Practitioner focus: Cirque du Soleil

Founded in 1984 by a group of Quebec-based street performers, Cirque du Soleil grew from humble beginnings into a global entertainment giant. Prior to COVID-19 forcing a pause on live performances everywhere, the company had 21 shows running internationally, both in residency and on tour, with several more in production. Many cite Cirque du Soleil as having redefined circus: what it is, and what it can be.

While originally Cirque du Soleil drew on many influences to form their unique style, 36 years on the name is as much that of the company as it is a genre of performance. Their style of work varies with each show, however, key characteristics are:

• Each show has its own unique theme/aesthetic
• High-risk acrobatics are very much the focus of the work
• The shows are often populated by avant-garde, colourful characters
• Multiple languages are often used, and some shows even use a made-up language (‘Cirquish’)
• Strong visuals: there is detail and intricacy in the visual presentation of the work

While circus is at the heart of everything Cirque du Soleil does, the company often blends other art forms into its work, for example puppetry, physical theatre, dance, magic, synchronized swimming and ice skating.

Themes

Cirque du Soleil shows are to some extent defined by their themes, and the company deliberately creates each piece to look and feel distinct and different from the last. Some shows have a loose theme that dictates the overall feel and energy of the piece (e.g. Varekai, Alegria); some pay direct tribute to another artists’ work (e.g. The Beatles LOVE, Michael Jackson ONE, Toruk based on ‘Avatar’); others are highly conceptual (e.g. Ovo, Amaluna, O, Kurios). The company is not restricted to any particular theme or notion, but rather seeks to explore and embrace each theme it chooses through every aspect of the work which is then created.

Exercises

The following two exercises are used to explore Cirque du Soleil's clowning/physical theatre/character creation methods.

Exercise 1

• Invite students to make walking passes across the room, one by one.
• For the first pass, each student should choose a body part to lead with and allow that to influence their movement and gait.
• During the second pass, this same body part should lead, however the students may allow the movement to become exaggerated and extreme, and if they feel adding vocalisation helps to explore this, they may do so. Note: no words should be used, but noises of effort, inhalation or exhalation might be interesting.
• For the third and final pass, students should build on this movement exploration, allowing a characterisation to emerge. What is the character doing as he or she crosses the space? What are they looking for/running from? What is the intention?

Exercise 2

• Ask students to get into pairs for this improvised mime exercise.
• One person in each pair should begin in neutral. Their partner is going to mime doing something bad to them! The person in neutral will observe the actions and react to the actions when they understand what is happening. They should mime fully ‘taking the hit’, recovering (even if the recovery is absurd), and then should mime doing something ‘bigger and more outrageous’ to their partner in return. This continues, and ideally there will be a build of extremity in terms of the action with each new mime.
• An example: Person A is neutral. Person B mimes blowing up a big balloon and then popping it in the face of A. A reacts, recovers, and then mimes filling a large bucket of water, which is thrown over B. B reacts, and then mimes something ‘worse’ than the bucket of water. And so on and so forth.
• The aim of the exercise is to achieve absolute clarity with the mime, and to be disciplined and precise in terms of reacting to the action, recovering from the action, and then delivering a ‘bigger blow’.

Exercise 3: Design/Show conceptualisation

• Working in small groups, task students to create and explore a brand-new concept for a Cirque du Soleil show.
• You may wish to begin this exercise by asking the students to research existing and past Cirque du Soleil shows. They should look at the themes that have been explored and the technology that has been used, in order to allow them to go on and come up with a new concept that is unique and different.
• Each group should create a mood board and model box to present their show concept.

Elements for students to consider include:

• Show venue: Will this be a touring or resident show? Will it take place in a big top, arena, existing or purpose-built venue?
• What will the overall aesthetic of the work be, and how will this be reflected in the set design, costumes, lighting and music?
• How will the acrobatics be placed in the show? Which specific acrobatic acts will take place, and why? What other characters, acts or art forms might be used?

www.cirquedusoleil.com