Press Kit - Cirque du Soleil

Press Kit
Overview
Dralion ™ is a signature Cirque du Soleil® production acclaimed
by close to eleven million people worldwide since it premiered in
1999 in Montreal, Canada. After many years performing under
the big top, Dralion is now presented in arenas around the world,
with the same quality performance.
Fusing the 3,000 year-old tradition of Chinese acrobatic arts with
the multidisciplinary approach of Cirque du Soleil, Dralion draws
its inspiration from Eastern philosophy and its never-ending quest
for harmony between humans and nature. The show’s name is
derived from its two emblematic creatures: the dragon,
symbolizing the East, and the lion, symbolizing the West.
In Dralion, the four elements that govern the natural order take
on a human form. Thus embodied, each element is represented
by its own evocative colour: air is blue; water is green; fire is red;
earth is ochre. In the world of Dralion, cultures blend, Man and
Nature are one, and balance is achieved.
Bearing the unmistakable signature of Cirque du Soleil and
featuring 50 international acrobats, gymnasts, clowns,
musicians and singers, Dralion soars to new heights as it defies
the laws of nature.
Acts
Aerial Hoop
Aerial Pas de Deux
Bamboo Poles
An awe-inspiring creation of strength and agility,
this exotic aerial ballet captures the passion and
energy of its signature element, fire. Suspended
from a hoop high above the stage, the artist
presents an evocative choreography in which the
hoop and body become one in a dance of acrobatic
precision.
Pas de deux is a languorous aerial dance. An
intertwined couple flies over the stage in a long
band of blue cloth. Within the cloth, they perform
various acrobatic figures that demand great feats of
strength and flexibility.
In Bamboo Poles, six men balance long decorative
poles symbolizing fire. A traditional act of the
Chinese acrobatic arts, the performers keep the poles
‘in flight’ overhead while performing acrobatic feats
on the ground.
Dralions
Handbalancing
Hoop Diving
A blend of the traditional Chinese dragon and lion
dances takes on new scope when reimagined by
Cirque du Soleil. In a dynamic and energetic
tumbling sequence, the artists perform acrobatic
moves while balancing on large wooden balls as
the dralion characters surround them with a
spirited dance.
This act requires great strength and flexibility.
Displaying impressive control, the artist balances
on canes of various heights, slowly executing a
series of astounding figures while maintaining a
delicate equilibrium.
Derived from Chinese acrobatic tradition, the Hoop
Diving act takes on a tribal flavor from the Africaninfluenced music to which it is performed. Sixteen
male artists dive and throw themselves like arrows
through small wooden hoops. The hoops are stacked
on top of each other; some are stationary while
others rotate.
Juggling
Medusa - (Act in rotation)
Skipping Ropes
With stylized choreography that makes the most of
his incredible flexibility, the artist incorporates a fastpaced performance with hints of modern dance. His
incredible precision and mastery of his art are evident
as he juggles up to seven balls simultaneously.
The artists execute graceful and lithe movements
which emphasize their extreme flexibility and
balance. Together, they create extraordinary and
harmonious figures.
A children’s game familiar to everyone, the
skipping rope takes on a new dimension in
Dralion with a heightened level of acrobatic prowess.
As the artists keep time with the long skipping ropes,
they perform flips, make pyramids and even
form a human column.
Trampoline
Crossed wheel
Diabolo
Defying the laws of gravity, fearless aerialists
bounce off trampolines using the futuristic
backdrop both as a diving board and landing pad.
They cascade perilously through the air performing
spectacular stunts at a dizzying pace.
In the Crossed Wheel act, the artist and the wheel
become one. He has mastered this unique acrobatic
apparatus, turning, spinning and maneuvering the
wheel while performing gravity-defying acrobatics.
The diabolo, or Chinese yo-yo, is a children’s game
which involves holding two sticks linked by a string
while sliding, juggling and tossing a wooden spool.
With increasingly difficult maneuvers, the artists
attempt to outdo each other in dexterity and
ingenuity.
Characters
AZALA (Air)
GAYA (Earth)
OCEANE (Water)
Azala is the goddess of Air. She is the guardian of the
sun and immortality, floating above timeless space in
hues of blue.
Gaya is the goddess of Earth. She possesses within
her human warmth (fire) and the cool, fresh vitality
of life (water). She adorns herself in ochre.
Oceane is the goddess of Water. As queen of
movement she controls, through the art of dance,
the movement of the oceans. Her universe is green.
YAO (Fire)
KALA
Little Buddha
The guide to the fiery demons; Yao commands the
rhythm of the show. He symbolizes both good and
evil. He sees life in vivid red.
