Thursday, September 25, 2008
Illusionist Angel joins Cirque du Soleil
Variety: "But at the Luxor Hotel on Halloween, that's all about to change, as Cirque teams up with Criss Angel for the Montreal-based company's first celebrity-driven show. 'Criss Angel Believe' is billed as a fusion of Cirque and magic, and as a trip deep inside the TV magician's head.But at the Luxor Hotel on Halloween, that's all about to change, as Cirque teams up with Criss Angel for the Montreal-based company's first celebrity-driven show. 'Criss Angel Believe' is billed as a fusion of Cirque and magic, and as a trip deep inside the TV magician's head."
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8 comments:
This article leaves me wondering who is getting the better end of this deal: Criss Angel or Cirque du Soleil? As the article mentions, 'Criss Angel Believe' is definitely going to up Criss Angel's celebrity profile, but he is already a very well known magician. Obviously Cirque du Soleil expects to benefit from that, and they seem very confident that they have a unique enough show that will prove to be a success.
This makes me nervous. The thing I love about cirque in las vegas is it, in most cases, derails the typical las vegas spectacular show. The reason for this is that the show brings in elements from around the world and has much more of an artistic agenda (which also gets them a lot of money). I worry with this new show, one which has a star performer, they will lose that worldly ensemble feeling and become much more of a spectacular.
Criss Angel is, to quote a favorite movie of mine, a no talent ass clown...
Kinda interesting to step back and see how cirq is evolving. Going to be really weird in my mind how they are going to fuse the two styles but should be down right fun to bring in the magical aspect to their acts.
When I first read the title of the article, I was concerned. I have an enormous amount of respect for Cirque, what they do, and what they stand for. Over the years, they have continued to reinvent and redefine entertainment in a wholly different and exciting way.
Joining forces with someone like Chris Angel seems like a step in the corporate direction -- a step away from their outlandish and bold artistry. I'm sure they wouldn't do something they weren't sure of -- that the didn't think was "selling out" as it were, but I worry that branching out into too many genres will make the Cirque legacy and the art form they have in sense created less impactful.
Although I do enjoy illusionists, adding Angel to the show would take away from "the show being the star" which is a little depressing. I mean, they will get a lot more money for this, but at what price?
I've been hearing about this partnership for a while now, but I've yet to hear any specifics about the design or intent of the shows. still, i'm eager to hear reviews from after it opens, it's definitely going to be 'different'
I think that Cirque is betraying its integrity by teaming with Criss Angel. I've seen Angel's tv show quite a bit, and I've always found it to be more presentational and sensationalized than actual illusion and talent. What Cirque has always done well is present not-so-famous people doing amazing things, but with Angel it will be a famous person doing not-so-amazing things.
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