======================================================================= ______ _ __ _ __ / ____/___ ___________(_)___ ____ _/ /_(_)___ ____ / / / /_ / __ `/ ___/ ___/ / __ \/ __ `/ __/ / __ \/ __ \/ / / __/ / /_/ (__ ) /__ / / / / /_/ / /_/ / /_/ / / / /_/ /_/ \__,_/____/\___/_/_/ /_/\__,_/\__/_/\____/_/ /_(_) 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 ------------------------------------------------------------ ======================================================================= Issue #40e January 2005 ======================================================================= We're off and running again! Reports of our assimilation by the Borg (if you're a Star Trek fan) or conversion to the Dark Side of the Force (if you're a Star Wars fan) are greatly exaggerated! Fascination! is still alive and kicking; we've just taken a little break. We've been going non-stop for the last three years and with the holidays and preparations for CirqueCon Montreal 2005, we thought a short vacation was in order. There have been a lot of interesting things to come out within the last couple of months and over the next two to three issues, Fascination! will try to cover them all. Please be patient as we juggle our own private lives with publishing Fascination! on a timely basis! So, without further adieu... We hope you enjoy this issue of Fascination! /// EXPANDED ISSUE: There's just one expanded item for this month - "Columnist Unveils KA [EXPANDED]" and you'll find it in the CIRQUE BUZZ section within. /// - Ricky =========== CONTENTS =========== * Cirque Buzz -- News, Rumours & Sightings * CRQ-TV -- Cirque on Television * CRQ.NET -- Cirque du Soleil Online * Itinéraire -- Tour/Show Information * Didyaknow? -- Facts About Cirque * Le Spectacle: "CirqueCon Montreal 2005 Update" By: Keith Johnson - Seattle, Washington (USA) * Beyond the Bigtop: "Tales from the CirqueCon, Part the First" By: Keith Johnson - Seattle, Washington (USA) * Le Spectateur: "Cirque Rituals: What Do Fans Do?" By: Ricky Russo - Orlando, Florida (USA) * The Cirque Connection: "What is a Charette Anyway?" By: Keith Johnson - Seattle, Washington (USA) * Parting Quote * Subscription Information * Copyright & Disclaimer ======================================================================= CIRQUE BUZZ -- NEWS, RUMOURS & SIGHTINGS ======================================================================= Clarification on Show "Trade-Up" Priveledges -------------------------------------------- Last month we talked about the program allowing Cirque Club ticket holders to "trade up" their seats from seats further back to seats down front (when they were available). We neglected to mention that a special club email (which must be brought with you to the show) will be sent for specific shows in specific cities when the upgrade plan is available (it isn't always). So make sure you are a member of Cirque Club and set your preferences for cities available to you. Columnist Unveils KA [EXPANDED] ------------------------------- On November 26, 2004, Las Vegas Sun columnist Jerry Fink unveiled Cirque du Soleil's newest production -- KÀ -- to his readers, and there were some interesting bits that we wanted to bring to your attention. -- The total cost of the production is $165 million US. $135 million is for the theater alone; $30 million is for staging costs. -- KÀ is designed to be 90-minutes long; however, according to production manager Stephane Mongeau, the first run-through on October 11, 2004 took nine hours. "We stopped a few times," he said. By October 24, 2004, the production came in just under three hours. The November 5, 2004 run-through lasted two hours. Just prior to the premiere, "we did it in one hour and 45 minutes without stops," Mongeau said. "With time, it will get shorter. Transitions are getting smoother. -- Cirque spent $12 million US on the stage alone. "Robert wanted to do a show about gravity, to change the perspective of the people," Mongeau said. "At one point they felt the seats could go back and the audience could look up in the air." That idea was rejected. "But he always wanted to change the perspective of the audience," Mongeau said. * * * Cirque du Soleil's latest child, "Ka," will be born at 8 tonight at the MGM Grand. The parents are anxious. They've invested $165 million in this baby -- $135 million in the eye-popping, jaw-dropping theater and $30 million in what is being described as an "epic saga." Through Feb. 2 the baby will be learning to walk. Producers are calling the first couple of months of performances "preview shows," meaning you should be tolerant because you might see the infant stumble here and there. The official premiere will be Feb. 3. Tickets, for both the preview shows and those thereafter, range from $99 to $150. Cirque du Soleil is famous for (among other things) not putting its best foot forward when one of its productions debuts. The company likes to get it in front of the public and tweak it. "There are still a few things that are going to evolve," production manager Stephane Mongeau said. "We're too close to it now. We need to get back, to see it with an audience. See how people are going to react, let it breathe, and then go back to the table and say, 'OK, here's something we have missed. Can we do something with it?' " Creator and director Robert Lepage said it is a tale about twins, a boy and a girl, who "are separated by fate and embark on a perilous journey to fulfill their linked destinies." "We wanted it to be an epic story told not with the use of words, but with the universal language of body movement and music." Epics can be unwieldy. This one is designed to be 90 minutes long. Mongeau said the first run-through on Oct. 11 took nine hours. "We stopped a few times," he said. But by Oct. 24 they were bringing it in at just under three hours. The Nov. 5 run-through lasted two hours. "Last week, we did it in one hour and 45 minutes without stops," Mongeau said. "With time, it will get shorter. Transitions are getting smoother. "The audience will make a difference." There is a cast of 75. One of the stars of the stage production is the stage itself. Cirque spent almost $12 million on a unique mechanical stage that operates in a void, at times becoming a mountain, at times a platform. Why not a standard stage as a base for the acrobats, dancers and puppeteers