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“Flowers in the Desert”: Cirque Du Soleil in Las Vegas, 1993

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“Flowers in the Desert”: Cirque Du Soleil in Las Vegas, 1993 “FLOWERS IN THE DESERT”: CIRQUE DU SOLEIL IN LAS VEGAS, 1993-2012 by ANNE MARGARET TOEWE B.S., The College of William and Mary, 1987 M.F.A., Tulane University, 1991 A thesis submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Colorado in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Theatre & Dance 2013 This thesis entitled: “Flowers in the Desert”: Cirque du Soleil in Las Vegas 1993 – 2012 written by Anne Margaret Toewe has been approved for the Department of Theatre & Dance ______________________________________________ Dr. Oliver Gerland (Committee Chair) ______________________________________________ Dr. Bud Coleman (Committee Member) Date_______________________________ The final copy of this thesis has been examined by the signatories, and we Find that both the content and the form meet acceptable presentation standards Of scholarly work in the above mentioned discipline. iii Toewe, Anne Margaret (Ph.D., Department of Theatre & Dance) “Flowers in the Desert”: Cirque du Soleil in Las Vegas 1993 – 2012 Dissertation directed by Professor Oliver Gerland This dissertation examines Cirque du Soleil from its inception as a small band of street performers to the global entertainment machine it is today. The study focuses most closely on the years 1993 – 2012 and the shows that Cirque has produced in Las Vegas. Driven by Las Vegas’s culture of spectacle, Cirque uses elaborate stage technology to support the wordless acrobatics for which it is renowned. By so doing, the company has raised the bar for spectacular entertainment in Las Vegas I explore the beginning of Cirque du Soleil in Québec and the development of its world-tours. I also discuss the history of entertainment in Las Vegas from the early years when it was regarded as a wild frontier town to the internationally recognized tourist destination of today. I then detail the seven Cirque du Soleil shows currently in residence in Las Vegas: Mystère, “O”, Kà, Zumanity, Love, Criss Angel Believe, and Viva Elvis/Zarkana. The work concludes with an exploration of the future of Cirque du Soleil in Las Vegas and the future of Las Vegas entertainment as a result of Cirque’s presence there. It has been stated that Cirque plans to have a show in every Las Vegas strip venue. I discuss the feasibility of this plan while considering the notion that Cirque has saturated not only the Las Vegas market, but the world market as well. Finally, I consider how the works presented by Cirque have changed Las Vegas entertainment. iv DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated, with unwavering gratitude and admiration, to the following people: Dr. Oliver Gerland, who has worked tirelessly with me on this study topic since I began my doctoral work at the University of Colorado at Boulder. He has kept me focused and guided my further and deeper than I ever thought this study would go. The members of my committee: Dr. Bud Coleman, Dr. Amma Y. Ghartey-Tagoe Kootin, Markas Henry and Zak Keller. Both the current and the retired members of the University of Colorado at Boulder Theatre Department faculty and staff who have been a source of encouragement throughout my entire studies at CU. Most especially Dr. Merrill Lessley and Dr. Jim Symons who helped early in my studies to find and cultivate the scholar in me, even at times when I doubted her very existence. Also a special thank you to both Cass Marshall and Wendy Franz who helped to make sure I was on track and got all the “t”s crossed and the “I”s dotted. My fellow students at the CU, especially Dr. Andrea Moon, Dr. Elizabeth Jochum, Dr. Amanda Giguere, and Dr. Emily Harrison who were there throughout the journey and especially at the end when I most needed my hand held. My colleagues and students in the School of Theatre Arts and Dance at the University of Northern Colorado, especially Gillian McNally, Patty Cleary, and David Grapes II, who supported me every step of the way and tirelessly listened to my trials and v tribulations of being both a student and a professor. You three have been a constant for me in a very stormy sea. My family who has always supported my endeavors, especially those of the most scholarly nature. Most especially, my mother and my father, who have always seen the potential in me, even when I did not. I dedicate this work to my father for whom my achievement of this would have been another point of pride, and I am pleased to join the ranks of the doctor/scholars on both sides of my family by becoming the third generation Dr. Toewe. And to Steven Watson, who has been at my side from the second semester of my studies through to the end. He has been unerring in his support of my studies and has never tired of hearing about the next revision of this and all of my most scholarly work. Thank you for your faith in me, even when I lost the faith in myself. vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to acknowledge the staff at the University of Northern Colorado Libraries for their assistance in the research of this work. Most especially Colleen Stewart and Jennifer Leffler who assisted me in acquiring much needed materials essential to my research. vii CONTENTS CHAPTER I. “SEVEN WORLDS, ONE CITY:” USING CIRQUE DU SOLEIL TO DEFINE A CITY’S ENTERTAINMENT DREAM…………………………………………………………...1 LITERATURE REVIEW………………………………………………………………………….