Initially named Les Échassiers, they toured Quebec in 1980 as a performing troupe and encountered financial hardship that was relieved by a government grant in 1983 as part of the 450th anniversary celebrations of Jacques Cartier's discovery of Canada. Le Grand Tour du Cirque du Soleil was a success in 1984, and after securing a second year of funding, Laliberté hired Guy Caron from the National Circus School to re-create it as a "proper circus". Its theatrical, character-driven approach and the absence of performing animals helped define Cirque du Soleil as the contemporary circus ("nouveau cirque") that it remains today.
Each show is a synthesis of circus styles from around the world, with its own central theme and storyline. They draw the audience into the performance through continuous live music, with performers rather than stagehands changing the props. After financial successes and failures in the late 1980s, Nouvelle Expérience was created – with the direction of Franco Dragone – which not only made Cirque profitable by 1990, but allowed it to create new shows.
Cirque expanded rapidly through the 1990s and 2000s, going from one show to 19 shows in over 271 cities on every continent except Antarctica. The shows employ approximately 4,000 people from over 40 countries and generate an estimated annual revenue exceeding US$810 million. The multiple permanent Las Vegas shows alone play to more than 9,000 people a night, 5% of the city's visitors, adding to the 90 million people who have experienced Cirque worldwide. In 2000, Laliberté bought out Gauthier, and with 95% ownership, has continued to expand the brand. In 2008, Laliberté split 20% of his share equally between two investment groups Istithmar World and Nakheel of Dubai, in order to further finance the company's goals. In partnership with these two groups, Cirque plans to build a residency show in the United Arab Emirates by 2012. However, since Dubai's financial problems in 2010 caused by the 2008 global recession, it has been stated by Laliberté may be looking for another financial partner to bankroll the company's future plans, even willing to give up another 10% of his share. Several more shows are in development around the world, along with a television deal, women's clothing line and the possible venture into other mediums such as spas, restaurants and nightclubs.Cirque also produces a small number of private and corporate events each year (past clients have been the royal family of Dubai and the 2007 Super Bowl).
Cirque's creations have received numerous prizes and distinctions, including a Bambi Award in 1997, a Rose d'Or in 1989, Drama Desk Awards in 1991 and 1998, three Gemini Awards, four Primetime Emmy Awards, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
After Steve Wynn sold his Mirage Resorts to MGM in 2000, Laliberté received a call from Terry Lanni, CEO of the MGM Mirage. Lanni had been eager to capitalize on the previous successes of Cirque du Soleil in Las Vegas and offered to fund the production of two more shows, Zumanity and Kà.
Directed by Canadian theater veteran Robert Lepage, Kà drew heavily on martial arts for its inspiration. The story centers around the adventures of a pair of imperial twins. Unlike most Cirque productions, the story of Kà was more concrete and linear, more narrative and less abstract. First premiering in November 2004 at the MGM Grand, KÀ became Cirque's fourth resident show in Las Vegas. It was also the largest and most expensive production the company had created to date. By the time it had been completed, KÀ had cost more than $220 million, of which more than $30 million was in costumes and $135 million was the theater itself, the bill for which was paid entirely by the MGM Grand.
Corteo is a Cirque du Soleil touring production that premiered in North America in 2005. Corteo—"cortage" in Italian—is a show about a clown who watches his own funeral taking place in a carnival-like atmosphere. Inspired by "The Grand Parade: Portrait of the Artist as Clown" on display at the National Gallery of Canada, in many ways Corteo is a throwback to the older and more lighthearted Cirque productions like Saltimbanco.
Directed by Daniele Finzi Pasca, the founder of the Swiss clown troupe Teatro Sunil, Corteo takes place on a large circular stage, consisting of separate rotating rings set inside each other. This allows for one area of the stage to move around the stationary action occurring inside the ring. Occasionally during the performance, the stage is divided by a large curtain with a painting on it called the "Corteo Procession". There are entrance/exits at either side of the circular stage.
Delirium was a Cirque du Soleil live music event created in conjunction with Live Nation. Instead of being a standard touring show, it was a multimedia/theatrical arena production that featured remixes of existing Cirque music and reinterpretations of performances. This show was choreographed by So You Think You Can Dance's Mia Michaels. After an extensive North American tour, and a short European tour, the show retired on the April 19, 2008, in the O2 Arena in London.
Love premiered in 2006 at The Mirage, Las Vegas and consists of panoramic sound and visuals along with a cast of 60 international artists. Born from a personal friendship and mutual admiration between George Harrison and Cirque founder Guy Laliberté, Love brings Cirque du Soleil together with the musical legacy of The Beatles through their original recordings. Using the master tapes at Abbey Road studios, Sir George Martin and his son, Giles Martin have created a soundscape of Beatles music for Love.
Koozå is a touring production that premiered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on April 19, 2007. The show's music is partly inspired by the music of India. Koozå makes use of a large traveling tower on the stage called a "bataclan". The bataclan moves over the course of the show and reconfigures the performing space.
This show was directed by David Shiner, who had previously worked as a clown in Cirque du Soleil's production of Nouvelle Expérience. His experience as a clown and past work with Switzerland's Circus Knie informed his work on Koozå. The show's title is derived from a Sanskrit word that means "magical container".