who move the story along? "Robert wanted to do a show about gravity, to change the perspective of the people," Mongeau said. "At one point they felt the seats could go back and the audience could look up in the air." That idea was rejected. "But he always wanted to change the perspective of the audience," Mongeau said. Mongeau, whose job is to keep the operation running as smoothly as possible during the start-up phase, has been with the production almost from the conception. "I've been there from day one," he said. "I was one of the first to start, and I will be one of the last to leave when the show is up and running." It has been an enormous project from the beginning, involving more than 500 people -- from technicians to artists and craftsmen. One of the earliest issues was which would come first, the production or the theater. They ended up working on them simultaneously. Besides the unusual stage and the creation of a customized theater that seats almost 2,000, Mongeau said it was difficult working with so many people from all over the world, each with their own cultural and artistic perspectives. "But we have always found a way to achieve our goals as a team," Mongeau said. He will leave the show in April, after tying up all the loose ends. Mongeau says he has not given any thought to trying to top "Ka." "You don't look for it," he said. "We've done it. Now I go for something more simple. I'm not looking for the next biggest project. I was excited to start this, but it is almost done." "Ka" will be the fourth member of Cirque's Las Vegas family, which also includes "Zumanity" at New York-New York, "O" at Bellagio and "Mystere" at Treasure Island. It is expecting its fifth Vegas child in May 2006, a show at the Mirage with a Beatles theme. Mongeau is talking with Cirque about future projects. "I don't know what I'm doing after this, but I'm not going to the Mirage," he said. "The first thing I will do is take a long break." He deserves it. Birthing babies is not an easy task, even for a family as large as Cirque du Soleil. In the Ring... -------------- Did you know that a Reuters photo by Max Rossi of a Saltimbanco performer kissing Pope John Paul II was selected by Reuters as one of their Pictures of the Year? Saltimbanco in the Americas? As oft rumored, Saltimbanco seems to be finally fulfilling a prophecy to return to the Americas with its first ever stop in Sao Paulo, Brazil. While this is only Cirque's official released stop on a combined South American/North American tour, OCESA, the entertainment company in Mexico that brought Dralion to the country in 2004), is rumored to have confirmed recently that Saltimbanco is scheduled to be in Mexico City around October 2005, followed in Monterrey in January 2006 and later appear in Guadalajara. Other rumored stops are as yet unconfirmed but place the production within the United States and Canada. Quidam, which is currently touring the Asia-Pacific region, has also been rumored to return to North American soil in 2006. [Thanks to Keith Johnson, Roderick and Rodolfo Elizondo] ======================================================================= CRQ.NET -- CIRQUE DU SOLEIL ONLINE ======================================================================= This Month in Cirque Club (By: Keith Johnson) ------------------------- Holiday wishes abound at Cirque Club this month. No less than 12 ways to send electronic messages, available in either Traditional Cards, Creative Cards (that add a special Cirque-ey note to your message), Animated cards, as well as two special Video cards - the first featuring performers from "O", Mystère, and KÀ, the other featuring La Nouba. These greetings in multiple languages are especially nice. The cards can be found at: < http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/ go.asp?p=3319&l=en >. Get 'em fast, they will probably not last past the season. CirqueClub has a nice article on Saltimbanco's performance for the Pope, and the next installment of their "History" series, looking at Alegria and Cirque du Monde. At the KÀ website, they have posted two more entries in Armand Thomas Stage Manager's Log, which looks to be the last of them. But the site also covers the first night well, with a long article and three photo galleries. And in their Press Release section they announce the creative team behind Cirque 2005, and even have a release talking about Cirque Club itself! In the Boutique, we're just starting to see how sophisticated their new site is. You now select the country you're from, and the site sorts items and displays availability and prices for your country. For example, the new DVD of "Midnight Sun" is available (though out of stock) for Canada residents, while it doesn't show up at all on the U.S.A. side. That might lead us to believe it will soon be issued by a stateside distributor but you can never tell. CIRQUE DU SOLEIL AND ME - There is an extraordinary contest in CirqueClub. Called "Cirque du Soleil and Me", if offers Quebecers only (sorry rest of Canada, the US, and the World) the opportunity to win a "dream" with Cirque du Soleil. Want to train a day with Cirque? Play in their band? Give the safety announcements at a performance? Here's your chance. The premise is simple; They are looking for 200 word-maximum stories , anecdotes or special moments folks have had with Cirque du Soleil. (They also want to know what your "dream" is, maximum 50 words.) They will pick 10 stories each week for 7 weeks (that all win Le Best of CDs) and publish them on Cirque Club. Cirque Club members then get to vote for their favorite. The final seven (that all win copies of the "20 Years Under The Sun" coffee-table book), will go into the finals, that are also voted upon by Cirque Club. The grand prize winner gets their "dream." Entries are accepted for seven weeks, starting Mondays on January 4 and ending February 20 The 10 weekly candidates will be posted the following Mondays, starting on January 17 and ending March 6. The seven finalists go head-to-head in a Grand Prize vote from March 14- 20. You can vote for one story per week, so check back each week to read 10 new stories and vote! But heed the rules - there are eleven pages of them! (Somebody was really thinking this contest through.) The maximum value of the "dream" is $5,000.00 CDN. It also must be "achievable." And it "must not include specific Cirque du Soleil people" (So nix on meeting Guy Laliberte in person). Cirque has the right to make alterations to the "dream" to make it achievable, and if that's unacceptable to the winner there is a "Compensation Grand Prize" (basically a weekend in Montreal with an IHQ tour, dinner with artists, and tickets to the 2005 touring show). And don't worry about the Fascination! staff entering, we're US-based. Not that we don't have a bunch of fun Cirque stories to tell, we just couldn't keep them to 200 words! In Cirque Club marketing messages: Anne-Josée wrote about Varekai's 1000th performance -- "The weeks have just flown by and with only 11 days left of our stay, it is almost time to bid you a fond farewell. The cast and crew want me to tell you how much they loved being in Dallas and how much they will miss it. If you have a ticket for this Friday's (12/3) matinee performance, you will be taking part in Cirque du Soleil history as Varekai is presented for the 1,000th time. I thought you might be interested in a few facts about what goes on behind the scenes. Did you know? -- Since its premiere in 2002, the tour has visited 18 cities and traveled over 15,000 miles. -- Over 310,000 bags of popcorn have been sold. -- The kitchen has served more than 420,000 meals. -- Five performers and three musicians have never missed a show. -- The show has used over 17,000 pounds of dry ice, and over 1,000 green LED lights for the fireflies. -- Over 500,000 red petals have fallen from the Varekai sky, and many more are sure to fall..." Above text courtesy of Cirque Club. ======================================================================= ITINÉRAIRE -- TOUR/SHOW INFORMATION ======================================================================= Note that any information in brackets [] is UN-official information and subject to change. [Touring Shows] Alegría: * Tokyo, Japan: Dates: Oct 29, 2004 to Jan 23, 2005 * Fukuoka, Japan: Dates: Feb 9, 2005 to Apr 3, 2005 * Nagoya, Japan: Dates: Apr 20, 2005 to Jun 12, 2005 * Osaka, Japan: Dates: Jun 25, 2005 to Aug 10, 2005 Cirque 2005: * Montreal, Quebec, Canada -- Jacques-Cartier Pier Dates: Apr 21, 2005 to Jun 19, 2005 * Quebec City, Quebec, Canada -- Galeries de la Capitale Dates: Jun 30, 2003 to Jul 17, 2005 * Toronto, Ontraio, Canada -- TBA Dates: Aug 4, 2005 - Aug 28, 2005 Dralion: * London, England -- Royal Albert Hall Dates: Jan 6, 2005 to Feb 6, 2005 * Barcelona, Spain -- TBA Dates: Mar 17, 2005 to Apr 24, 2005 * Rotterdam, Netherlands -- TBA Dates: Jun 3, 2005 to Jun 19, 2005 * Oostende, Belgium -- TBA Dates: Jul 21, 2005 to Aug 7, 2005 * Zurich, Switzerland -- TBA * Bilbao, Spain -- TBA Dates: Nov 18, 2005 to Dec 4, 2005 * Seville, Spain -- TBA Dates: Jan 12, 2006 to Jan 29, 2006 * Valencia, Spain -- TBA Quidam: * Auckland, New Zealand -- Auckland Showgrounds Dates: Dec 31, 2004 to Feb 12, 2005 * Melbourne, Australia -- The Oval at Melbourne Park Dates: Mar 4, 2005 to Apr 24, 2005 * Adelaide, Australia -- Bonython Park, Port Road Dates: May 12, 2005 to May 29, 2005 * Perth, Australia -- Langley Park Dates: Jun 30, 2005 to Jul 17, 2005 Saltimbanco: * Manchester, UK -- Trafford Centre Dates: Jan 6, 2005 to Feb 13, 2005 * Birmingham, UK -- StarCity Junction 6, M6 Dates: Feb 24, 2005 to Mar 13, 2005 * Boulogne Billancourt (West of Paris) Dates: Apr 8, 2005 to May 8, 2005 * Sao Paulo, Brazil -- TBA Varekai: * Houston, Texas -- TBA Dates: Jan 6, 2005 to Feb 13, 2005 * Austin, Texas -- Former Mueller Airport Dates: Feb 24, 2005 to Mar 20, 2005 * Pittsburg, Pennsylvania -- TBA Dates: Apr 9, 2005 to May 8, 2005 * Baltimore, Maryland -- TBA Dates: May 19, 2005 to Jun 19, 2005 * Hartford, Connecticut -- TBA * Columbus, Ohio -- TBA * Detroit, Michigan -- TBA * Charlotte, North Carolina -- TBA * St. Petersburg, Florida -- TBA * Miami, Florida -- TBA [Resident Shows] La Nouba: * Two shows Nightly - 6:00pm and 9:00pm * Performs: Tuesday through Saturday, Dark Sunday/Monday * Location: Walt Disney World Resort, Orlando (USA) * 2005 Dark Dates: -- February 6th - 9th -- August 28th - 30th -- April 3rd - 6th -- October 9th - 12th -- June 5th - 20th -- November 13th - 15th -- August 14th - 17th -- December 4th - 13th Mystère: * Two shows Nightly - 7:30pm and 10:30pm Beginning June 13th: Except Sundays; 4:30pm and 7:30pm * Performs: Friday through Tuesday, Dark Wednesday/Thursday Beginning June 9th: Wednesday - Sunday, Dark Monday/Tuesday * Location: Treasure Island, Las Vegas (USA) * 2005 Dark Dates: -- January 3rd - 18th -- July 10th - 12th -- February 6th - 8th -- September 12th - 20th -- March 13th - 15th -- November 13th - 15th -- May 16th - 24th "O": * Two shows Nightly - 7:30pm and 10:30pm * Performs: Wednesday through Sunday, Dark Monday/Tuesday * Location: Bellagio, Las Vegas (USA) * 2005 Dark Dates: -- February 20th - 22nd -- October 16th - 18th -- April 18th - 26th -- December 5th - 20th -- August 22 - 30th Zumanity: * Two Shows Nightly - 7:30pm and 10:30pm * Performs: Tuesday through Saturday, Dark: Sunday/Monday * Location: New York-New York, Las Vegas (USA) * 2005 Dark Dates: -- February 7th - 10th -- August 15th - 18th -- April 18th - 21st -- October 10th - 13th -- June 8th - Jun 16th -- December 7th - 22nd KÀ: * Two Shows Nightly - 7:00pm and 10:30pm * Performs: Friday through Tuesday, Dark Wednesday/Thursday * Location: MGM Grand: City of Entertainment, Las Vegas (USA) * Note: One show nightly at 8:00pm from Nov 26 to Dec 7. * 2005 Dark Dates: -- January 24th - 27th -- June 6th - 7th -- February 1st - 4th -- August 1st - 2nd -- March 23rd - 31st -- September 9th - 13th -- April 1st - 14th -- November 14th - 15th ======================================================================= DIDYAKNOW? -- FACTS ABOUT CIRQUE ======================================================================= IN THEIR OWN WORDS - Where we feature questions and answers from some of the people we've had the honor of meeting and talking with in the last three years. While we can't reveal identities, since several of them still work for Cirque, we think some of the things they have to say would be interesting to fans and aspiring artists and musicians. We asked a Cirque musician which gets more jobs - niceness, attitude (or self-confidence, some might call it arrogance), or talent? "To be really successful you have to have the total