Cirque du Soleil CEO drops clue about ‘Drawn to Life’ debut at Disney

[Disney4me]

When Cirque du Soleil announced Wednesday which of its shows would be reopening, one title was conspicuously missing: “Drawn to Life,” which was originally expected to debut at Walt Disney World in the spring of 2020.

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By MATTHEW J. PALM

ORLANDO SENTINEL ARTS WRITER

APR 21, 2021 AT 7:32 PM

Cirque du Soleil performers gather onstage at their Disney Springs theater after a March 3, 2020, media preview of "Drawn to Life." (Matthew J. Palm / Orlando Sentinel)

 

When Cirque du Soleil announced Wednesday which of its shows would be reopening, one title was conspicuously missing: “Drawn to Life,” which was originally expected to debut at Walt Disney World in the spring of 2020.

The new Disney Springs show, presented through a Disney-Cirque partnership, is the successor to the popular “La Nouba” show, which ran 19 years in its distinctive white tent-like building before closing on Dec. 31, 2017.

A Japanese rhythmic gymnastics troupe is one of the featured acts in "Drawn to Life," a new production from Cirque du Soleil and Disney. (Walt Disney World / Courtesy photo)

On Wednesday, Cirque du Soleil announced two of its resident Las Vegas shows will open this summer; “Mystere” on June 28 and “O” on July 1. Tickets for the productions are already on sale.

Return dates were also given for a pair of touring productions: “Kooza” will open in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, on Nov. 25 and “Luzia” will return to London’s Royal Albert Hall on Jan. 12, 2022.

Gymnasts, ‘aerial pencil’ give preview of Cirque du Soleil-Disney ‘Drawn to Life’ show

Although no mention was made in the official announcement about “Drawn to Life,” Cirque du Soleil CEO Daniel Lamarre gave a rough idea of the opening date in an interview with the Los Angeles Times.

“We should be able to open sometime in the fall,” Lamarre told the California newspaper, saying the company was “honored to have the opportunity to do a show with the IP [intellectual property] of Disney.”

Daniel Lamarre, president and chief executive officer of Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group, pictured in 2019 (Anthony Devlin/Getty)

Fall will be a busy time at Walt Disney World as it celebrates its 50th anniversary. New lighting will decorate iconic structures such as Cinderella Castle at the Magic Kingdom, the resort’s first theme park, which opened Oct. 1, 1971. A new attraction, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, is scheduled to open Oct. 1 at Epcot’s France pavilion.

“Drawn to Life” tells of 12-year-old Julie who is sent on a quest by her late father, an animator. The 90-minute show will be filled with the acrobatics and other circus arts Cirque du Soleil is known for. During the early stages of the pandemic, the opening date was repeatedly rescheduled, but ticket sales were eventually halted.

First visit inside the revamped Cirque du Soleil big top at Disney Springs

The past year has been particularly tumultuous for Cirque du Soleil, which laid off 95 percent of its work force, filed for bankruptcy and subsequently reorganized under new ownership. The company also owns the Blue Man Group, which it acquired in 2017.

Universal Studios Orlando, which had hosted more than 6,000 Blue Man Group performances at CityWalk between 2006 and March 2020′s pandemic shutdown, announced in February that its show would not return.

For more on “Drawn to Life” go to cirquedusoleil.com/drawntolife.