie that has never met those people." "When you're touring with Cirque, and you're going all over the world, your endurance, personality, focus, availability, generosity - everything counts," notes Anne-Marie. "When you see that [in a candidate] from the get-go you say, "OK, this is the one." You have to keep a global picture of everything that's going on with each artist, so you maintain an open mind knowing there are all these categories. My job is to present artists to creative directors, so I'm the link between the artists and the creators. I say, "We don't have a profile that [this person] fits, I just want you to look at her." Then, if an artist gets signed the scout is so happy. "Oh did you see? That's my artist! My audition!" (Laughs) "There are certain profiles we need that are challenging to find," Richard continues. "We have about 20% turnover in artists every year." Is 20% annual turnover of 720+ artists high? "For a dance company it's not uncommon. It's also normal for us. Some people want to retire, others get injured, some we don't renew their contracts. Some people switch shows; that's how we can keep some of them for 10- 15 years. So all of that put together counts for 20%. When you have 120 artists in a [ballet or theater] company and only two shows it's different than when you have 720 artists, 10 shows and new creations [as Cirque does]. We scout the whole world for acrobats and artists and sometimes it gets a little bit difficult, you wonder where you're going to find people. And you don't have to find just two, you have to find 20 or 40 or 100. It grows and grows and it makes it very challenging for us. That's what makes it exciting, that challenge." Cirque fans are familiar with high-profile artists switching shows, such as Olga Pikhienko going from Quidam to Varekai. Does it happen often? "A little bit, not a lot. There comes a point where an artist, for one reason or another, wants to do something different. It's something we encourage because we can keep our artists longer, which is a good thing for us." The constant need for artists keeps Richard and his group busy. "A year ahead we do an audition calendar with the scouts, decide where to go during the year. Four to five months ahead of time we look at the number of candidates we have to evaluate in a territory. Do we need to do marketing, such as in the paper, to attract more? We book studios and hotels about 2 months out. We then look at all the demos; do we have the possibility of a good evaluation? If they're complete they're put in the database and about 1 month out we invite them to audition. We also look through the profiles of the candidates, to see if we have a lot of specialty dancers or just general dancers." How many people might view an audition tape or demo during the process? "We have scouts who will evaluate demo tapes. For musicians and singers it can be an outside evaluator, somebody who's not necessarily with the casting team. They will work with the scout to help choose the people that we will invite to the auditions. If there's an opening the tape will be presented to different artistic directors and the director of the show. We might also show it to the choreographer. So that's about five. And the Artistic Director of the show makes the final choice." We asked Richard how auditions are handled for the various disciplines Cirque is looking for. "[For dancers,] the first day is basic dance; movements, vocabulary. The second day [which we're witnessing] is more specific movement, and we also do acting exercises with them. It's a lot of fun with dancers because it's all physical." And the search for dancers takes Cirque around the world. "The thing with dancers is that they travel. We're in Seattle and we have Brazilian dancers (as well as a person from Toronto). We go to Berlin and we see Canadian dancers. So we go where they are but they also come where we go." What about actors? "For actors the process is similar. The first day, they present us a 3 minute act which will show us who they are and what they do. The second day we do more elaborate acting exercises." "Singers and musicians are done in a sound studio because we need good quality recordings. With singers we bring them all in the first day; we can see 20-30 per day. We give them 10 minutes to do 2 or 3 songs. We have an expert singer evaluator who evaluates technique. If they get called back we'll give them specific things to work on. Either specific things from our shows or other styles of music we want to hear from them so they choose their own songs. For that we use a pianist." But there aren't many positions for singers, are there? "There aren't that many slots for singers, but the database needs people for emergencies and other situations. We always tell them they might be called next week or maybe in the next year or two. And we keep following up with them so we know where they are and their availability. But we'll know that they fit what we're looking for." "Musicians are different in that there's no callback. We book individual appointments and can see about 8 a day. It takes 45 minutes to 1 hour to evaluate musicians. We need to know if they can play well and play in the style we're looking for. A lot of them play at least two instruments and have solid technical training; it's not only what we're looking for, it tends to be what we get. "Musicians are a treat to audition. To see them dance, or hear them sing or play. That makes it difficult if we have to tell them we're not going to keep them in our database. We know they're talented but they just don't fit." I noted that many of the musicians in Cirque shows are from Canada. "We have a lot of Canadian musicians because there are a lot of great musicians [in Canada]. We have a lot of good ones in our own back yard, why not take them?" What about the circus arts disciplines? Is there one area of the world that excels? "For circus arts, Eastern Europe has a big circus history. It's a question of cultural and social tradition. In some of the gymnastic disciplines Eastern European countries have a bigger pool. Europe has a big circus culture; for example there are hundreds of circuses in France." 9:53am - Anne-Marie kneels on the floor as the candidates gather in a semi-circle. She talks about what will happen during the day, going one step at a time. "It's up to all of you," she tells them, "to show the audition team who you are. To take risks. Allow yourselves to enter the unknown. And, most importantly, have fun." 9:58am - Charmaine conducts warm-up exercises, helping stretch muscles so they won't get injured. Following her lead, the group kicks legs high in the air, effortlessly achieving what my wife LouAnna and I have difficulty with in aerobics class. Their amazing strength and flexibility is evident as they move. But they have been doing this as their lives' passion for years, even decades. 