package. If you're a nice person but have no real talent or skills, you can only go so far. People hire people that can deliver "the goods" more or less. Likewise, if you're amazingly great at what you do but have lousy people skills, are dishonest, mean, or are bad in handling business, then as great as you may be talent-wise you will only go so far as well. I think you can be confident and very able without being a jerk or dysfunctional. But unfortunately I've found that most of the bad rap that musicians get is well deserved. A lot of musicians are one way or the other - either amazingly talented but impossible to count on and/or work with, or are really easy to work with but cannot do the job correctly and have very little talent. Then you have the nightmare person - the person who is a jerk, is mean and/or dishonest, and also cannot play or perform. And amazingly enough these people are working a lot. It's a strange brew. Personally I have learned from many over the years how not to be or act. I'm not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but my goal has been and is to be the best person I can be, deliver the best possible product, and help as many as possible whenever possible. I think with this philosophy success will follow you!" ======================================================================= LE SPECTACLE: "CirqueCon Montreal 2005 Update" By: Keith Johnson - Seattle, Washington (USA) ======================================================================= We've grown quite a bit since the first CirqueCon in Vancouver, and continue to grow. For comparison here are some figures from last time. Quite impressive for a first-time ad-hoc fan event! For CirqueCon Vancouver 2004 we had: -- 31 members total, all of whom attended Quidam -- 11 rooms rented at the "Headquarters" Bed and Breakfast -- 4 rooms rented by members at other places -- 15 total hotel rooms, approximately 33 room nights. Before Cirque sent their "marketing message" plug for us on December 7 we had achieved a nice level of members for Montreal. Of course after the message went out to 50,000 stateside Cirque fans we got an influx of new interest. (The numbers are broken out below for the figures- obsessed.) To date we have: -- 128 members total -- 54 purchased our $10.00 Standard membership (43%) -- 67 purchased tickets through us -- 34 purchased tickets elsewhere -- 101 total tickets purchased -- 36 rooms rented at the Marriott SpringHill Suites through us -- 5 rooms rented at other places -- 41 total hotel rooms, 118 room nights total at the Marriott (1/3 of their capacity) WOW! About on track with where I thought we'd be - triple Vancouver's figures. No doubt more people will surface between now and April, while others will pull out as finances become cloudier. We now have members from 26 states, 5 Canadian provinces (all the ones that touch the US except Manitoba), 4 locations in Mexico, and Perth, Australia. It is also clear this years' event won't be the intimate gathering of close friends we had in Vancouver. For some that might be a disappointment, but the potential to meet other new Cirque fans from all over North America should present new opportunities. The group ticket order deadline has passed. And the hotel reports they have no more rooms to give us for the time being, so we will have to start a waiting list and see if we can't recommend an alternate hotel. Now we need to look for a restaurant in the area that would be willing to host up to 100 diners at one sitting, yet all paying separately - a tall order. And, as always, you can stay in touch with the latest developments by visiting:< www.azlance.com/~richasi/Cirque/CirqueCon/ >. Wave One and Two numbers broken down: ------------------------------------- Before Cirque sent their "marketing message" (what I am calling "Wave One"), we had: -- 96 members total -- 39 purchased our $10.00 Standard memberships (40%) -- 52 purchased tickets through us -- 23 purchased tickets elsewhere -- 74 total tickets purchased -- 23 rooms rented at the Marriott SpringHill Suites through us -- 5 rooms rented at other places -- 28 total hotel rooms -- 80 room nights total at the Marriott After Cirque sent their message on Tuesday, December 7 we got an influx of new interest (what I am calling "Wave Two"). To date (Mon 12/20), our additional numbers are: -- 32 members total -- 16 purchased our $10.00 Standard memberships (51%) -- 15 purchased tickets through us -- 11 purchased tickets elsewhere -- 26 total tickets purchased -- 13 rooms rented at the Marriott SpringHill Suites through us -- 38 room nights total at the Marriott That's outstanding considering the sort amount of lead-time given. Even more impressive is that 80% of those that responded have already purchased tickets, so are likely to be in Montreal! ======================================================================= BEYOND THE BIGTOP: "Tales from the CirqueCon, Part The First" By: Keith Johnson - Seattle, Washington (USA) ======================================================================= We knew it was going to be a learning experience. As preparations for CirqueCon continue, we thought it would be fun to "tell the story" of our preparations. We're not whining about how hard it is, but some of the challenges we've faced have sure been, uh, interesting, and worth telling. So consider this the first of what we hope to be a running commentary. When CirqueCon Vancouver 2004 ended, the "instigators" (Jeff Tolotti, Ricky Russo, and I) started talking about the direction we should take. The issue was whether to keep it smaller and exclusive (a gathering of good friends), or larger and inclusive (the big tent). Over time, the thinking evolved that if we were to do another one, this time with Cirque's blessing from the start, the approach would have to be more inclusive. But this would mean it would be different from the smaller "gathering of close friends" that was CirqueCon Vancouver 2004. We knew it would be bigger, involve a longer lead- time, and present different challenges. And as we expected, new challenges sure did arise! But we knew we had to handle them simply and with as low cost as possible. Offering a "group purchase" of tickets was one of them. I was hoping we would function the same way we had for Vancouver - everyone buys his or her tickets separately. And when