Variety: The One Drop foundation, founded in 2007 by Cirque du Soleil founder Guy Laliberte, has a straightforward mission: “ensure that water is accessible to all, today and forever.”
“I chose water because as an artist, it is an important source of inspiration,” says Laliberte. “But I also learned at the time that one child dies every 20 seconds for not having access to clean water.”
7 comments:
It's amazing that we can get people on the moon, but we still can't get clean water for everyone on earth.
It is great that Cirque does this. I must say that I am amazed, not shocked or surprised at the price of some of the bids on the link in that article. (two tickets to the premier of Michael Jackson ONE in Las Vegas at $10,000 and had 9 bids). It is great that there are people with overflowing amounts of money who are interested in helping this very worthy charity, however sometimes charity events sicken me.
However I must say that One Drop Foundation's founder Guy Laliberte knows what to auction because they got quite a few bids and I am sure that people paid much more for each item than its estimated value. Also it is great that all of the proceeds of their shows for that one night went to the foundation.
This is a fairly creative way to raise money and its very heartwarming to see the founder of such a successful entertainment company putting so much effort into a great charity.
Im curious how much money the single night's take brought in for donations. Not to mention having the shows go dark and all of the performers come out and join in the one night for the one drop.
In these economic times where a company like cirque just announced not very long ago. having to make major cuts and lay offs still has a founder who wants to go out of his way to aid a worthy cause is nice to see from the corporate side.
Someone once told me that theatre, what i do, is a selfish profession. And when thinking about it, I would say that can be true. But then again there are shows and organizations such as cirque and Broadway cares that give back to the world. I volunteered to help put on a small production sponsored by Broadway cares for a shelter in NYC for teenagers who were kicked out of their homes and I was really glad that shows like those were available to be produced.
I love when theatre goers and workers and people of the like come together for a worthy cause, no matter how big or small the cause may be. It's nice to know that for some people this isn't just a career, it's a way to help out others while doing what you love and doing what you do best. This foundation is a great way to just get your name out there in the business (even though cirque is by far one of the most well known companies). Seeing things like this really just bring me back to why I'm doing what I do; to help out and to give back to those in need.
When I went to see Cirque's Totem over winter break, there were signs everywhere that reminded us that a good portion of the merch proceeds went to the One Drop Foundation. I had no idea that Cirque had a charity they supported, and I'm so happy they do. This also reminds me of how much our high school district collectively supported Broadway Cares and the camaraderie that came with finding out how much money we all raised together by doing what we loved and being able to help people at the same time.
This is super cool, its a great goal to strive for. Although I don't really agree that its a simple one as they state at the end of the article. I guess it is in theory but there is a reason that its hard to get water to everyone. I imagine this is focused mostly in Africa but we have plenty of water (and on another note food) to feed everyone the issue is transport. Noone can afford to send that much water across the ocean without actually selling it once its there. Its charities like this that help to make that more possible. Im glad that as crazy as Guy Liberte is he is devoting so much time and energy to help solve this problem. Although a part of me wonders how much Cirque can actually afford to do this considering the article last semester about how they were laying off so many employees?
I think it is great that Cirque is giving back to the world, but I wonder if they see the hypocrisy in show business. The Cirque show O uses 1.5-million-US-gallons of water. SERIOUSLY? Do they even care about the charity or is it just for good publicity? I think we should all look around us and see how wasteful we can be. It is not just even waste. Hypocrisy is everywhere. With genocides, we always shout "Never Again," but we never actually do anything until it is too late. We feel angry at world hunger, but not when we're eating a three course meal. I think all humans are self-interested no matter what they say.
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