10:16am - Charmaine leads them in another dance exercise to music from a dance class CD. Several tracks from the CD are used during the morning for various exercises. LouAnna snaps several pictures under less than ideal circumstances; perched on a chair on top of a large box, she has to crane her neck close to the glass separating us from the audition room. What kind of career can a dancer have in the high-pressure world of a Cirque du Soleil show? "Acrobats and dancers have short careers," Richard explains. You age out of the discipline, but not necessarily out of Cirque. Because we have ex-dancers or acrobats that have progressed into character roles. When you're a dancer or acrobat you learn all these acting skills and you're able to transpose that into acting." The challenge lies not so much physically as mentally. "For a dancer from a ballet company that is used to doing 100 shows a year, that has to learn a dozen ballets a year, it's very challenging and it's always different. When they come to Cirque it's the same show 374 shows a year, 10 shows a week - it's tough. Dancers have to really think if that's what they want." "It's kind of like doing a Broadway show. Some dancers find it too repetitive, some love it. You have to find the right person and they have to keep themselves motivated. It's a different approach because you don't get challenged and motivated because you're doing something new, you have to find it somewhere deep in your role. Once they understand and grab that it becomes challenging and motivating for them. But it's a new mindset." What kind of experience is Cirque looking for in dancers? "The most useful kind of experience with regards to dancers is stage experience in front of an audience. You learn a lot in front of an audience; you have one shot to give them the experience you're supposed to give them, to leave an impression. It's different than being in a studio; the studio is your kitchen, you can make a mess there. But in the hall it's different." "There's not one kind of specific experience we need. We need classical dancers for La Nouba and Mystere. We need African dancers for Dralion and Zumanity. We have a lot of modern dancers - such as the Green Lizards in Mystere. We have Indian dancers in Dralion, an exotic dancer in Zumanity. We don't close our doors to anything." The Cirque casting website makes mention of this as well. "Your background may be in one of the great traditions or in one of the new dance forms; you may be unconventional, on the fringe, or totally outrageous; your dance may come from near or far; whatever the case, put your best foot forward!" Richard describes a case in point: "Zumanity goes to show that you never know what will be needed. A couple of years ago we got a demo tape of a pole dancer - "Oh my God, look at this!" - Back then, we couldn't use it. Then a few years later they came to us and said, "Do you have any pole dancers?" "Oh, we had a great one!" And we had to scramble to find that videotape and contact information." 10:25am - Charmaine stops and discusses another music selection with Richard, selecting a solo bongo track. The candidates, having warmed up, start removing jackets and overshirts, bearing muscular arms and taut stomachs. As we continue talking, Charmaine is teaching moves, counting out time and beating out the count with claps of her hands. The most important key to unlocking the door to an audition with Cirque du Soleil is The Demo Tape. "A lot of artists don't know how to put a demo together. They'll send a demo with a piece of paper saying, "I'm the fourth one from the left," and there are 60 dancers on stage. So we tell them to go to the website and see what we're looking for. If you give us a good demo it gives us a chance to see who you are. But if you're in a group of people on your tape we don't know. In that case we usually ask for another demo." Cirque has spent a considerable amount of time analyzing and refining their demo/audition approach. For Richard this meant placing a priority on refining the pre-selection process. Instead of having general auditions that involved a whole bunch of people Cirque knew nothing about, they went to invitation-only auditions. Now, "We don't see as many people as we did before, but the number we keep has stayed about the same. So the percentage of people that we keep has increased quite a bit. In New York, we had 65 dancers audition and we kept 6." Here they have 27 and will probably keep around the same number. He also knew that Cirque needed to better the communication with the candidates about what was needed on their demos. "[We needed to] ask for more precise things on the demos to have a better evaluation and a better idea of their technical level and their artistry. Because our needs are so specific, we don't want to waste the time of the people who do come in, spending money flying and so forth that might not correspond to what we are looking for. So it was important to look at ways to improve that pre-selection. Now instead of dealing with 65 people we deal with 27, it's much easier, less stressful." One of the things they stopped doing was making general requests for demos in their audition publicity materials. "We realized that people stopped reading after, "Send us a resume and demo," and didn't go any further. So they would never go to the website (www.casting.cirquedusoleil.com) and find out what we really needed, they would just send us incomplete material. So now we say, "Our auditions are by invitation only. For more details, go see the website." So they go and see exactly what they need to send. And it's starting to work because the number of complete files that come in has greatly increased compared to what we'd gotten before. We don't get so many of the "I'm the third one from the left" demos anymore. We're starting to see results, and it's encouraging." Indeed the Cirque casting website, under "How to Apply," has very explicit instructions on what is to appear in demos for all of their disciplines. Take the requirements for a demo from a classically- trained dancer, for example: Two-minute presentation to the camera; Pirouettes - basic, attitude, arabesque, à la seconde; Fouettés; Jumps: tours en l'air, jetés, petit and grand Allegro; Pointes; Adagio showing flexibility, strength and extension; Flexibility: split (side and front), back bend; Three-minute solo choreography in studio; a solo segment in performance. Or, this one for actors: Presentation to the camera: (2 minutes); Excerpts from a performance or rehearsal (10 minutes) or an original scene (3 minutes); Characters. Show us 4 to 12 characters in short interludes (15 seconds to 1 minute) on stage (8 minutes). Anne-Marie agrees that being more specific has helped, adding, "We're honing down on people's skills. Hopefully the word will get around that the auditions are tight, we're serious, we're gonna push you, you gotta give it up, and really get artists that are exquisite or have really special skills and are generous." 