Perhaps Cirque du Soleil’s most famous show, O (pronounced “eau”, for you French speakers) is arguably the production that cemented Cirque’s reputation as the leading nouveau circus troupe in the world.
While the earlier Mystère (1993) was the first production to set up a permanent shop in Vegas (it’s still running at the Treasure Island Casino), it was O that definitively established Cirque as the hottest show in town. With its bespoke performance space inside the Bellagio, featuring 1,800 seats and a 5,700 m3 pool of water, it’s an astounding achievement. Whether you’re a Cirque novice or a seasoned veteran, O is the one show – permanent and travelling alike – you owe it to yourself to seek out.
It’s no secret that we’re huge Cirque du Soleil fans here at the Toronto Guardian (here’s our recent coverage of the stellar ECHO in Toronto), but for years O has been our holy grail.
Designed by the late Franco Dragone, who joined Cirque in 1985 and was one of founder Guy Laliberté’s earliest and closest collaborators, O is inspired by the “infinity and elegance of water’s pure form”. Dragone’s production combines the stunning aerial work that Cirque is known for with elaborately choreographed, Esther Williams-like aquatic feats.
The first thing you notice when stepping into the O auditorium is the scent; that warm, familiar, chlorinated smell that conjures childhood memories of summers by the poolside. The next thing you notice, naturally, is the enormous pool up front and centre, where a stage might normally be. (One of the nice things about O‘s opera house-style auditorium is that there isn’t a bad seat in the house.) An elaborate opening number, with too many dizzying acrobats and synchronized swimmers to keep track of, sets the mood.
O is relatively short, only ninety minutes with no intermission. But that hour-and-a-half packs a wallop, featuring no less than a dozen acts, not including the synchronized swimmers who are largely present throughout and in-betwen the other acts, performing impressively choreographed routines even as eyes remain largely glued to the above-water performers.
Highlights include the death-defying High Divers, who leap from 60 feet above stage into a frighteningly small target, and the “Bateau”, a ghostly, Flying Dutchman tribute from which a team of 11 performers swing and balance in a variation of the aerial cradle. Other highlights include the Russian Swing, which sends acrobats flying and flipping through the air before landing with an elegant splash in the pool. Various trapeze acts – solo, dual, and group – all do a wonderful job of combining sky and water, the choreography sending the artists deep underwater and back up again sky-high to impressive effect.
From a purely visual standpoint, the most exciting O routine is simply branded “Fire”. Invoking ancient folklore and martial arts, it features a pair of fire dancers who dance and juggle their way across the stage while, improbably, setting fire to the pools of water their fellow performers had been swimming in just moments ago. Most nights, you can even catch famed stuntman Ray Wold doing his best Wish You Were Here.
There are, if not exactly weak spots, then certain routines which fail to take advantage of the watery setting. The Contortionists, in particular, are like any other contortionists you might see at a Cirque du Soleil show, though in fairness it’s a spectacular contortionist act in O.
We also wish there would have been more of the synchronized swimmers. Choreographed by Debra Brown and Olympic gold-medallist Sylvie Fréchette, the team is made up of 17 world-class swimmers, and it’s too bad they aren’t handed the spotlight more often. (Especially given the inordinate amount of time handed over to O‘s painfully lame “clown” routines.)
Since opening in October 1998, O has been performed more than 8,000 times, to over 14 million guests. It’s not the only permanent Cirque in Las Vegas – here’s a handy list while you’re planning your next vacation – but it’s certainly the most striking.
With a cast of 85 performers and a series of stunts which take them from underwater depths to dizzying acrobatic heights, it’s unlike any circus you’ve ever seen. It also makes for a pretty wicked Imagine Dragons music video.
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Tickets for Cirque du Soleil O are available here.