Cirque came to us with a proposal for a group purchase I hoped we could do the same thing - have Cirque set aside a certain number of tickets that could be purchased individually. But that's not how group sales work. They were happy to set aside a block of seats - and some of the best in the tent, in middle Section 205 directly surrounding the soundboard. They also offered us 200 tickets, which I felt was more than enough for our needs. But they wanted one check for the final purchase. So the only way to make it work was if we did all the accounting work in-house - taking tickets, processing money, paying Cirque and distributing the tickets back to our members. It would be a headache, but we thought if we came up with a simple record-keeping system we could make it work. It also sounded like a good service to offer our members. So we agreed and set up the tickets to be offered until the end of October. We converted the value of the tickets from Canadian dollars to US Dollars with exchange rates we had at the time (this will become important later). We set up a PayPal account so people could send money electronically, and erstwhile editor Richasi set up our "official" website. We got quite a lot of interest, but many people felt the date of the show (April 23, when several colleges are still going through finals) combined with the early cutoff (6 months prior to show date) meant they couldn't commit. I expressed this to our Group Sales contact at Cirque who, while noting the general public on-sale date had been postponed from November to December, allowed another month for taking tickets. So the new deadline became the end of November, and we got several more ticket purchases. At the end of November we had sold 52 tickets. We communicated that to Cirque, who faxed us an invoice to pay. Then we ran into our first, um, challenge. In the months since we first offered the tickets, the US dollar plunged 15% in value against most world currencies, including the Canadian dollar. So tickets that were worth $68.00 USD in July, were costing us $76.00 USD when it came time to pay in December. How embarrassing to not have accounted for that! It put us in a panic; this was something we weren't expecting. Yet having had contact with all our ticket purchasers, we suspected they would understand if asked to pay the balance. We are, after all, just fans doing this for other fans. But we had promised to get tickets in their hands before Christmas, so we couldn't hold them while we waited for extra money to come in. What to do? My wife LouAnna and I decided to cover the shortfall temporarily out of our own personal funds, advise all the tickets buyers and ask them to contribute an additional $8.00 per ticket. So far, we've had good response. With the invoice from Cirque in hand, we now had to pay for our tickets. Cirque takes some credit cards, cashiers checks or certified checks in Canadian dollars. We figured this would be no big sweat; we'd give them our American Express card and let the card do the Canadian to US dollar conversion for us (after all, that's what they recommend you do on vacation). So we happily gave Cirque the AMEX card and thought we were done with it. But the charge was rejected the first time as being too large for a card used as infrequently as our card was. After we reconfirmed our status with AmEx Cirque tried the card again, again without success - this time Cirque needed to provide AmEx with our billing address (a security measure). Finally, on the third try the charge was accepted. But then I found out it was a hundred American dollars more than I estimated. I then learned American Express charges a 3% fee for the conversion process itself, which, with the large amount of the invoice was somewhere in the range of the aforementioned $100.00. That was insane, it was way more than I would ever want to pay for that service. So I asked Cirque to cancel that charge and I would pay them in some other manner. They agreed to cancel the credit card but only when they had received some other form of payment (smart of them!). So I looked at any other way I could cheaply get payment to Cirque. Bank checks would cost between $35-45. I could wire the money directly to Cirque's bank account, but that would cost $60.00 and be too complicated. And it would cost $20.00 to send any check to Cirque via overnight mail. After looking at multiple options I decided on getting a "bank check" from my local bank (which would take four business days and cost $35.00), and overnight it to Cirque. Within a week the problem was handled. Cirque sent me the initial order of tickets, which my wife and I promptly divided, enveloped and mailed on December 10th. Meanwhile, Cirque had another idea brewing. While I was happy with our numbers, Cirque wanted to increase our participation. We felt we had covered as much of "Cirque Internet fandom" as we could with updates and posts to Cirque Club, Cirque Tribune, and the faulty Cirque du Soleil Yahoogroup. But they proposed something extraordinary - a special message from Cirque Club to a number of their vast database of Cirque Club members! While that was a nice offer, we privately wished they had come up with the idea sooner. In any case the deadline for tickets had already passed and tickets would soon be going on sale to the general public. They responded by offering to hold tickets another two weeks, until December 15th. Not only that, they offered to continue to hold our seats in Section 205 and also blocked the last two rows of the lower-priced Category 2 Section 203. With a shortened lead-time of two weeks, could we be "light on our feet" and responsive enough quickly enough? If Cirque was making such an extraordinary offer we felt we had to at least try. So we dropped everything and quickly revamped the website to reflect the new reality. We made sure we could easily handle any additional requests, though we really weren't sure how many we would get. A day later we told Cirque we were ready and waited for the message to be sent out. And waited. For a week. On December 8th a message went out from Cirque Club to 50,000 of their members. It said... "Is there anything more magical than Old Montreal in the springtime? Well maybe Old Montreal in the springtime during a Cirque du Soleil world premiere weekend! Some of our most dedicated fans are