10:35am - The team divides the candidates into groups of three and has them perform the dance they were learning, but facing the ever-present video camera. In direct comparison to each other, candidate's strengths and weaknesses become evident. The woman of an Argentinean dancing couple, while doing a stretch on one leg, bobbles the move; her balance isn't very strong. In our first prediction of the morning, LouAnna suggests she will soon be cut. But there are more factors than technical talent the Cirque team is looking for. She has something else to offer, as we will soon find out. Besides, she survived the first grueling day. We ask Richard if the people we're seeing will all make the final cut, after the culling of half the troupe yesterday. "There are some people [here today] that are in a gray area, a few question marks. At the end of the day we have to ask; if we presented these people to an artistic director, do we think that this person would corresponds to what the AD is looking for? If we think they do, then we're sure." "We try not to make an opinion too quickly. Yet there are some [people] that are obvious. Our process is very subjective. Because our taste is our taste, we are influenced in certain ways that the artistic director will never be influenced until they actually meet the artist, if they ever do. They have to see it through a camera lens, while we have a personal interaction with them. Sometimes it's funny because you go back home and you look at the tapes and you start to doubt. "How come that's not the person I saw?" That's why we have our technique and why it takes two days. We need a lot of material, we need to give them a chance to really shine and be able to put on camera the talent that we see. The camera needs to be able to capture it, and it's not always easy. It's like when you see a live show on TV, it's not the same feeling. And that's one of the difficulties that we deal with." PART 3: "IMPROV EXERCIES & FINAL CUTS" *********************************************** 10:45am - Richard and Charles look for another song for Charmaine to use. They search through the CD collection, finally settling on a track. Charmaine teaches them a piece of choreography from one of Cirque's shows. LouAnna shoots more pictures and is already through here first roll. But the "No Flash" rule means she has to increase her exposure time, and attempt to capture the candidates in a rare moment of relative stillness. The selection process, Richard comments, is like carving a statue. The Audition Team are the miners of the rock, while the Director of Creation and Artistic Directors are the carvers, taking the raw stone and creating a thing of beauty. Cirque du Soleil is always in the process of creating, from KÀ to Cirque 2005 to the Celebrity Cruise Lines shows to the Beatles/Mirage show. The Montreal headquarters is now constantly buzzing with creative activity. "Cirque du Soleil: Fire Within" gave us a peek into that process for Varekai. How true-to-life is it?, we ask Richard. "What I liked about Fire Within was how well it documented what the artists went through. It showed the reactions to the different environment that's been created in Montreal. The creation process is one of the most wonderful things an artist can go through because something is created on them based on what they do and who they are, as opposed to something that's been done before by somebody else. But it's also incredibly demanding, physically, emotionally. That's what makes it wonderful, that intensity that you live with. But it's not for everyone, not everybody likes it, but some people thrive on it." "For some people, creation is all they'd like to do; go from one creation to another. Because artists are extreme, they love the intensity of emotions of the creation process. It starts out like a honeymoon and gets intense until the completion is in sight. When they look back on the creation they feel it was all worth it." Outside of roles in existing shows, the audition team is also on the lookout for artists that can be used in new shows and creation processes. "What's coming is a lot of fun too, because we don't know what they're going to ask for, so we just look for something special. People that are different, an open personality. For example, for a touring show you look for someone that likes to tour. So we look to what's already there and what might be coming later." "Anyone that can impress us in any kind of way - to show us their individuality - even if we can't see it in our shows right now, it's important for us to keep and document. Because what we in casting and the scouts present to the creators and artistic directors of our new shows can influence which direction they're going to go. Because if there's a "weird" talent or something they've never seen before they might say, "Oh yes, I want that person, I want that image." We feed them. And it's important to find these people so that we don't miss anything and we can present these things. It's all about getting new things." "Sometimes an artist creates a character that resembles themselves. It's what they do, they do one thing great and that's what we want. So they could perhaps have a career out of that [one thing]. One of the synchro swimmers in O, he had his arm behind his head in an unconventional way. One moment he was part of a group and the next he has a solo. Why? Because of one thing he does well. And it was a powerful dramatic image." How does the creation process work? "There's no formula. Each creator has a storyboard, and as the creation process develops things change. Artists might suggest certain things. A lot of times they'll start with too much. Zumanity was once a three-hour show and had to be cut. It's always better to have too much than not enough." "Sometime some elements get eliminated in the process. But eventually [the artists] understand why. Especially if it's the first time they go through the creation process, at the end they "get it." They understand why it happens [like it does]. It's usually because of the product that ends up on stage. Because it's trial and error. Some things will work, some things will change, and that's the creation process." "That's why Guy Laliberté, in his role as Guide, is wonderful. His strength is his eyes, his vision. The ability to look at what is on stage and simply see what works and what doesn't. With his experience and what he's done he's able to pinpoint - "This is what will work, I need more of this" - and that's one of his main roles now. That's probably why this company is doing so well artistically." 11:30am - A break is called. Several of the candidates hang out in the back room, chatting amiably with each other. This doesn't seem to be a high-pressure situation for them; this isn't a winner-take-all reality show. They come from such diverse places as Seattle, Portland, Vancouver, Phoenix, LA and Toronto. They sent in their demo tapes from 2 months to 1.5 years ago. I mention to one how much people are sweating. His answer, "Yeah, but we love to sweat." We ask Richard what kind of atmosphere they try to maintain during an audition. "It's tricky because some people are incredibly good at auditions but when they're in front of an audience it's a different story. And some people are not as strong in auditions but you put them on stage and they shine. So you have to try to see it. That's why we try to help them relax and create an atmosphere almost like a game. And you can see on the second day there's already a connection between the artists. All the auditions I've seen for dancers and actors it happens this way. They might never see each other the rest of their lives but during that moment they are sharing the same experience and emotions. So there's a very strong bond. And because of the nature of the roles we have, and how different we are, they understand very quickly that there's a place for each one of them so they're not in competition with each other." 