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on the technology of LOVE and LE REVE. 3) "The Years of a Clown" is an older article (from 2003, so some facts were out of date when this issue was released) featuring a portrait of longtime Cirque clown Brian Dewhurst.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