Cirque du Soleil is back in Kyiv
Show Alegria will be presented at the Palace of Sports in Kyiv on June 20 through 30 and visitors of the Hryshko Botanical Garden can admire floral sculpture designed by a member of the show Singer in White, whose prototype is a Ukrainian singer Mariana Sobol
Concerts of the famous company can be called tours on numerous demands of the audience. Two years ago Cirque du Soleil (Circus of the Sun) made its first appearance in the Ukrainian capital, showing filigree capabilities of the human body and captivating the hearts of people of all ages with the skillful performance. Tricks of incredible complexity and beauty performed by athletes and acrobats made both children and adults hold their breath. And now Ukrainian people got another chance to meet the world-renowned circus.
Show Alegria (the name translates from Spanish as “holiday” and “joy”) is a lyric production that tells the story of the changing eras, about love and dreams, about nature of power and transferring its secrets from generation to generation, about old age and youth… The production of Cirque du Soleil has received worldwide recognition. The premiere of the show was held in 1994 in Montreal, and in 2009 Alegria (in a format of arena show) started touring in different countries.
The production involves 55 artists from 15 countries. By the way, acrobats, tightrope walkers, and gymnasts perform all of their extremely complex numbers without using safety wires. Music is performed live for the show by two vocalists – Black and White Singers (one of them is the Ukrainian singer Mariana Sobol, who became the first Russian-language singer in the history of Cirque du Soleil) accompanied by musicians of a small orchestra.
Three clowns are the guides of the circus trip. They speak some gibberish language, but people in all countries understand them well. The audience will sure remember the number “Snow Storm.” It was invented by the famous clown Viacheslav Polunin (he presented it in the program of Cirque du Soleil for a few years and then started his own program). This time mime Maksym Fomichov will be struggling with the snow storm of confetti.
By the way, currently the staff of the Cirque du Soleil has about 1,300 artists (about one-third of all artists came from the states of the former Soviet Union). The artists explain this correlation by good training and endurance of the artists. How do they get to work for Cirque du Soleil? Ukrainian singer Mariana SOBOL told The Day about the casting procedure and the peculiarities of the show.
“After graduating from the Kharkiv Academy of Culture, I went to Macao (a city in China on the coast of the South China Sea) to get contact. In 2008 I saw my first show of Cirque du Soleil. I was greatly impressed by the show! It combined theater, music, and circus art. I am a jazz singer and after seeing the show I realized that I now dreamed of singing for Cirque du Soleil. Castings for the troupe of the world most famous circus occur in a variety of different locations around the globe. For example, I took it in Hong Kong. I had a cold then, but decided, despite of my poor health, to try anyway. More than 100 singers of different genres, from pop to opera style, came to the audition. I sang a few compositions, including the song “Mirko” which opens Alegria. The administration of Cirque du Soleil decided that my voice suits their show the best. However, I had to wait for a place in a troupe for two years. You know, when I received a phone call and was told that I got the role of the White Singer in Alegria I then started to believe in miracle and that dreams come true. This is how I became the first singer from the post-Soviet states in history of Cirque du Soleil.”
Mariana, please tell us about your troupe, is it friendly and what are the relations between the artists in this star team?
“All 55 artists of our troupe are like one big family. We travel together, live in the same hotel, fly in one airplane, and ride the same bus, but we never get tired of each other. We can even go on vacation together. Moreover, often families are created within the troupe.”
In your opinion, what are the peculiarities of the show Alegria?
“Alegria is a pearl of Cirque du Soleil. The show has been touring for 19 years already and during this time it was seen by a record number of spectators – 14 million people. For me, as a singer, it is especially pleasant that Alegria, among other things, is famous for its music. Alegria’s soundtrack remains the most popular track from Cirque du Soleil audio CD. Over a million copies of the CD were sold worldwide. By the way, music from Alegria show stayed in the famous Billboard chart for 65 weeks and was nominated for Grammy. And, believe me, every number in this show is an unforgettable spectacle. When 100,000 paper snowflakes are flying into the hall with the audience when Snow Storm is on the stage, when during the number with fiery knives the stage goes on fire with the beat of Tonga drums, and when acrobats jump down from 12-meter-high tower, it all will sure impress the audience. The show in Kyiv is very important for every actor in our troupe, and for me, as a Ukrainian, it is especially important and we all hope for the support of the audience. Another important fact is this will be the last tour of Alegria, the show closes in December… This is a good chance for Kyiv residents and people from other parts of Ukraine who will come to Kyiv to see and feel the amazing world of Alegria!”