11:45am - The improv section of the audition starts. The candidates watch from the far end of the room as each takes their turn in front of the team (and the camera). As we watch the Argentinean woman do her improv, Richard suggests, "It must be fun for them to watch the other do something independently." Would those who go later and can consider their reactions, we wonder, have an advantage over those who go early? "Sometimes the people at the beginning have more spontaneity," Richard responds. "Sometimes when you think too much about something it doesn't work because it's not natural." It is here we begin to see the difference between other auditions and Cirque du Soleil auditions. These artists are being asked to show their minds, their personality, their very essence to the audition team. It's obvious that just having the dancing chops won't be enough; candidates should be well versed in acting skills as well. "Some of the exercises we do are tools for evaluation to get to know the candidates," says Richard. "But acting and emoting skills are important. You have to be as complete as possible. It's important because of what we require from the artist, because of what they have to do on stage." 12:38pm - As we break for lunch, cuts are made. A tall lanky young man, a girl with cornrow hair, and one other girl. They will not be back this afternoon and pack their things, faces grim. Ten of the original 27 artist candidates remain. Before heading off to lunch I comment to Richard how, with his help, we can see how people we thought would be cut in the morning are still here. "It's nice to know our process makes sense to other people" he smiles. "There's a purpose behind our madness." 1:40pm - After lunch, the group re-convenes. Anne-Marie gathers them again in a semi-circle to give instructions about the rest of the afternoon. Charles manipulates lights in the ceiling to better aid the videotaping; Richard helps by controlling the light board. An older woman with white hair has joined the troupe (we later find out she is 78 years old). She is a tap dancer who was here yesterday and has been asked to attend the last half of today as the morning session wasn't geared toward her skills. She's very open, we're told, and they want to test other aspect of her talent. LouAnna and I refer to her as "Taps." 1:55pm - The audition continues. The artists line up against the near wall, Anne-Marie sits on the floor near the audition table. The music is a lilting repeating melody from a French film soundtrack. One by one each is called forward for a solo improv exercise. Why do some of the exercises you do, we wonder. "The people on our stage are not just dancers, they're not just musicians or singers, they're characters," Richard says. "So we need to evaluate that. We want to see their range and their imagination, their quickness to respond to direction. It's a way for us to clarify our decision. Somebody could have beautiful legs and feet, but if that's all they have and they're totally blank up here [in the mind] and can't do anything else, can't communicate with the public, then they are not ready for us." "We're testing a different aspect of their talent. Some will be OK with it, some won't. For us it's easy to find the ones that fit right away. It's easy to find the ones that don't fit at all. The ones in the gray area, that's the hard part. Can we see them in one of our shows? There are so many questions, so you test. We give them a chance to show us what they can do, and if they can respond well." Anne-Marie often has to remind the artists not to move. Playing a character while not moving, Richard says, is "incredibly telling. The hardest part for an artist is to just stand there and project. It's easy to attract attention by a whole bunch of frantic movement." Is it the same process with musicians as well? "Musicians it's a little bit different because they are often in the background, or in the booth. But we do a little exercise with them to see their openness. Are they willing to participate with us or not? If you're not willing to be taken outside your comfort zone you might not be the best person to go into a creation. Also we want to know how easy they are to work with." 2:40pm - Time for a different exercise, this time a group improv. With this exercise, "we want them to show their creativity outside of dance, their versatility," Richard advises. 3:12pm - Time for a break. As the remaining candidates relax in the back room, LouAnna asks if she can get a group photo. They all huddle together and smile as if they were already a close-knit family. Shortly afterward, Anne-Marie asks if anyone has anything special they would like to share. If any of them has a specialty now's the time to show it! The Argentinean couple hands Richard a CD. With the video camera watching they perform a dance number, and they shine. They are very good! One candidate (influenced by street dancing) does a work- in-progress improvisation of an opera singer interrupted by a piece of hip-hop music and becoming influenced by it. 3:30pm - Taps does a tap number. To our eyes she isn't as polished and technical as we were expecting. One sings a song a cappella. The girl from Toronto shows off her athletic prowess, striking various gymnastic poses. Another also shows some skills. Anne-Marie asks her to do splits to both sides, which she executes flawlessly. 3:45pm - Anne-Marie announces a final exercise. 4:10pm - A break, and more cuts. Another girl is cut, as is Toronto. We were disappointed; we had been rooting for her since this morning when she had entered the building with us. She had gotten so far only to be cut at the last minute. But in watching her we could see she lacked maturity in her movements and thinking. To her credit she waits until the audition is over, asking Anne-Marie for feedback about why she wasn't chosen. Out of an initial group of 27, the group is down to 8, less than a third of what they started with. These are the finalists, the ones going into the database with positive marks and video highlights. While being videotaped, each is asked to walk from the left side of the room to the right, then forward to the audition table. What can you tell about a person by the way they walk, we ask Richard. "Self confidence. And posture. For singers it's very revealing. In Saltimbanco for example the singer has to walk in high heels, so we need to make sure the candidate would be able to walk with such shoes on." When they reach the camera Anne-Marie stands next to them for a moment. Everyone at Montreal IHQ knows Anne-Marie, Richard mentions, so at 5' 10" tall she is used as a height comparison. Then they speak their name and anything they would like artistic directors to know. They also sing. "We like to test the voice. They don't necessarily have to sing, but if they sing well and a creator wants to use that then we know they have it. It's a process of documentation. We try to document everything and not miss anything. Because that one little thing may be the difference between their getting the job and not getting the job." 4:46pm - The street-influenced dancer does her walk-up. At the end she points excitedly to herself and exclaims, "Pick Me! I'm the one!" Everyone laughs at her enthusiasm. 