When you ask people to describe Cirque du Soleil, the first thing they mention is acrobatics. Their eyes grow wide as they try to demonstrate thrilling moments involving death-defying – yet beautifully-choreographed – leaps and dives and how-can-they-possibly-do-that movements.
Las Vegas’ new Cirque du Soleil show, “R.U.N,” opens on October 24 at Luxor – and it’s a game-changer. There are hardly any acrobatics in the show, and those are performed by riders on electric motorcycles.
“We are definitely doing something different,” laughed director Michael Schwandt, one of the most well-respected stage directors in the world and creative director of the new hit TV show, “The Masked Singer.” “We’re taking an iconic brand and changing audiences’ perceptions of it.”
The groundbreaking new show draws its inspiration from action movies and graphic novels, and is Cirque du Soleil’s first live action thriller. The story follows a striking bride as she leads a series of fast-paced chases, brawls and stunts through the city’s fictional underbelly.
“R.U.N” is dark and edgy, and it immerses audiences in a gritty urban environment that – thanks to set designer Bruce Rodgers and his team – feels so real, you’ll forget you’re in a Las Vegas resort.
And that’s before the show itself even begins.
“It’s all about transitions,” explained Rodgers. “We gradually move you out of the casino, where you’re drawn in by the logo itself, into a mirrored space reflecting infinity, then through a graffiti-filled underpass. You walk over real manholes that wobble a little, interact with props, hear the sounds of the city and pass sights that you’ll revisit during the show. Best of all, it’s all Instagrammable.”
“R.U.N” is unlike any Cirque du Soleil you’ve experienced, making you feel like you’ve entered another world rather than simply gone to see a show.
Renowned graffiti collective, ASHOP, created the street art in the lobby, the merchandise shop, the theater and even the bathrooms, giving “R.U.N” an unparalleled authenticity – along with major street cred.
“The hardest part was keeping everything dirty and flawed,” said Rodgers. “For most shows, you want perfection but, for “R.U.N,” we had to redo anything that looked too clean and polished. It was an unusual challenge.”
Every space in the theater is put to use, so audience members are literally immersed in “R.U.N.” Characters ride down the aisles on to the stage, and, at its highest point, the action takes place 34 feet over the crowd.
The technology is astounding, with a 120 feet by 50 feet video screen boasting almost 23 million pixels, and four robotic cameras, four miniature cameras and 20 handheld cameras sending video to 19 projectors capable of 30,000 lumens each – but all of it is used to support the creativity of the storytelling rather than the other way around.
Projection is a huge part of the show and, according to Schwandt, it’s used in different ways in every chapter to keep it fresh. “It may move a scene, create an environment or offer a perspective change.”
With its innovative approach, “R.U.N” lives up to – and maybe even surpasses – the gold standard performance level audiences have come to expect from Cirque du Soleil. It introduces the brand to a whole new demographic – and that’s a daring feat in itself.
{ SOURCE: Lois Alter Mark, Forbes }