KALA is the heart of the wheel that represents time
and the infinite cycle. He is the internal propulsion
of the wheel that makes time evolve. It is the
ongoing circle of life.
The Little Buddha is the chosen child. Although it
possesses special powers that will allow it to
eventually become an Âme-Force, it dreams of being
just a regular child.
Costumes & Make-up
The primary sources of inspiration for the costumes of Dralion come from
China, India and Africa. The palette favors vibrant solid colors, while the
shapes are guided by the artists’ movements and choreography.
Each of the four elements and its associated family are represented by
their own unique color. Blue is identified with air, green symbolizes water,
red is for fire, and ochre represents the earth.
Facts
•
All the original costumes were designed and built in Montreal by the Costume
Workshop team, over several months back in 1999 at the birth of the show.
• The costumes often evolve over the lifetime of a show and new designs are
sometimes added. For example, our Skipping and Dralion costumes where
redesigned when the show made the move to arena.
• Over 5,000 meters (16,000 feet) of fabric was used in creating the original
costumes and 1000's more each year as costumes are replaced and renewed.
• The
fabrics come from all corners of the globe, including China, the United
States, Italy, France, England, Australia and Quebec.
• Much of the fabric on the show started life cream and was hand painted
or hand dyed in Montreal making some of the costumes unique and one off.
For example our Hoop diving costumes.
• Often
unusual materials are used in creating costumes and accessories, for
example horse hair, colored raffia, metal & plastic springs, faux fur and even
cable ties.
• Each
item of costume is made to measure for an artist, starting with over
an hour long process of body measurements, matching skin tones and creating a 3D
cast of their head, on which their hats and headpieces are built.
•
One costume look can be made up of between 3 to 8 individual items.
• There are over 3,000 costume items made up of shoes, hats, accessories
and costume pieces.
•
The wardrobe team is made up of 4 permanent employees who tour with the
show and at each city 3 local wardrobe staff joins to help with the set up,
laundry and daily running of the show.
• The team travel with 7 washing machines, 3 dryers, 24 rolling racks and 12 fans.
Most costumes can be machine washed with upwards of 26 loads of washing
being done at the start of a city and upwards of 9 loads during and after a show.
Some of the more delicate items have to be hand washed. All costumes are
hung over night on the rolling racks in front of fans too dry.
• The team travels 58 road cases just for the wardrobe department. 12 of those are
full of costumes worn in the show and 7 are filled will back-up, replacement and
stock costumes. The rest is laundry supplies, sewing kits, spare fabric, back-up
shoes, make-up, cutting table and back-up hats.
• The costumes are checked every day for damage and repaired for that
day’s performance.
• Over 300 pairs of shoes are painted and repaired at the start of a city, making
sure they are safe and show ready.
• There are over 19 different types of shoelaces on the show.
• Its takes over an hour to set the Little Buddha wig each week and an extra
hour to style it.
• It takes wardrobe a day and a half to set up from scratch in a new city and be
ready for the first show but only a few hours to pack it away.
• All artists do their own make-up. They can be in training for 16 hours to learn
their personally designed make-up. Each artist’s tools are different but some can
use 25 brushes, 10 different colors and take an average of 60 minutes to apply
their make-up to be show ready.
Music
Blending Eastern and Western sounds to create rhythmic and lyrical motifs,
the electric and acoustic Dralion score draws its inspiration from classic Indian
melodies, weaving in influences from Andalusia, Africa as well as Central and
Western Europe.
The band is composed of six musicians and two singers who perform
live for every performance.
Set Design
A mammoth structure creates the huge backdrop that dominates the
stage. This metallic set piece is 60 feet wide and 26 feet tall and is
suggestive of a futuristic Chinese temple or a giant plate of medieval
armor.
The most imposing feature is the wall which spans the full length of the
stage. Covered with perforated aluminum tiles, the wall is strong and
resilient while giving the impression of being light and flexible. The six giant
claws attached to the structure allow artists to climb and suspend
themselves from the wall.
Three concentric aluminum rings are suspended high above the stage. The
first serves as a catwalk for performers and technicians. The second is used to
support technical and acrobatic equipment, including the enormous lantern
that descends at the end of the first half of the show. The third ring is used to
move performers up, down and through the world of Dralion.