5:12pm - The audition is finished. Gathered again in a semi-circle, the entire audition team solicits feedback from the artists on how the audition went, what they liked, what they didn't like. This is as important a part of the process as the auditions themselves are for the team. Richard leaves his seat beside us to listen to the discussion. Each remaining artist is given a letter with a form to fill out. Several sit cross-legged on the floor, bending far forward to reach the paper as they write their information. The letter begins: "CONGRATULATIONS! YOU'VE MADE THE FIRST CUT! We are adding your name to our list of potential candidates. Of course, this does not represent an immediate commitment on our part. Making it through this first stage means that you may be selected for a position requiring your expertise. What happens now?" The letter asks for a photocopy of their passport (and advises them to keep it valid) as well as a recent resume and videocassette, and reminds them to keep Cirque appraised of any changes to their contact information. The letter concludes, "If we wish to approach you about replacing someone in one of our current shows or in any new production, someone from our Casting Department in Montreal will contact you. Please be patient while you wait to hear from us." There is also a form asking for a more detailed breakdown of their skill set. We ask Richard, as things are winding down, what he finds most rewarding and challenging about his job. The challenge in working for Cirque, Richard notes is not so much doing the work as it is thinking about how you're doing it. "You constantly have to re-examine your process and question it. To see if it's still valid, if you're going in the right direction, if you can do it better. It's the same thing creators do with shows, from show to show; you do Varekai, now what next? How can you do better? We go through the same process with our techniques, our process of auditions and casting. It's challenging because you're not second-guessing yourself, you're questioning. "It's part of our day-to-day routine. [After every audition day] we sit down and ask, "How did we do today? Are there things we did that we could have done better?" And we find we can push our limits and find new ways to do our thing. What we did 10 years ago may not work now, so you try something else. It's always encouraging to find you're able to do it, it gives you hope and an incentive to go through that questioning process; it's not threatening anymore. I think it makes us better at what we do. It makes us better people, too." Being able to work for a company you love and respect is a blessing too few of us enjoy. But not so for Cirque du Soleil employees. "There's a pride to working for Cirque. Yes, there's a lot of work; Cirque is a big machine and there's lots of work to be done. But people work incredibly hard. The interesting thing is that a lot of them will work late into the evening, 7-8pm. The scouts are renowned for working late and hard. Me too! "And it's because we love our jobs. I don't have any problem getting up in the morning to go to work. Going on an audition trip for me is a treat but I don't mind having to go home (to Montreal) and catch up." "You're proud of what you do and you want to do a good job. Like the scouts, looking for a particular type of artist. They'll search all over the world until they find what they're looking for. (This was strongly illustrated in "Fire Within" as they searched for a male singer.) That feeling is so strong that they want to deliver a good product. Because they know they have to live up to the quality of Cirque, or better it." "Cirque treats us right. At the Cirque Headquarters there are lots of things they do to enliven the atmosphere. Sometimes on Friday they'll have a big popcorn machine and they'll give us popcorn. Or the winter carnival. They organize trips for us to ski in the winter. So there's always something. And we get a lot of feedback. The letters people send are distributed throughout the company, "Here's the effect you have. "All those t-shirts [you see Cirque employees wearing], they're free for us. And we're proud to wear them. Like my Cirque jacket, I love that jacket. When I'm in the Montreal subway and I'm wearing my Cirque jacket, I won't sit down. I'll stand with my back to the biggest window of the car so the back of my jacket, with the Cirque logo, can be seen through the window." "At one point, Cirque was voted one of the best places in Canada to work, and I agree!" Cirque du Soleil has worked hard to achieve and maintain its reputation as the premiere circus arts production company. They have literally changed the face of circus, and have grown far beyond its creator's wildest dreams. But as Richard reminds us, it didn't start out that way. "I don't think Cirque du Soleil took on the mandate of changing the world of circus. Yes, one of the shows was titled, "We Reinvent the Circus" but I don't think that was meant as pretentiously as people think. There is one goal, and Guy reminds us of it all the time, to bring a smile to people faces. That may sound a bit hokey, but that's what it is. You put on a good show so that for an hour and a half people forget their problems and have a good time." "It just happened that in the process all those other things [came about]. And I think that's because of the integrity of keeping that goal. It's not about money, it's about putting out good product so that people live a wonderful experience through our shows and appreciate it." "And it brings good people to work for us. The working conditions at Cirque are really good, the artists and employees are well treated. And that's why we are able to get good people, good creators. That's why we end up with the type of product we have, because we innovate." And it all comes back to the man at the top of the triangle, Guy Laliberte. "I think the people that work for him have a lot of respect for him because of his vision and the way he runs the company. Because of what he gives back to us and to the community with Cirque du Monde and all that. Anybody who has that kind of vision is OK in my book." 5:23pm - The artists leave, knowing they're going into the database and, as is typical of the artist's life, may or may not be called. The audition team packs up and leaves, their day far from over. They will spend the rest of their evening de-briefing the day and making notes, ending about 10pm. They will then move on to the auditions in their other disciplines, staying in Seattle another two weeks. And the artists will go on with their lives, hoping for that special phone call. We'd like to express our deepest gratitude to those special Cirque people who helped us immeasurably with this series, most especially to Richard Dagenais - Head of Auditions and Logistic, Casting (our host) for his openness and willingness to let us in on the process. Also to the rest of the Seattle audition team; Anne-Marie Duchène - Artistic Scout, Charles St-Onge - Audition Coordinator, and Charmaine Hunter - Dance Evaluator. Also thanks to Chantal Côté - Corporate Publicist, and Simon Frances - Marketing Agent, Casting for helping arrange our day. And finally, thanks to all of the artists who allowed us to eavesdrop on their job interview. PART 4: "CANDIDATES!" *********************************************** Last month we concluded our coverage of Cirque dancer auditions that took place in Seattle. After the day was over we had the opportunity to speak with two of the artists who were selected as active candidates to go into the Cirque du Soleil database. They kindly spent a few minutes to talk with my wife LouAnna and I. Morgan McConnell is a 30 year-old graphic designer from Vancouver. His work can be seen at his nifty website, www.dangerboydesign.net. Janine Teidi (Juh-neen Tee-dee) is 33 and originally hails from Buffalo, New York. She dances with Lingo Dance Theater in Seattle (www.lingodance.com). She also teaches "Slo-Body" movement, a