Cirque du Soleil is known for its breathtaking and innovative shows, and Corteo is no exception. This show will be presented at the Climate Pledge Arena, from March 2-5, 2023, and I was fortunate to get a behind the scenes look at the production ahead of its opening night.
Costume Design
One of the most striking elements of any Cirque du Soleil show is the costume design. For Corteo, the costume designer set out to accentuate the natural beauty of the artists. This is very evident in the makeup worn by each cast member, as you can see much of the human face compared with the elaborate makeup designs in other Cirque du Soleil performances.
The show has over 80 costumes for Corteo’s cast which use more than a hundred different fabrics and trims. Most of the fabrics were dyed, sublimated and silk screen printed to give them a patina of age.
The costumes for the angels are especially elaborate. On average, each angel dress requires 25 meters of fabric which translates to over 500 meters of material (or the approximate length of five football fields). I was told that the dresses for the four main angels are valued at around $34,000 each.
As I toured the costume area backstage, a fun surprise was seeing the differences in the shoe sizes used in the show. The smallest shoe size in the show is a children’s size 3 and the largest is an 18 EEE!!! You see these shoes in action during the Helium Dance act where Mauro the Dreamer Clown dances with his little Clowness as she floats above (thanks to the support of several enormous helium filled balloons).
Stage Design
In addition to the costumes, the show has some incredible technical elements that look effortless to the audience but take an incredible amount of work to coordinate behind the scenes.
One of the unique elements is the use of a rotating stage. The rotating stage is divided in two, with each half of the audience facing the other half. This is a first for Cirque du Soleil and it lets the audience see not only the performance, but also have a performer’s-eye-view of the audience on the other side. It seems like a fitting design for a show about a clown and his life on stage.
With the audience split in two and the stage positioned in the center, the show has two backstages (one on each side). Of course, I asked the question of what happens if someone accidentally walks offstage on the wrong end. Do they need to run around the arena? And in a show of true Cirque du Soleil magic, I was shown that they actually have a small tunnel beneath the stage. Performers can lie down on a skateboard and zip along to the other side as needed. This brilliant team thinks of everything.
The “Patience” and the art of Rigging
During the behind the scenes tour, I had a fascinating talk with Francois Bellemare, the Arena Rigging Specialist, about the unique challenges that come with rigging the infrastructure for a touring show.
One of the most challenging elements for the rigging crew is The “Patience.” This is a massive technical structure made of steel above the stage. It is one of the most complex set elements in the show and is used to transport artists, various scenic elements and pieces of acrobatic equipment on and off stage from above.
The Patience has three rails that traverse the stage. Each rail is fitted with two platform-like carts to carry the scenic and acrobatic elements. Each of the six carts have a lifting capacity of 500 lbs and a top speed of four feet per second. The Patience is 40 feet above the stage and is entirely suspended from the ceiling structure of the arena.
Mr. Bellemare shared that while he works from a basic plan, each arena presents its own challenges with rigging. He uses an incredible amount of math to calculate how to safely attach each element to the arena’s structure. The job also involves complex project managing skills as the various show elements need to go up in a particular order. At the conclusion of the show, he usually has about four hours to fully disassemble the rigging and to load it onto one of the show’s 22 support trucks so that it can be driven to the next stop on the show’s tour.
Performer Training
While I was shown around behind the scenes, onstage several performers were training and perfecting their act. The performances are video recorded and shown on a screen with a 20 second delay. This lets the performers watch an instant replay of their movements and to get notes from the director. It was fascinating to watch this process and to see these talented artists continue to hone their craft.
Tickets and Dates for the Show
Tickets for Corteo in Seattle are available at cirquedusoleil.com/corteo and they just released some additional seats for each performance.
Performance Schedule
- Thursday, March 2nd, 2023 at 7:30pm
- Friday, March 3rd, 2023 at 7:30pm
- Saturday, March 4th, 2023 at 3:30pm & 7:30pm
- Sunday, March 5th, 2023 at 1pm & 5pm
It was exciting to get a behind the scenes look at Corteo and I left with a greater appreciation for all it takes to produce a show at this scale. From concept development to costume design, technical requirements, and stage design, each element of the show must come together seamlessly for each performance. The cast and crew make it all seem effortless, which is a true testament to the power of collaboration and creativity, and the magic of Cirque du Soleil.