organizing an event next spring in Montreal for Cirque du Soleil fans from around the world. This unofficial gathering, headed by Keith Johnson from Seattle, Washington, will be taking place during the world premiere weekend of Cirque 2005 next April and we are thrilled to help him get the message out to you. - The event runs from Friday, April 22, 2005 to Sunday, April 24, 2005. - Cirque 2005 tickets for the conference are for Saturday, April 23, 2005 at 8:00 p.m. - The conference is organized by Keith Johnson, LouAnna Valentine and Ricky Russo. This event is not being organized by Cirque du Soleil but we will be there to help make it an unforgettable weekend! For more information, please visit their website < http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/go.asp? p=3288&l=en&m=97F504FC37CF4F0D96E9AEF9C6C4AD4F&v=0 >. See you in the spring!" Boy, what a build-up: "...An unforgettable weekend!" Thankfully they were saying it, not us, so it had some credibility. And the emails started rolling in. We added another 30 or so members who bought 15 tickets (and with others getting their own, 23 total tickets meant almost 80% would be going). But it was a rush to get people into the database and paying within the compressed week we had. But by putting in a whole lot of time, we got it done. With almost 100 people this isn't going to be anything like CirqueCon Vancouver. I'm sure that will disappoint some, who were looking forward to another intimate gathering of Internet-related friends, as Vancouver was. But we knew when Cirque suggested Montreal as our next stop that we would have to be more inclusive and thereby larger. Though we're right where I expected us to be - three times the members we had in Vancouver - our larger numbers present tactical problems. But that's mostly Cirque's issue; they will have to deal with 100 people for whatever we do with them. My next major project will be trying to find a restaurant that might be able to work with us on a group meal in a reasonable fashion. Have I mentioned searching for a hotel? THE HOTEL With Cirque pitching their 2005 show tent in their traditional location of Jacques Cartier pier in Old Montreal, I wanted to try and find a reasonably priced hotel within walking distance. Montreal has an excellent subway system, but I though we should first try to find a facility in Old Montreal. Though the area is full of hotels and inns most all of them presented two problems. First, they were all expensive. With 15% taxes their total cost per night averaged $180-200 USD. In our initial budgeting my wife and I had used a figure of $100.00 per night for lodging, basing that on what we paid for Vancouver. But that was a Bed and Breakfast outside of the downtown core. Now we were trying to look in-town, in the highest-rent area of town, filled with up-scale "boutique"-type hotels. Second, the hotels were small. We had rented 16 hotel rooms in Vancouver, and I felt that we would at least double and possibly triple it. So that meant we needed between 30 and 50 rooms. That threw out most of the hotels in Old Montreal. But there was one hotel that caught my eye, an offshoot of a chain well known in America for its quality; the Marriott SpringHill Suites Old Montreal. The hotel is a business-oriented facility (very similar to Residence Inn), offering amenities geared toward traveling businessmen. The rooms are slightly larger than normal and each comes complete with a double-sized sleeper sofa. In addition they offer a complete hot continental breakfast included with the room. And, most importantly, it was about 1/4 mile from the Cirque tent! But would they want to do business with such an "informal" event as CirqueCon? Once I convinced their sales department that we were really a large "family reunion" we were able to work out a deal. There was some risk on our end, as we had to guarantee the hotel a certain number of room/nights (1 room occupied for 1 night is one room/night). If we failed to reach our number of 62 we would be financially on the hook to the hotel, and would have to compensate them for any lost income. Potentially dangerous, but we felt we could easily fill 62 room nights. We convinced the Hotel to offer us a room/night price slightly better than any other deal out there (even the Internet) advising them our members wouldn't have any hesitation booking through cheaper means if available. Soon they were ready to open up the reservation lines to anybody who said they were with CirqueCon. But by our rules we had to restrict reservations to those that had paid for the research, namely paid Standard Members. So, once again, we were compelled to keep the process in-house. But after thinking through what we needed we made the offer to our Standard members and got quite a bit of response. We quickly filled 22 rooms, with their 80 room nights easily surpassing our minimum of 62. That made us feel a whole lot better, as we were off the (financial) hook! For the first 22 rooms everyone got the kind of room they requested. Then business realities kicked in. In terms of business to the hotel we are small fry. We don't want a lot of rooms, don't want to use and pay for function space, and want to do everything with as little cost as possible. Another, larger group reserving space in the hotel would be given preference. And so it was, with a large tour group checking in Thursday evening. After we had sent the hotel our first wave of room requests they informed us they only had 12 or so more rooms to give, and that they didn't have any two-bed rooms available. This could put a crimp on us, as I thought the double/double bedrooms would be quite popular. By this time Cirque was in preparation for sending their Cirque Club message, so we updated the website to mention the restriction and that the hotel would want a minimum two-night stay for any further reservations. Still we got an additional 13 room reservations, bringing our total to 35 rooms - 30% of the total rooms at the Hotel! And with that the hotel advised they had no more rooms available for the time being, so we have had to start a waiting list. That brings us up to date! The first wave of folks now has their tickets and room reservations. And "Wave 2" will be getting their tickets by the end of January. Next up on our agenda: getting our members to put their room reservations on their own credit cards. And looking for a place to eat. ======================================================================= LE SPECTATEUR: "Cirque Rituals: What do Fans do?" By: Ricky Russo - Orlando, Florida (USA) ======================================================================= Ritual: 1) the established form for a ceremony; specifically, the order of words prescribed for a religious ceremony. 