Yoga- based technique (www.slobody.com) and "YogaBeans" a movement program for children 3 and up (www.yogabeans.com). KJ: How long have you been dancing? MORGAN: 4 years. JANINE: 30 years. I started when I was 3 and now I'm 33, pretty much the whole way through, some times more than others. For the last 10 years I've been trying to figure out how to be an artist and make a living from my artistry. And that's part of why Cirque du Soleil is so enticing. My skills as a dancer/gymnast - I don't really like to call myself a gymnast anymore - but as an artist I feel I would fit with them, so it's worth training and coming to auditions, seeing what I need to do and training some more. It's worth it, totally worth it. KJ: What's your background? JANINE: Mine is dance. MORGAN: None. Never done gymnastics, martial arts, anything really. I started out with fire dancing. I went to a club and I saw this guy spinning fire, I'd never seen that before. Just this little guy with this big stick spinning and rolling around on the floor - and I thought, "That's the coolest thing I've ever seen. I could do that!" So I picked it up and went from there. KJ: How did you find out about Cirque du Soleil? MORGAN: I met an ex-performer when I was in Australia. She saw a show I did and said, "That was great. You really should send Cirque an audition tape." So I sent them a videotape, I never would have otherwise. And they invited me to this audition in Seattle. I was in Australia at the time but thought, "Why not? I'm going home [to Vancouver] anyway." It was easy to adjust my schedule a bit. JANINE: This isn't my first Cirque du Soleil audition. I auditioned [for them] first in 1998, in Atlanta; I flew there from New York. It was just a one-day audition, and I got all the way through to the end and they put me on their active files. But I didn't send them a shred of information and sort of wrote it off. Five years later I got an email saying, "We want you to come to an audition in Vegas." And my boyfriend said, "You have to go!" I was almost going to delete it but then I started thinking about it, and yes, I had to go. And I went to Vegas and I was cut in the first cut. I was mortified. KJ: Did you find out why were you cut? JANINE: Actually, they weren't up front about giving feedback to the people who were getting cut at that audition. There were a lot more people and the space wasn't arranged very well. There was nowhere to go and sit, we had to go outside, and everybody was kind of smushed together. That created a completely different atmosphere. But it was eye opening because we just did an hour of ballet and I got cut and I thought, "Oh, this is what I need to be doing." It kicked my butt. But I came back and went to ballet class every day until this audition. It shows, and I'm so glad I did it. I was thinking, "Damn it, I'm better than that!" Ballet isn't my strong suit. MORGAN: That's where having specialty skills comes in handy. JANINE: Yeah. I can walk on my hands, but I didn't get to do any of that. We didn't get to anything else; it was just straight-up ballet. So I wrote [Artistic Scout Anne-Marie Duchène] an email as soon as I got back saying, "After all that arranging and flying there and [other things] my audition sucked. I know you're going to be in Seattle, can I come to that?" And she let me and I made it all the way through. So I've been through it three times now, and I would do it again if I had the chance. KJ: I assume you've both been through several auditions, how does this audition process compare to other auditions? MORGAN: This is my first audition. JANINE: I love that you (Morgan) have only been doing this for four years and you might get a spot in a show like this. MORGAN: I love it too! (Laughs) I've done shows before but it's never been through an audition. It's been more like, "We need dancers, we need volunteers, quick, come!" Community productions, stuff like that. When I was in Australia I did a lot of those but never anything like this. JANINE: This is a lot longer than other auditions I've been to. I've gone to auditions where you can't even ask questions. They show you something and you do it across the floor four at a time - "OK, we're cutting." That's a different situation, a cattle call, where they're auditioning you and you are dancers, and they don't break down that barrier [like they did here]. You see it in Backstage Magazine, grab your resume and headshot, go in, there are 150 people - it's a whole different situation. Here you've already auditioned to be invited to the audition. They've done a first cut. They're not going to see a lot of people. They're being particular about who they're going to see in person. And that's different from a lot of others. But I don't audition a lot. I did when I was in New York, but not a lot when compared to others I knew who auditioned all the time. They would have three auditions in a day and I would have one. And one was enough! But I don't think I got as much out of those auditions as I got from this one. I really think they're learning experiences, especially as I get older. It was great to go to that audition in Vegas though it cost me a lot of money. It really changed things for me as an artist. Because I live in Seattle, and Vegas dancers are a lot different than Seattle dancers. There's not a lot of competition dance here or real contortion-ey or jazzy dance. It's a very modern scene [in Vegas], where it's very ballet here. So all these competition dancers and cruise ship-type dancers and Vegas contortion-like dancers were there, and I thought, "Oh yeah, I remember this scene." And then we did ballet, and I hadn't been to ballet class in months. And I thought, "Oh yeah, I'm supposed to remember how to stand in fifth position if I'm going to call myself a professional dancer." It just was an eye opener. I want to call myself a professional dancer; that's what I do, I dance with a company. And I want to be more proficient. I would like to be able to teach a ballet class if this is what I'm doing to do. So it pushed me, and I knew I had this audition [in Seattle]. I wanted to come in and have them say, "Wow! That was the same girl?" And that's what happened. (Smiles) KJ: (to Morgan) You've not been through an audition process before, what did you think of this process? MORGAN: It was extremely challenging. (Janine agrees.) It pushed me so hard. There were times I just wanted to leave. But you can't turn around after coming this far and say, "I can't handle it." I've been in situations where I've done shows and I tell them I do fire dancing and they tell me, "Well, this is the choreography, and we're doing [this]." And I'd tell them, "No, I don't do that." And I felt that with this audition. But I knew I was here for a reason, they want to see what I can do and I'll just fight my way through the discomfort, and there was a lot. I've never done acting, never done character stuff or anything like that, so that was a huge challenge. A tree? How do I become a tree? KJ: What do you take away from this audition? Anything you felt you learned? What impressed you most about what you did, other than the fact that you were picked and made it to the end? MORGAN: I was impressed by the level of talent. I expected it - to get this far you have to be good at what you do - but I had no idea what to expect. I didn't expect so many dancers, I was expecting jugglers and acrobats and contortionists