LUZIA by Cirque du Soleil captivates audiences around the world, but how do they bring the magic to your town?
Cirque du Soleil captivates audiences around the world with their mesmerizing acrobatic shows each and every night! What most don’t see or realize is exactly what it takes to bring these shows to your town! LUZIA by Cirque opened yesterday here in Orlando and I got the chance to take a look backstage and speak to some of the performers to see exactly what it takes to bring a full city in a tent to life!
LUZIA is one of Cirque du Soleil’s tent shows. Cirque showcases 3 types of shows: resident shows which are in a theater that does not move, arena shows which are adapted to go into and out of an arena then move to the next city, and lastly (and my favorite) tent shows which are small cities built in and around tents in vacant lots where the magic takes place!
There is something mystical and romantic about tent shows that I cannot describe fully until you experience it for yourself. These shows are intimate and control every sense of your body while taking you back in time to the old days of circuses and the wonder surrounding them!
LUZIA takes an amazing 65 tractors to bring the show to your city. This includes Le Grand Chapiteau (the big performance tent), the VIP tent, the artistic tent, kitchen, offices, and more! The small city takes an average of 8 days to put up and almost 3 days to tear down and move to the next city! The show utilizes their own power so they only rely on the water and telecommunications from the city they go to run the show!
I got to spend some time in the artistic tent which is considered “home” to the performers. This is where the performers’ condition, get ready for the show, stretch, get into costume, practice, and even relax between numbers! This tent is always located directly behind the main stage and is usually off limits to people, but I got a chance to take a look around and showcase some of the amazing things backstage!
Costuming:
Cirque du Soleil showcases some amazing costumes that transform performers into animals, props, and other things for the show seamlessly. The costuming department, which consists of 7 people for LUZIA, make sure the costumes are in top condition, free from tears, and are cleaned in between shows for the comfort and protection of the performers! Cirque even travels with their own washers and dryers to make sure the costumes are beautiful, clean and in great working order for each and every performance!
Workout and Practice Space:
This area is where the performers stretch, workout, condition, and practice their skills daily to make sure they are on top of their expertise. This area is also where performers practice new skills and routines that could be added into the show to keep the shows fresh and push the performers to keep their skills up while shocking and wowing the audience regardless if you have seen the show before or not! You would be surprised to know that performers spend multiple hours a day doing cardio, strength training, stretching and practicing regardless if there is a show that day or not!
Lastly, let’s talk about the stage itself. LUZIA utilizes water features which are not easy to have, especially in a travel show! There is a trailer dedicated to just water to make sure that the water is conditioned, heated, and safe for the performers and audience alike! The show travels with each piece of the tent from the massive 82 feet masts down to the 2600 seats that fill the tent where the audience sits.
As you can see, Cirque takes a lot of time, effort, money, and care at delivering these shows to your city! Make sure you check back soon for my review of LUZIA! I want to personally thank LUZIA and the staff, crew, performers, and management for allowing me backstage yesterday to immerse myself into your world!
Jason Mayhew
My name is Jason Mayhew, and I am the owner of OFF On The Go. When not traveling with the website, I own my own marketing and PR company, J Mayhew Marketing. I have the best job where I get to travel the world and showcase the most amazing and unique experiences!
