CMU School of Drama


Monday, September 26, 2011

IRIS Premieres Tonight!

Fascination Newsletter: Cirque du Soleil and CIM Group present tonight the world premiere of IRIS, a new major, resident production created exclusively for the Kodak Theatre at the Hollywood & Highland Center, home of the Academy Awards®, on September 25. Proudly presented by Sun Life Financial, IRIS is written and directed by French stage and film director, artistic director, dancer and choreographer Philippe Decouflé.

4 comments:

Luke Foco said...

After so many major shows closing it is nice to see at least Cirque is still interested in producing new works. With the amount of film and Disney adaptations on Broadway today I am glad to see something with some artistic integrity instead of straight market appeal. I am also glad to see that Cirque has a presence in Los Angeles which I thought was a major market that they had not tapped into.

Liz Willett said...

What I find so fascinating about Cirque is their incredible ability to have strong corporate roots and collaborations, while maintaining a strong sense of artistic integrity and purpose. Cirque's roots are based in a collaboration of French art and circus performance, while maintaining to stay alive through collaborations with CIM group.

While I am extremely happy that Cirque is still able to create, produce and maintain original work, I wonder what effect the corporate nature of their company has had on the original content and delivery of their work. Cirque is not only able to make work that is beautiful to an untrained eye, but they deliver an intricate and detailed product that skilled designers and technicians can look up to. Having this model set, I wonder if there are other companies attempting to achieve a similar goal, or if they simply fizzle out due to Cirque's reputation.

david p said...

Cirque is one of those organizations that keeps dishing out smash hits regardless of the economic climate. I would rank them in the same realm as Pixar, who's least successful film still generated millions overnight. It's great to see Cirque du Soleil putting out a new show every year or so and have it climb in popularity. With each new show, Cirque only increases public demand for their work and makes an even bigger name for themselves. It's the best kind of snowball effect.

Jennifer said...

I too am really excited for Cirque to finally have a present in LA. I think it is a smart move to incorporate themes and ideas from film and television as this will create an automatic in for the native population who are either involved in that world or surrounded by it. I hope for many reasons that Cirque maintains a presence in LA, either with Iris or other shows. I've always wanted to work for Cirque but have been less than enthused about the prospect of living in Vegas. Having fallen in love with LA this summer, this show gives me hope that I could potentially live in my favourite city and work for my favourite company (if I'm lucky). I hope that they do well and find a well of support in what was formally an untapped city.