and unicyclists. People did some really amazing things. It made me feel really humble just to see the amount of time [people have spent at their art], like 30 years [as Janine has done]. And I've just been in it for 4. (Laughs) The commitment people have is astounding. And for lots of people who put that amount of time into their work this is the pinnacle of their careers. KJ: I've heard from many people that if you want to work for somebody in a circus arts/performance type of situation, Cirque is the one. And everybody else is somewhere below them. But I also keep tabs on chat lists and places where 15-16 year-old kids write, "I want Cirque to be my first job." And I want to say to them, "Go out and get more experience." (Both nod.) MORGAN: It is that type of circus. They don't take the fresh faced. KJ: I've been told they only hire about 200 artists per year. JANINE: Of course that's not what we want to hear right now. (Laughter) KJ: But they also replace 20% of their artists each year. JANINE: Makes sense though if you look at the caliber of performers. You wonder how long they can possibly do that. The tumbling is hard core. Even though in Alegria they are on tumble tracks, [which lessens the intensity on your joints] you're still compressing, compressing, you're landing, landing, landing. You can only do that for so long, I learned that from gymnastics. Fortunately in this day and age and with technology people are doing things longer. I see people dancing into their 40's. And I remember when I was 23 people said, "Aren't you getting kind of old?" And here I am 33 and still doing it and I feel better than ever. I feel strong and I'm not in pain all the time. I heard some [of the younger ones today saying], "What are you going to do when you're 34?" And I was laughing because I was doing a handstand on the wall and I was thinking, "I'm 33 baby, and you have no idea." (Laughs) KJ: So what happens now? JANINE: My dance troupe is doing some great things. The company I'm working with is just starting to take off. They're bringing some French presenters to our rehearsal today, right now in fact. When our Artistic Director told us I was concerned because I had this audition today. So they had to put someone in my role for the segment they were going to show. And I would love to go to France, so I was torn. I wanted to be here, but I also really wanted to be there with them. And we just found out that we're doing another showcase for presenters in Dusseldorf, Germany. So it's possible we'll do a European tour. I was hoping I would make it all the way through [here], and it would end with, "Here you go, you're on our active files, send us a copy of your passport." But I've been on their active files for five years. For them to call me back is an honor in itself. It makes me think there must have been something they liked. And for me to do really crappy in Vegas, ask for another chance, and for them to let me try again, they must have that sense that they believed I had something to offer. KJ: What about you, Morgan? MORGAN: I do graphic design. That's my primary occupation, this is just secondary. I just moved to Vancouver about a month ago and my business is just kicking in. I've got a couple of clients there plus some I got in Australia. And I'll explore the performance community there. Most of the time what I'll do is at 11 o'clock at night I'll take my sticks out and put on my Walkman and go spin for an hour. Though now that I've seen what's expected I wouldn't mind taking some flexibility classes or some martial arts classes to make my body more flexible. At that point we had to call our interview to a close so we could all go home and rest after a hard, heady day of discovery. And they, like the others, will go on with their lives and hope for that phone call from Cirque du Soleil. If you'd like to see some of Morgan's graphic design, check out www.dangerboydesign.net. The dance company Janine works with can be found at www.lingodance.com. She also teaches, check out www.slobody.com for information on Slo-Body Yoga movement, and www.yogabeans.com for her yoga and movement program for children. Our sincere thanks to Janine and Morgan for spending time with us. ------------------------------------------------------- "Six Thousand Fifty-Seven" By: Rich Alford - Bothel, Washington (USA) {Originally Published: Issue #55 - Sep/Oct 2007} ------------------------------------------------------- 6057 - No, that's not my ATM pin or password, or the code to my alarm system, place of business or car; it's a number that became very special (dare I say magical) one fantastic night during CirqueCon Las Vegas in September 2006 while in attendance of Mystère. And I shall tell you now that it involved an enormous baby, a bouncy red ball and a fabulous experience of a lifetime. On a fateful day in 1994, this tale beings, a day my journey took me to the hot desert climate of Las Vegas for some much needed rest and relaxation. I found myself at the concierge desk at my hotel (the name of which I have forgotten) that afternoon, eager to see one of Vegas' fabulous night-time shows. "What's good to see in Vegas?" I asked the lady behind the counter, who was tending to the brochures in her charge. "Oh!" she turned to me, and without hesitation, recommended a great new show in town called Mystère. "It's a Canadian circus - seerk doo soulay - with acrobatics and dance rather than animals." "A circus with no animals," I replied. And since I was game, I purchased a ticket from her on the spot and prepared for the show ahead. I had no idea how huge that simple decision was and how it would forever enhance my life. I took my seat in the grand Mystère Theater at Treasure Island and waited somewhat impatiently; I didn't know what to expect. As soon as the lights dimmed and the cries of two enormous babies on a quest for nourishment filled the theater, I instantly fell under Mystère's spell. Their odyssey of discovery became mine and at that very moment I was forever intertwined with the zany world of Cirque du Soleil. It's hard for me to express to you in words how quickly my life changed and how instantaneously I was transported away from the ills that existed in the "outside world" for me, into a world of fantasy and delight where wonder and grace were norm. I tell you it was as if someone flicked a switch inside me. I was hooked! I saw Mystère the following night, the next night after, and virtually every time I've visited Las Vegas since for a total of 21 times. You might imagine just like everyone else, there is one aspect of the show that is my absolute favorite. In my case, one character in particular, in fact, rises above all others: Bébé Francois. For the uninitiated, he's the Big Baby that bounces his big red ball around the stage, giggling and having a grand time, and picking on audience members to be part of the show. I've always wanted to be one of those audience members. And as many times as I've seen the show, though close a few times, I've never been chosen as Bébé's poppa. Much to my chagrin. On Friday, September 22, 2006, during the "official" show (#6057) at the CirqueCon Las Vegas Cirque Passionate gathering, I stepped into the T.I. Theater for my 22nd viewing of Mystère. I had a ticket in the right section - Section 103, Row A, Seat 9 - and since I had related my story of woe to just about everyone in the group that week, everyone was kind