Creators Original Design
Guy Laliberté
Guy Caron
Gilles Ste-Croix
Stéphane Roy
François Barbeau
Violaine Corradi
Luc Lafortune
Guy Desrochers
Harvey Robitaille
Guide and Founder
Set Designer
Lighting Designer
Director
Costume Designer
Original sound designer
Director of Creation
Composer
and Musical Director
Julie Lachance
Choreographer
Sound Designer
2010 Restaging
Sylvie Galarneau
General Artistic Director
Lin Yung Biau
Assistant Choreographer
Eleni Uranis
Make-up Designer
Pierre Guillotte
Production Manager /
Arena Shows
Cirque du Soleil at a Glance
From a group of 20 street performers at its beginnings in 1984, Cirque du
Soleil is a major Québec-based organization providing high-quality artistic
entertainment. The company has close to 4,000 employees, including
1,300 artists from close to 50 different countries.
Cirque du Soleil has brought wonder and delight to close to 150 million
spectators in more than 300 cities in over forty countries on six continents.
Cirque du Soleil International Headquarters are in Montreal, Canada.
For more information about Cirque du Soleil, visit
www.cirquedusoleil.com
The mission
The mission of Cirque du Soleil is to invoke the imagination, provoke the
senses and evoke the emotions of people around the world.
The creation of Cirque du Soleil
It all started in Baie-Saint-Paul, a small town near Québec City in Canada.
There, in the early eighties, a band of colourful characters roamed the
streets, striding on stilts, juggling, dancing, breathing fi re, and playing
music. They were Les Échassiers de Baie-Saint-Paul (the Baie-Saint-Paul
Stiltwalkers), a street theatre group founded by Gilles Ste-Croix. Already,
the townsfolk were impressed and intrigued by the young performers –
including Guy Laliberté who founded Cirque du Soleil.
The troupe went on to found Le Club des talons hauts (the High Heels Club),
and then, in 1982, organized La Fête foraine de Baie-Saint-Paul, a cultural
event in which street performers from all over met to exchange ideas and
enliven the streets of the town for a few days. La Fête foraine was repeated
in 1983 and 1984. Le Club des talons hauts attracted notice, and Guy
Laliberté, Gilles Ste-Croix and their cronies began to cherish a crazy dream:
to create a Québec circus and take the troupe travelling around the world.
In 1984, Québec City was celebrating the 450th anniversary of Canada’s
discovery by Jacques Cartier, and they needed a show that would carry the
festivities out across the province. Guy Laliberté presented a proposal for a
show called Cirque du Soleil (Circus of the Sun), and succeeded in
convincing the organizers. And Cirque du Soleil hasn’t stopped since!
A FEW STATISTICS
• In 1984, 73 people worked for Cirque du Soleil. Today, the
company hires close to 4,000 employees worldwide,
including 1,300 artists.
• At the Montréal International Headquarters alone, there are
close to 2,000 employees.
• More than 100 types of occupations can be found at
Cirque.
• The company’s employees and artists represent close to
50 nationalities and speak 25 different languages.
• More than 100 million spectators have seen a Cirque du
Soleil show since 1984.
• Close to 15 million people will see a Cirque du Soleil show in
2013.
• Cirque du Soleil hasn’t received any grants from the
public or private sectors since 1992.
TOURING SHOWS IN ARENAS
In 2014, Cirque du Soleil
will present 19 different
shows around the
world:
UK, Europe
Europe
TOURING SHOWS UNDER THE BIG TOP
North America
North America
South America
Europe
Japan
North America / New Zealand
North America
North America
RESIDENT SHOWS
Treasure Island in Las Vegas
Bellagio in Las Vegas
MGM Grand in Las Vegas
The Mirage in Las Vegas
New York-New York Hotel &
Casino in Las Vegas
Luxor in Las Vegas
TM
Walt Disney World® Resort
in Orlando, Florida
ARIA Resort & Casino at
CityCenter in Las Vegas
MJ ONE at Mandalay Bay
in Las Vegas
Cirque du Soleil, Sun Logo, Alegría, Dralion, Quidam, Varekai, Corteo, KOOZA, OVO, TOTEM, Amaluna, Kurios, Mystère, “O”, Zumanity – the Sensual Side of Cirque du Soleil, La Nouba, KÀ, Zarkana, are trademarks
owned by Cirque du Soleil and used under license. The trademark LOVE is owned by The Cirque Apple Creation Partnership and used under license. The Beatles is a trademark owned by Apple Corps Limited. The
trademarks CRISS ANGEL and Believe are owned by Criss Angel and used under license. Michael Jackson THE IMMORTAL World Tour is a trademark owned by Cirque Jackson I.P., LLC. Trademarks used under
license. The Michael Jackson name, image, likeness and associated trademarks and logos are owned by Triumph International, Inc. and used under license. © 2010 Cirque Jackson I.P., LLC.
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