2) ritual observance; specifically, a system of rites. 3) a ceremonial act or action 4) a customarily repeated often formal act or series of acts. Throughout the sports world, practicing a ritual throughout the sports world is a fact of life for fans and players alike. While the players may be more superstitious -- wearing a certain sock for the entire season, making sure they touch a certain part of a sign in their locker room, or never saying a certain phrase during an interview, for example -- fans also have their own regimen of superstitions and rituals they go through in order to help their team pull through or to celebrate the event as it occurs. As a fan of Cirque du Soleil, I often wondered then what fans of our chosen sport -- watching Cirque du Soleil productions -- do? So I posed that question to the Cirque fandom at large through the CirqueTribune forum and my own LiveJournal -- "Does anyone have a specific set of rituals they perform at Cirque shows or when listening to the music? The responses confirmed that yes, we Cirque du Soleil fans do perform certain acts or series of acts before, during, and after a Cirque du Soleil show, when listening to the music or watching on Television. And what are some of these rituals? Carrie, who goes by the nickname Ambergrey online, eloquently sums up what many no doubt experience before the start of a Cirque du Soleil show, when one first steps upon the site and basks in the glow of the Big Top. She told me she enters the VIP or regular tents before each show to look at everything. "Not only the stuff I want to buy," she says. "I look at the display items, the decorations. I watch what is going on and absorb the atmosphere. It makes me feel I am immersing myself into the world of Cirque [and] leaving my own every day [problems] behind. "When I get into the Grand Chapiteau right before they start the show," Carrie continues, "I close my eyes. My head empties of all else except what I am there for [and then] I am in another world for a precious two and a half hours." She doesn't care whether the artist messes up, a singer isn't quite on cue or she sees an act she doesn't care for. For Carrie, being on site listening and watching what is going on around her is her own celebration. "I'm still immersed in something that I love which is outside of my normal everyday life. It amazes me, the power of CdS -- the music and visually stunning performances and environments -- and how they allow me to immerse myself like that. So when I am at a show, I will 'center myself' if you will to emphasize that feeling and experience." Jeff Tolotti, who runs the online CirqueTribune forum, had this to say about his rituals: "My biggest has to do with the music, of course. When I'm within a month [of] seeing a show I don't listen to its music at all. Even though I'm completely familiar with every aspect of the music, I still feel like it makes hearing it live that much more special." He also confesses that he mimics the angel moves during "Malioumba" (the song that accompanies the "Flying Man" act in Alegría) and "I also snap my head to the side during a point in the Triple Trapeze (in Varekai), because Zara (the show's original female singer) used to do that." He's usually also "just about the first person to start the standing ovation on the first curtain call (after the artists have left the stage once)." Rod, who is known as "junebug" online, feels similarly as Jeff. He also leans to the left at the appropriate time in "Malioumba", but also gyrates his hips similarly like Sheetal Gandhi did in Dralion's handbalancing act. He's also known to summon the curtain away like Eugen in Cirque du Soleil's "O". Rie Sugawara, a huge Cirque du Soleil fan from Japan, says "when Quidam was in Tokyo, I bought something from the shop every time, [since] there were a variety of [original Japanese] goods [not available] in the United States or Canada." She also adds that, "when I was seated in the first row I wore a white shirt to be spotted by the clowns -- I was picked up twice! [And] I voiceless-copy (aka lipsynch) the opening MC in English, French and Japanese." "Jah206" says this about his daughter: "My daughter's favorite show is Alegría. We have seen it six times. Every time we went she would always go up to the stage steps after [the Snow Storm] at intermission and collect a handful of snow to keep." Gabrielle, A_La_Lune_719 online, has many things she does for her favorite show, La Nouba: "For starters, I always listen to the La Nouba CD and look at my La Nouba program before I go to sleep." Yes, every day, she adds, since she first saw the show in July 2003. "Any day I have a Cirque function [or] band concert I wear a Cirque shirt to school. I write out Cirque countdowns in my calendar for shows, new releases, etcetera." Exactly 30 days before a show she avoids listening to the show's CD (like Jeff) or "pretty much anything related to that show." Some like to work out to Cirque du Soleil, while others try and obtain the same section, row or exact seat at each performance. So what about yours truly, do I have any rituals or celebratory acts that I do before, during or for Cirque du Soleil shows? Yes I do. For instance... Whether I'm listening to the show's soundtrack or watching it live under the Big Top, I will always lean to the left at the appropriate time during "Malioumba", the same way the performer does just before he soars into the heavens. During performances of Mystère I will mimic the movements of the Taïko drummers during the Opening and Closing of the show, as well as scoot down in my chair for the Bungee act so I can watch them perform their angelic mastery in a surrealist-like mode. If I'm walking past the La Nouba Theater at Downtown Disney West Side and "Once Upon a Time" is playing on the LCD preview screen I will march past just like the Urbanites in the show. Or, on a good day, I'll crane by like Le Titan, complete with a scowl