and gracious in support of me as we all took our seats that night. The stars were all aligned... would this be my night? As I so very fondly remember and have come to expect, the opening music transported me to a very special and magical place. The stage rose from the depths and I held my breath. There! There was Bébé! (A girl character this time.) She started to bounce the ball, making those fabulous gurgly baby noises, playing the part to the hilt, as she looked over the members of the audience. At this point I was silently pleading for her to notice me... begging and praying (in my own way)... for her to toss the ball at me. When she raised the ball up to do so, I braced to catch it but... SHE TOSSED IT IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION FROM ME! OH NO! It landed in the opposite side of the front row section where another Passionate was sitting; she quickly grabbed it up. At that moment I knew I had missed my chance... again. Disappointment washed over me quickly, but did not linger for I knew I would get another chance in the near future (what's another try after 22 failures?). Happy that another of our brood was going to get a chance to play the part, I sat back to enjoy the rest of the show. The passionate threw the ball back and Bébé caught it, making her the chosen one. But Bébé kept bouncing the ball... What was she doing? Bounce. Bounce. Giggle. Bounce. This wasn't supposed to happen. She should have acknowledged the first person who threw the ball back... Bounce. Giggle. Giggle. Bounce. She raised the ball up again. Was she going to toss it? YES! AND SHE THREW THE BALL RIGHT TO ME! I became so excited I could hardly sit still. Ricky, who was seated next to me, said, "there you go, this one is yours." And I leapt from my seat, grabbed the red ball and tossed it back. For a moment Bébé and I locked gazes and I pleaded with her to choose me. My heart was pounding so hard. I was beginning to sweat! Giggle. Giggle. And then she said the word I had longed twelve years to hear... "POPPA?" I was chosen! WOOHOO! I could hardly contain myself, after twelve long years my dream was finally coming true - I was the chosen audience member who would take part in the show! Bébé giggled heartily and ran over, as babies do, for a quick hug. Then, as I knew the routine, she wouldn't let go once I tried to pull away and would squirt me with her bottle but... that didn't happen. I even pulled off my glasses just in case but we just stood there and hugged, it was so nice! Then she needed my help to get back onto the stage so she called for me... "POPPAAAAAAAA!" I immediately jumped up to help her. At this point I had totally forgotten about the squirt so, as I approached the stage to assist her; she jumped up without issue and surprised the heck out of me. SQUIRRRRRRRRT! Oh, it was fabulous! Now I was giggling like a baby! The show eventually went on, of course, and every act was just as magical as I had remembered. The energy in the theater that evening was smoking - it defies description - and I know the artists felt it for they gave it their all. It's amazing how much emotional energy can transfer from a huge group of passionate fans to each other and to the artists; I think it became a very special showing for everyone in the theater that night. "POPPAAAAAAAA!" A bit later on, Bébé called upon me to take a ride in her over-sized baby buggy. She came roaring into the crowd then and called to me and once again I leapt from my seat and raced up the stairs to where she was waiting. Within moments of hopping into her cart, she sped away, and I was back stage. I felt euphorically triumphant the instant I sat down next to her, watching everyone look at me, many with smiles on their faces. It took a moment for that rapture to calm down enough for rational thought. When it did so - at that precise moment - I realized I was really back stage! There stood artists, getting ready for their queues or hanging out; and crew, preparing the next apparatus or checking the rigging for the next part of the show. I was simply "gobsmacked." The folks backstage helped to get me dressed in my costume - a big baby with a pacifier and diapers - and I was put back on the cart to whiz across the stage. When we emerged onto the stage I could hear the ROAR of the crowd; it was overwhelming and time seemed to have slowed to a crawl yet flying by oh so quickly. I can only akin it to suddenly being accelerated to high Warp speeds from a stand still (for you trekkies). Behind-the-scenes, on the other side of the stage, we had a moment where a couple of artists came over and joined in a quick photo. I was then instructed on what was happening and what was going to happen (although I already knew): the cart was going to appear to be having difficulties and I was going to "push" it back across the stage. We appeared out on stage again - once again the roar of the crowd tremendous - Bébé at the wheel of the cart with me behind, pushing. Moments later we arrived back on the other side of the stage and my part in the show was over. A couple of artists came by and gave me a "great job, mate" and I was escorted back to my seat and I finished watching the show. My heart was just pounding with excitement, I was exhausted, but I couldn't be happier! Consequently, as I was riding in the cart, the artist told me that she had noticed me when she first started her routine (when I was really begging all out for her to throw the ball to me). She decided to prolong my agony by playing a trick - rather than bounce the ball to me, she sent it to the other side of the row. Knowing that I think it just made the whole experience that much more fun! Finally after all these years my dream came true! The show was amazing and the energy that night was more powerful than I've ever felt. Being allowed to participate in the show, after all these many years, elevated Mystère to a spectacular level. Having the experience occur during the CirqueCon gathering with all my new friends brought the event to a point I could never have dreamed of, and even now I still have difficulties finding words to do it justice. Six Thousand Fifty-Six shows have gone by with others playing the role of POPPA, but Six Thousand Fifty-Seven is mine. I shall never forget the kindness of the folks sitting next to me for allowing me the chance to "catch the ball" and being so happy for me that I did. I'll never forget the emotion and intensity in the theater that night. And I'll never forget the enthusiasm of the cast and crew who put on such a fabulous show for us. Mystère will always be my most favorite Cirque du Soleil production because this show, in my opinion, represents the soul of Cirque du Soleil. It is without a doubt the reason I am a fan today. And for that I have to thank everyone involved. It doesn't hurt that #6057 and the experience I had that night will always have a special place in my heart, though! Thank you and... Live Passionately! ======================================================================= COPYRIGHT AND DISCLAIMER ======================================================================= Fascination! Newsletter Compendium Volume 8, Number 4 (Issue #60) - Jul/Aug 2008 "Fascination! Newsletter" is a concept by Ricky Russo. Copyright (c) 2001-2008 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. { Sep.26.2008 } =======================================================================