Wintuk was performed at the Theater at Madison Square Gardens in New York City and ran for 10 weeks each winter holiday season from 2007 to 2011. A family-based and specifically themed semi-permanent residency show, Wintuk was about a young boy living in a large, snowless city waiting for the first snowfall that never comes. With the help of four other companions in search of their place in the world, they journey to an imaginary Nordic country, where they experience the rich culture of the Northern peoples and bring back snow to the city in a snowstorm. The show was formally retired with its final performance on January 2, 2011.
Based at The Venetian Macao, Cotai Strip, the 90-minute production opened in August 2008 and brings together 75 high-calibre artists from all four corners of the globe. The show is directed by Neilson Vignola and Gilles Maheu.
Zaia presents a young girl's perception of the stars and planets, space and infinity, all populated by a panoply of fantastic, out-of-this-world creatures. The title, Zaia, comes from a Greek name meaning "life" and is also reminiscent of Gaia, the living, self-aware spirit of Earth.
Zed was a residency show at the Tokyo Disney Resort that opened on October 1, 2008. Film director François Girard created a show surrounded by the titular character, drawn on the Tarot and its arcana that holds up a mirror to ourselves and the human condition through a variety of other characters as he unites the divisions between the people of the sky and Earth. The show closed December 21, 2011, due to the economic impact caused by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.
In late 2008 Cirque du Soleil collaborated with MGM to create a resident show at the Luxor hotel in Las Vegas, featuring Criss Angel, fusing his signature illusions and artistry with acrobatics, dance, puppetry, music and poetry to attempt to tell a story of the exploration of his mind. Originally scheduled to open on September 26, 2008, preview performances were delayed due to "technical difficulties", and the show eventually hosted its gala opening on October 31, 2008.
Despite enthusiastic promotions from Cirque du Soleil and Criss Angel, including a guest performance on American reality TV show So You Think You Can Dance, which resulted in sales of more than $5 million in advance tickets, Believe received an uneasy reception from fans and critics alike. Audience members were quoted saying the production was a "waste of time" and "dead end", while the show received harsh reviews from critics for lack of magic and overall cohesion of the production. Producers responded to these complaints by adding numerous additional illusions to the performance and revamping the show in April 2010.
Ovo (Portuguese for "egg"), was created and directed by Brazilian dancer/choreographer Deborah Colker – the first woman to create a Cirque production—that heavily relies on Brazilian music and some dance performances mixed in with the traditional circus arts; premiered in Montreal in 2009 and is currently touring North America. The show looks at the world of insects and its biodiversity where they go about their daily lives until a mysterious egg appears in their midst, as the insects become awestruck about this iconic object that represents the enigma and cycles of their lives.
Banana Shpeel was a touring theatre show which premiered on November 19, 2009, at the Chicago Theater. The vaudeville-based production was directed by David Shiner, who also created Koozå. The show only lasted for a very short time, only playing in Chicago, New York City, and Toronto. The show was eventually cancelled in 2010, due to the many complications and poor reviews it was receiving.
Viva Elvis, developed in partnership with Elvis Presley Enterprises, began previews on December 18, 2009, in a specially designed, 2,000-seat theatre at the new Aria Resort & Casino at CityCenter in Las Vegas.
CKX, Inc., the company that owns the rights to Elvis Presley's name, likeness, and music publishing, signed an agreement to have Cirque create the Elvis-themed residency show. The gala premiere was originally scheduled for January 2010 on what would have been Elvis' 75th birthday, but was postponed until February 19, 2010. The Elvis Presley Projects will include additional touring and its multimedia presentations, along with "Elvis Experiences" (interactive multimedia exhibits). One touring Elvis show is planned for Europe/Asia for 2010, with one "Elvis Experience" outside the United States. One new Elvis Presley Project is scheduled to open each year from 2009–2015.
Totem is a touring show which premiered in Montreal on April 22, 2010. It was created and directed by previous collaborator Robert Lepage (Kà). The show began its tour in Canada before heading to Europe. This was a change from the company's usual touring routes, the next stop usually being San Francisco, as Cirque already has three touring shows (Ovo, Koozå and Alegría) in the United States.
Cirque describes Totem's theme as the evolution of mankind from its primordial, amphibian state toward the aspiration of flight, taking inspiration from many of mankind's founding myths.
Zarkana is a touring arena show which will play in both Radio City Music Hall in New York City as well as the Grand Kremlin Palace in Moscow. Zarkana will also tour in other cities, although it will be seasonal in New York City and Moscow. The show began previews on June 9, 2011, at Radio City Music Hall and premiered on June 29, 2011. The show will be a reinvention of the variety show, with a story about a magician in an abandoned theatre who has lost his love and with her, his magic has disappeared. As he cries and begs the Gods for her return he is plunged into a world inhabited by surreal creatures.
Iris, a movie-themed permanent show directed by Philippe Decouflé, is the first show produced by Cirque du Soleil to be located in Los Angeles, California that premièred on September 25, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre. The show takes spectators on a fantastic voyage through the history of cinema and its genres, transporting them into the heart of the movie-making process and takes a unique look at the history of cinema and combining that with Cirque du Soleil's traditional artistic works of dance, acrobatics, and modern circus traditions. The name of the show, Iris, is taken directly from both camera diaphragms as well as the colored iris of the human eye.
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