Meet a Mentor, Part 3 of 3

To make an artist for one of Cirque’s productions, it takes a talented individual who is open to new experiences – and veterans who can guide the way through those new experiences. Cirque du Soleil has assembled some of the most well-known and respected collaborators in their fields – coaches, choreographers, creators, composers and others – to help our artists achieve their goals. And through a series of interviews on their casting website, we meet some of them. Like the “Meet the Artist” series of Q&A’s we recently published, the “Meet a Mentor” set are equally fascinating reads – even more so! We’ve collected all 11 mentor interviews for you to peruse in this series, which, due to the page count, we’ve published in three parts. In Part One, we met: André Simard (Acrobatic Research and Development), Bernard Petiot (Vice President, Casting and Performance), and Boris Verkhovsky (Director of Acrobatics and Coaching). In Part Two, we continued with: Claude Chaput (Conductor, Composer, and Arranger), David Shiner (Director and Clown), Dominic Champagne (Director), and Francois Girard (Director). And now we conclude by hearing from Laur Fugere (Singer & Stage Coach), Luc Tremblay (Choreographer and Educator), Mia Michaels (Choreographer), and Robert Lepage (Director).

MEET A MENTOR INTERVIEW SERIES
PART THREE

LAUR FUGÈRE
Singer & Vocal Coach

Laur has been singing professionally for over 30 years and has held leading roles in such major productions as Les Misérables, Cats and Jesus Christ Superstar. A Cirque du Soleil partner since 1993, she is currently musical director of a show in creation slated to be presented at Expo Zaragoza in Spain over the summer of 2008.

“Music’s energy fascinates me; it’ force of attraction and power to inspire have led me to sample the wide range of musical genres. On those nomadic wanderings through the world of sounds, I learned to master several styles. Then, by improvising, I was able to explore virgin territory and unknown continents.

In the course of those travels, I developed a unique and very personal approach to singing. Science explains sound in terms of vibratory strength, but I believe that it’s also a physical force capable of transforming the invisible and transcending never-before-heard notes that are hidden deep within every living being so they can become perceptible.

I have practiced meditation for several years, and I am interested in how the voice was used in ancient civilizations in rites of passage, initiation ceremonies and sacred gatherings. Producing a sound or “finding your voice” puts someone in touch with his innermost nature and fosters an awakening. The voice is a reflection of our deepest essence that binds us to the Source.

In 1988 I founded the company Sonomusa, and in 2003 I received a bursary from the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec to fund research and development for my work The Vibration of Wisdom, a trip through the world of sounds and an invitation to get back in touch with breathing, both a symbol and the source of life. That research also led me to produce the album First Take, in which I took immense delight in interweaving my voice with the unique sound of one of the world’s oldest instruments, the didgeridoo.

My interest in the nature of vibrations and the transforming powers of sound led me to study polarity with John Beaulieu, author of The Healing Power of Sound. I also trained with Gabrielle Roth, a shaman, dancer and theatre director who is well known for her “five rhythms” system, which helps people find their true voice.

I am currently working as musical director for the Cirque du Soleil show Le Réveil du Serpent (Awakening of the Serpent), which will be presented at Expo Zaragoza in Spain throughout the summer of 2008 as part of an international exhibition on water and sustainable development. My collaboration with Cirque, which dates back to 1993, has given me the opportunity to travel to the four corners of the globe, primarily as a singer, but also as a vocal coach, evaluator and consultant.

As a universal language and a source of inspiration, voice has an inescapable place in the fabulous journeys that Cirque du Soleil shows represent. By drawing inspiration from folklore around the world, Cirque requires its singers to demonstrate open-mindedness and flexibility in both body and spirit. Singers must be disciplined and have a lifestyle conducive to the best vocal performances possible. But while singing at Cirque du Soleil is a great challenge, it also offers a unique opportunity for artistic and personal development.

I adore sharing my passion with audiences, and I am delighted to contribute to the progress and fulfillment of those whom I have the privilege of helping to train by sharing the lessons I have learned.”

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LUC TREMBLAY
Choreographer and Educator

From 1986 to 1996, Luc Tremblay was artistic director and official choreographer of Danse Partout. Under his direction, the company realized many creative projects and made a number of tours, and at Québec City’s Arts and Culture Awards Ceremony in 1991 it received the Prix Ville de Québec. Luc Tremblay was appointed general manager of the company in 1994, and began laying the groundwork for Québec City’s centre for contemporary choreography, La Rotonde, which officially opened in 1996.

Since 1980, Luc Tremblay has produced over forty choreographic works for professional dance, theatre and circus companies, and for dance schools. A number of these works have toured in Canada and abroad. His choreographies La Débâcle, Mirages and Le charme persiste mais n’opère plus for Danse Partout, and his theatrical and choreographic direction of ÉCHOS for the new circus company les gens d’R, in particular, have helped to establish his reputation with international audiences and critics.