upon my face. During the Balancing on Chairs act in La Nouba, the Green Bird, originally played by Elena Day, has a hard time coping with the uncertainty of the stack of chairs and at some point makes her feelings known quite vocally, as she passes out. Her performance brings a tint of humor to an otherwise tense situation; I perform it right along with her either in the theater or while listening to the soundtrack. It's great! If I'm standing, I'll perform the same little leg kick that Ebon Grayman's Fleur did in Alegría at the start of the Russian Bar performance. If I'm not standing, I'll pretend I did by snapping my head in the same direction. In the crescendo of "Atmadja", which is a theme used throughout Quidam, but more specifically during the start of the show, I will mimic John's movements as Zoë places Quidam's hat upon her head. Also, during John's interstitial where he attempts to please Zoë by spinning rings around his bicycle handles he's conveniently placed in his suspenders; I will pull on my invisible suspenders the same way John does as the drummers file on stage. And while I'm sure there are others, like grabbing for snow at Alegría or watching Alice the Snail until the very last person leaves in Mystère, perhaps the Cirque Experience is best summed up by what "Jochen" does at the end of a performance. "I turn around at the last step [when exiting the Grand Chapiteau] and whisper 'I will return!'". Bravo! ======================================================================= THE CIRQUE CONNECTION: "What is a Charette Anyway?" By: Keith Johnson - Seattle, Washington (USA) ======================================================================= It never ceases to amaze when one of my interests occasionally crosses with my interest in Cirque du Soleil. I also keep track of Disney park fandom, and recently ran across some interesting prose. Laughingplace.com is one of the biggest and best places to get Disney- related news and information. They have a lot - of everything, from a website directory (with ratings), to park guides with trick and tips, to a merchandise ordering service, to several columns. One such column is by Bob Gurr, who worked as a Disney design engineer from 1954 to 1981, as well as being a much-in-demand mechanical design subcontractor since then. His column, "Designer Times," is now in its 56th installment, each one talking about a different design project Bob has worked on. This is one fascinating engineer, who has contributed mechanical designs to the Pirate Battle at Treasure Island, movies like Godzilla and Jurassic Park, tons of Disney (and other) theme park rides, and other things. Including being at the table during design discussions for the "O" theater! In an excerpt from one of his recent columns, Mr. Gurr describes the process in general terms. "One Las Vegas job extended over several years - The Cirque du Soleil "O" Show at the Bellagio Hotel. Late in 1994, Steve Wynn started formal monthly design charettes to figure out his dream for an underwater show. The conceptual design period was quite lengthy as the show toyed with outdoor, indoor, and motorized stunt shows a bit like the famed Florida Cypress Gardens. Steve had engaged the Cirque creators led by Guy Laliberte to be the show producers. "Steve had invited maybe twenty or so specialized subs to kick ideas around with the Cirque guys. I was so impressed with Guy's guys and their "cat off the wall" French thinking methods. This was a joyful time watching a fabulous show develop in a formal charette setting each month. Steve was a superb committee leader. One day Design Architect John Jerde and I enthusiastically doodled some ideas together in the meeting. "Gurr....shut up. Fellas, no sidebars. All your ideas are important and we will hear them together....no more sidebars". "At the end of every day, Steve would invite every single person to summarize their thoughts on the day's progress. He made sure we all had plenty of time to voice our concerns, good and bad, before we ended the meeting. It was hard for the first guy, but everyone voiced freely after that. I never forgot that lesson. If you hire talent, listen to it all....not just get guys to sanction your scheme in silence. What a lesson for organizations that value creative success." For those confused, as I was, about what exactly a "charette" is, one definition defines it as, "An intense effort to solve any architectural problem within a limited time. From a creative standpoint, a Charette can be divided into three portions: Listen, Envision, and Draw Fast!" You can find the complete article, as well as other installments in his series, at: < http://www.laughingplace.com/News-Previous-C- GURR.asp > And while you're at www.laughingplace.com take a bit of time to explore the site, there's lots to see for any Disney fan. Thanks to Mr. Bob Gurr and Laughing Place Head Honcho Doobie Moseley for allowing us to reprint this excerpt. ======================================================================= SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION ======================================================================= Fascination! is a monthly newsletter, available only through sub- scription. To subscribe, please send an email to: < CirqueFascination- subscribe@yahoogroups.com >. To unsubscribe, please send an email to: < CirqueFascination-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com >. To view back issues, please visit our Yahoo! Group address at: < http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CirqueFascination/ >, login using your Yahoo! ID (required) and select the Files menu option. If you have any questions, feel free to email us at: < CirqueFascination- owner@yahoogroups.com >. Have a comment, question or concern? Email the Fascination! Newsletter staff at: < CirqueFasincation-owner@yahoogroups.com >. We are anxious to hear any and all comments! ======================================================================= COPYRIGHT AND DISCLAIMER ======================================================================= "Fascination!" is Ricky Russo, Keith Johnson, and Wayne Leung. "Fascination! Newsletter" is a concept by Ricky Russo. Copyright (c) 2001-2004 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. =======================================================================