Cirque du Soleil redefines circus experience
'Dralion' hits 1stBank Center stage in Broomfield Feb. 8-12
HOOP DIVERS: Hoop Diving is one of the many performances featured in Cirque du Soleil s Dralion, which plays the 1stBank Center Feb. 8-12. Photo by Daniel Desmarais/ Courtesy of Cirque du Soleil ( danieldesmarais.com )
from: broomfieldenteprise.com
By Dylan Otto Krider For the Enterprise
01/18/2012
Canadian-based Cirque du Soleil set out to re-imagine the travelling circus, but ended up supplanting it in many ways. Take "Drallion," for instance, one of the most popular and enduring Cirque shows, which runs Feb. 8-12 at the 1stBank Center in Broomfield. The show is a fusion between the circus traditions of East and West, including 52 performers from 15 countries, half of whom are Chinese acrobats. The name itself is a combination of symbolic circus animals, the dragon and lion.
Ringling Bros., long considered the standard-bearer of the circus, instead has been following in Cirque's footsteps with shows such as "Dragons!," which incidentally, features the same cast of lions, elephants and trapeze artists its had for more than a century.
Cirque was started by Guy Laliberté who dropped out of college to tour Europe as a folk singer and busker, or street performer. When he returned to Canada and found himself unemployed, he organized a summer fair with friends Daniel Gauthier and Gilles Ste-Croix that would become Cirque du Soleil in 1984.
Cirque is now a live entertainment behemoth of its own. What began as a "dramatic mix of circus arts and street entertainment" exploded in the '90s from one show to 19 in 271 cities. In recent years, it began converting its big top tent show for arenas such as the 1stBank Center, which seems to be going well, because the show keeps coming back.
Julie Desmarais, spokeswoman for the "Dralion" show, said the show still has moments that generate plenty of "ooohs" and "ahhs" from the audience. The secret has been that, unlike Barnum & Bailey, which hasn't changed much since it combined with the Ringling Bros. at the beginning of the 20th century, Cirque shows keep adding new elements. "We always keep the show fresh," Desmarais said.
Ringling Bros., long considered the standard-bearer of the circus, instead has been following in Cirque's footsteps with shows such as "Dragons!," which incidentally, features the same cast of lions, elephants and trapeze artists its had for more than a century.
Cirque was started by Guy Laliberté who dropped out of college to tour Europe as a folk singer and busker, or street performer. When he returned to Canada and found himself unemployed, he organized a summer fair with friends Daniel Gauthier and Gilles Ste-Croix that would become Cirque du Soleil in 1984.
Cirque is now a live entertainment behemoth of its own. What began as a "dramatic mix of circus arts and street entertainment" exploded in the '90s from one show to 19 in 271 cities. In recent years, it began converting its big top tent show for arenas such as the 1stBank Center, which seems to be going well, because the show keeps coming back.
Julie Desmarais, spokeswoman for the "Dralion" show, said the show still has moments that generate plenty of "ooohs" and "ahhs" from the audience. The secret has been that, unlike Barnum & Bailey, which hasn't changed much since it combined with the Ringling Bros. at the beginning of the 20th century, Cirque shows keep adding new elements. "We always keep the show fresh," Desmarais said.
CHAIRS IN ROTATION: The chairs act in rotation is one of the many performances featured in Cirque du Soleil s Dralion, which plays the 1stBank Center Feb. 8-12 Photo by Daniel Desmarais/ Courtesy of Cirque du Soleil ( danieldesmarais.com )The performers are always working on new tricks, and they bring a creative team with the show to recalibrate routines, she said. "Each show has its own story line and provoking imagery," Desmarais said. The costumes still more closely resemble modern Broadway musical extravaganzas than red-nosed clowns.
"Dralion," with performers representing the four elements -- water, air, fire and earth -- debuted 11 years ago and got a complete re-staging in 2010. The show now includes 26-foot-high trampoline walls with "five performers defying gravity."
But Cirque also has stuck around because it doesn't tinker with the things that work -- the show is still 80 percent the same, and "Dralion" has endured because, of all the shows, it perhaps best represents the multicultural approach that wowed audiences when the first show launched back in 1984.
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