Also respected as an educator, Luc Tremblay has taught at many nationally and internationally renowned institutions. In the period since 1999, Luc Tremblay has been Artistic Coach, Artistic Training Supervisor, and Artistic Director, in turn, for the shows La Nouba, DELIRIUM and KOOZA.

Q. WHAT APPROACH DO YOU TAKE WITH THE DANCERS IN THE PROJECTS YOU’RE INVOLVED IN AT CIRQUE?

Since I myself come from the dance community, I’m always looking for better ways to highlight dancers in Cirque du Soleil shows, and to help them fit comfortably into the circus world.

Q. WHAT’s THE MOST INTERESTING THING ABOUT WORKING WITH DANCERS WHO COME FROM SUCH A VARIETY OF BACKGROUNDS AND NATIONALITIES?

In my view, blending nationalities has always helped generate a rich creative brew at Cirque du Soleil, and that applies for dance as well. Internationally, we’re also seeing more and more dialogue between cultures, between artists, between the various creative styles. That’s tremendously conducive to the emergence of new artistic forms.

Q. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR CREATIVE PHILOSOPHY?

I find it essential to observe the artists I’m working with very closely, to get a clear picture of their personalities and become thoroughly familiar with their strengths and weaknesses. That lets me make the most of the unique assets each can contribute to the creative process.

Q. HOW DO YOU SEE THE ROLE OF DANCE AT CIRQUE DU SOLEIL?

Dance is playing an increasingly important role in our shows. We’re casting more dancers, whereas before, most of the troupe would be acrobats. In a show like DELIRIUM, for instance, dancers are the largest group in the cast. From a creative standpoint, dance gives us a richer, more diverse palette; it adds complexity to the vocabularies of movement we use in our shows.

Q. WHAT DO YOU FIND MOST STIMULATING ABOUT WORKING FOR CIRQUE DU SOLEIL?

At Cirque du Soleil, excellence is a daily affair. You have to know how to keep your work fresh, stay creative; you have to be able to work in a team. Also, Cirque du Soleil is in the process of becoming a truly major artistic crossroads, a forum where artists and acrobats from all backgrounds can share experiences.

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MIA MICHAELS
Choreographer

From stage to screen, Mia has turned dance into inspired works of passion and beauty. Some of her credits include the choreography for Céline Dion’s “A New Day” (2004 Emmy Nominee for “Celine in Las Vegas: Opening Night Live!” on CBS), Céline Dion’s “Taking Chances” World Tour (segments), and Cirque du Soleil’s “DELIRIUM” World Tour. Additionally, she has created works for numerous recording artists, including Madonna, Ricky Martin, Gloria Estefan, Anna Vissi and Prince.

On television, Mia is a judge and contributing choreographer for the Fox TV show “So You Think You Can Dance.” She recently won an Emmy award for her work “Calling You” on SYTYCD. Other work in film and television includes “Cool Women” for AMC/DreamWorks Television and commercials for Visa, Bacardi, Ziploc, Coldwell Banker, Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Pepsi and Star TV.
Mia’s theatre and concert credits include being the Founder, Artistic Director, and Choreographer of “Mia Michaels RAW,” the Paper Mill Playhouse’s production of “Hello Dolly” and the off-Broadway productions of “If These Shoes Could Talk” and “Fort Chaffee”. Mia has also created works for Les Ballet Jazz de Montreal, Jazz Dance Chicago, Oslo Dance Ensemble, Joffrey Ballet, Kirov Academy and Jazz Theater of Amsterdam.

Q. WHAT WAS YOUR CREATIVE APPROACH WITH THE DELIRIUM DANCERS?

Each project has its own unique heartbeat that forces me to adopt a different approach. With DELIRIUM, the creative approach stemmed from working within the deadline, stage shape and limitations, music, the talent of the dancers, and direction from the directors. Together, this information presented the guidelines for the creative process.

Q. WHAT DID YOU FIND INTERESTING IN WORKING WITH DANCERS FROM DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS?

The individuality it provided. Working with dancers having such different backgrounds in training, style and culture was challenging, but it broadened my natural instinct. It forced me to go in a different direction than I would have ordinarily gone.

Q. HOW DO YOU SEE THE MIX BETWEEN DANCE AND CIRQUE DU SOLEIL? HOW DO THEY BLEND TOGETHER?

I think the way in which Cirque is bringing more dance into its productions is a great addition to what was already monumentally entertaining. It adds another dimension, and because dance has recently undergone such a major reinvention, it is multiplying the audiences’ visual experience.

Q. WHAT DID YOU FIND STIMULATING IN WORKING WITH CIRQUE?

The size of the project is so massive and larger than life. It’s like being a kid in a candy store. Anything you dream is possible.