……6 CHAPTER ORGANIZATION……………………………………………………………….………11 II. A CULTURAL ENTERTAINMENT HISTORY OF LAS VEGAS: IDENTIFYING THE ROOTS FOR THE “FLOWERS IN THE DESERT”.……….……13 MISTER LAS VEGAS………………………….…………………………………………...14 BOOZE AND GAMBLING………………………………………………………..………17 THE NIGHTCLUB ACT……………………………………………………………………22 THE VISUAL EXTRAVAGANZA……………………………………………………….34 Spectacular Bodies……………………………………………………………..34 Spectacular Circus Acts………………………………………………………37 FANTASY HOTELS…………………………………..…………………………….………40 III. CIRQUE DU SOLEIL: THE BEGINNINGS TO LAS VEGAS……………………………...50 THE ROOTS OF CIRQUE DU SOLEIL……………………….………………………54 CIRQUE DU SOLEIL AS ENTERTAINMENT MACHINE……………….…..…72 IV. CIRQUE DU SOLEIL: THE 1990S THROUGH TODAY…………………………………..93 OUTSIDE VEGAS: ROAD AND RESIDENT SHOWS……………………….…...93 OTHER MEDIA……………………………………………..……………………………..117 CIRQUE DU SOLEIL, A UNIQUE STAFFING STRUCTURE………………..120 viii THE CREATION PROCESS………………………………………………….………...127 CIRQUE’S COMMITMENT TO GIVE BACK TO THE WORLD…………....139 CONCLUSION……………………………………………………………………...…..…..140 V. MYSTÈRE: THE LAS VEGAS GROUND BREAKER……………………………………...142 CREATION………………………………………………………………………………….144 PRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………..149 RESPONSES……………………………………………………………………………...…157 VI. “O”: BRINGING WATER TO THE DESERT………………………………………………...160 CREATION………………………………………………………………………………….161 PRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………….…….169 RESPONSES………………………………………………………………………….……..174 VII. ZUMANITY AND ZUMANITY: THE SENSUAL SIDE OF CIRQUE DU SOLEIL: CIRQUE’S FIRST “MISS” IN VEGAS…………………………………………………………..176 CREATION………………………………………………………………………………….177 PRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………..185 RESPONSES………………………………………………………………………..……….187 VIII. KÀ: IN PURSUIT OF PLOT………..……………………………………………………………..189 CREATION………………………………………………………………………………….191 PRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………..199 RESPONSES………………………………………………………………………………...205 ix IX. ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE: AN UNPRECEDENTED CIRQUE COLLABORATION…………………………..………207 CREATION………………………………………………………………………………….208 PRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………..223 RESPONSES……………………………………………………………………………..…226 X. CRISS ANGEL BELIEVE: COLLABORATION WITHOUT ARTISTIC CONTROL………………………………….229 CREATION………………………………………………………………………………….231 PRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………..241 RESPONSES…………………………………………………………………………...……245 XI. VIVA ELVIS: HAS LEFT THE BUILDING……………………………………………………248 CREATION………………………………………………………………………………….252 PRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………..260 RESPONSES…………………………………………………………………………...……265 FROM ELVIS TO ZARKANA………………………………………………………..…267 XII. PLANTING THE SEED, THEN PICKING THE FLOWERS………………………….…271 BIBLIOGRAPHY…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..293 APPENDIX LIVE ACTION PRODUCTION CHRONOLOGY OF CIRQUE DU SOLEIL……………………331 1 CHAPTER I "SEVEN WORLDS, ONE CITY" USING CIRQUE DU SOLEIL TO DEFINE A CITY'S ENTERTAINMENT DREAM We're a creative entertainment company; we develop shows built around the dreams, talents, and passions of our artists and creators. (Bacon 7) The Las Vegas entertainment industry rose from humble beginnings: a few headliners in a few casinos scattered along a desolate stretch of Highway 91. These beginnings are humble when compared to being “The Entertainment Capital of the World,” as Vegas has been named on more than one occasion (Macy 3). The town eventually evolved into an "adult playground" that offered legalized gambling, scantily clad showgirls, and big name headliners. Fast-forward from the Rat Pack and Elvis of the 1960s and 1970s to the 1980s. It was during the late 1980s that Las Vegas and its entertainment industry began a new marketing plan. The early 1980s had boasted a booming economy in the United States, and Las Vegas drew in those dollars. Unfortunately, as with any highs, there must be lows, and the "bubble" burst when the American economy took a downturn in the latter years of the decade. The city needed a way to regain the prosperity it had previously seen. The local population was not spending, and the tourists were not coming. Gambling was no longer unique to Las Vegas. New gambling statutes throughout the United States changed the availability of gambling to the average American. The statutes allowed places
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