Q. WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO DANCERS WHO WOULD LIKE TO JOIN CIRQUE?

Go in with an open mind. It is not the typical creative process. It is much more intertwined with the choreographer, director and the total Cirque du Soleil vision. Be prepared for a lot of hard work, a lot of growth (mentally and physically) and a lot of challenges. You will meet a lot of great people and be a part of a great final product, and Cirque will become part of your creative family for a long time.

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ROBERT LEPAGE
Director

Multidisciplinary artist Robert Lepage is not only a masterful playwright, but also a renowned stage director, actor and producer. Internationally acclaimed by critics for their originality, the works he creates and brings to the stage push the boundaries of theatrical performance, notably through the use of new technologies. His works have garnered numerous prizes, including the distinguished Europe Theatre Prize in 2007.

Q. WHAT WAS YOUR APPROACH WITH THE ACTORS WITH WHOM YOU WORKED IN COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS WITH CIRQUE DU SOLEIL?

The approach was very different to what I am used to in the theatre because actors coming from Cirque work in a primarily non-verbal way—things are evoked rather than named. It requires a much more poetic level of acting; psychology or dramatic framework rarely comes into play. That means the actors have to be receptive, multi-skilled and fired by a desire to surpass themselves.

In KÀ—and at Cirque du Soleil more generally—we’re in the realm of hyper-theatre, not unlike opera. Everything is larger than life: gestures, distances to be covered and the strength all of this takes, not to mention the volume needed to express anything vocally… So we’re confronted with hyper-humanity. For the artists—actors or otherwise—this requires being able to surpass oneself and a far more wide-ranging awareness.

Actors come to Cirque du Soleil with a wealth of training and experience combined with work on naturalism and research into the characters they play. When they first get here, they mostly need to work on their characters’ energy with respect to interacting with other characters. Energy is a very peculiar thing—while it can destabilize actors, it remains the vehicle of choice for communicating emotions. Basically, it has a lot in common with Japanese kabuki theatre, Greek drama and physical theatre like commedia dell’arte. So contemporary actors must adjust to such physical acting.

Q. WHAT DO YOU FIND MOST INTERESTING ABOUT WORKING WITH ACTORS WITH DIVERSE BACKGROUNDS AND NATIONALITIES?

This universal community reflects the beauty of Cirque du Soleil shows. The language barrier, the clash of cultures and ways of doing things—all this forces people to be diplomatic, to agree with and listen to one another.

Joining forces to create a show with Cirque, despite differing faiths, nationalities and languages, is succeeding in conveying the impression that we all come from the same place: the world depicted by the show itself. What you get is shows that have a universal rather than local flavour, shows that all spectators can relate to.

Q. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR CREATIVE PHILOSOPHY?

I’ve always believed that a creation is a work in progress and in guided collective efforts imbued with a vision, because the material, the ideas and the humanity of the work come from the group. Cirque du Soleil has an organic way of working that closely resembles that of Ex-Machina, my production company, which is that the material is developed jointly with the artists. That’s why I feel at home here. Of course, it all starts with a storyboard, but you have to take it further. Meeting the artists forces you to travel down different paths and byways you might never otherwise have ventured on. Because, to create order, you first need chaos, and that order will be coloured by the workgroup. For all this to work, you need a stage director who is open-minded and knows which way the wind is blowing.

Q. HOW DO YOU SEE THE ROLE PLAYED BY ACTORS AND ACTING AT CIRQUE DU SOLEIL?

Cirque has a special way of talking to the audience, of forging a relationship and transmitting its energy, and the actor plays the role of narrator. The actor is a bridge between the acrobatic aspect of the show and the spectator. Actors form a dividing wall, such as you find in big opera houses, where the players are centre stage, between the singers and the dancers, linking oral expression with the physical aspect. Actors are also good mediators. During the creation of KÀ, the actors helped me a lot to convey my ideas, to get across a character’s performative or dramatic aspect to certain other artists. I think their presence in Cirque shows is important.

Q. WHAT DO YOU FIND MOST STIMULATING ABOUT WORKING WITH CIRQUE DU SOLEIL?

The all-prevailing desire to surpass oneself. As a general rule, it is always difficult to reconcile a love of sports with a love of culture—people usually like one or the other. Cirque, however, manages to reconcile the two camps. The most stimulating aspect of my work here is this idea of surpassing oneself that you find among performers. With all these people trained in gymnastics, you find great discipline and concentration—sometimes even beyond understanding. For a stage director, being able to bring all these sportspeople and stage artists together is really exciting.

Q. WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE A FUTURE CIRQUE DU SOLEIL ACTOR?

Approach acting without any preconceived ideas about the craft. In the same way that acrobats must be open to theatre, actors must expect the game to be different and to take it to entirely new levels. Being very open-minded is also a must. Because in a group where people speak different languages and come from different cultures and disciplines—and therefore hold different ideas about what a show should be—you find total chaos. To contribute to the work, actors need to be antennas; they need to come up with ideas and carve out their place.

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