Delirium (Cirque du Soleil)


Delirium was a touring multimedia stage show by Cirque du Soleil featuring live music, video projections, and performances by acrobats and other circus performers. The production featured remixes of existing Cirque du Soleil music. The show premiered on January 26, 2006 and had its final performance in London, England on April 20, 2008.
Delirium was the first of Cirque du Soleil's productions designed to be presented in arenas outside Japan ; all the company's previous stage productions outside Japan had been toured with their own large, custom-built tent or were permanent shows performed in specially designed theatres. Delirium, as Cirque du Soleil's first significant experiment with arena venues, eventually helped pave the way for the company's subsequent show-by-show conversion of its older big top productions to a more cost-effective arena format.

Set and technical information

Delirium's stage was set up on the arena floor, bisecting it lengthwise. Its two-sided, raised stage allowed for an alley theater-style presentation: the audience sat on both sides of the stage, at times able to look over the central stage to see the spectators on the other side. This presented unique staging challenges in that the most important actions had to be visible to both sides of the audience. However, the show could also be presented as a proscenium show, with the seats on one side of the arena left empty. In this case, the stage was set up closer to the sideline opposite the occupied seats, opening up a portion of the arena floor for additional seating. Despite the extraordinary complexity and size of Delirium's stage, it could be assembled inside an arena in approximately nine hours.
The ends of the stage were flanked by enormous projection screens, where real-time video footage from the stage performance was blended with prerecorded visuals. These end screens also served to block off a backstage area for the performers and technicians. Performers could enter the stage from behind the screens, from below and from above. Two semi-transparent screens could slide out in front of the stage to turn both sides of the stage into a massive projection surface, roughly the equivalent in width of four IMAX screens.
Unlike most other Cirque du Soleil shows, where the musicians are situated to the sides or the far upstage area and are frequently hidden from view, Delirium's six musicians were often in plain view, and could be seen interacting with the other performers and various stage elements.

Costumes

As the show's concept incorporated a contrast between stark urbanness and wild imagination, Michel Robidas drew inspiration from clothing from different eras, including the 1930s, 1960s, and 1970s, for the wanderers of the performance, whereas bright colors and exuberance were emphasized for the acrobatic performers. For instance, a 25-meter "volcano dress" was made from 400 meters of blue organza and represented the sea; this dress incorporated small white and red lights. There were also purple or red and yellow whirling dervish robes, designed to look like tree roots, which started from the chest rather than the waist for a more dramatic effect.

Music

Much of the show's music was creatively adapted from the original scores of other Cirque du Soleil productions, but remixed with a tribal beat and lyrics added or rewritten. The Delirium soundtrack first became available for purchase on June 15, 2006 through the Cirque du Soleil Online Boutique. It features the songs of the show, but not necessarily in the order in which they were performed.
  1. "Cold Flame"
  2. "Slipping Away"
  3. "Someone"
  4. "Too High"
  5. "Walk on Water"
  6. "Alone"
  7. "Climb"
  8. "La Nova Alegría"
  9. "Lifeline"
  10. "Bridge of Sorrow"
  11. "One Love"
  12. "Let Me Fall" remixed from Quidam
  13. "Time to Go"
  14. "Time Flies"
  15. "Sans Toi"
The lead vocalists on the CD are Dessy Di Lauro, Elie Haroun, Jacynthe Millette-Bilodeau and Juliana Sheffield.

Filmography

A film version of Delirium was given a very limited theatrical release, only in theaters on October 15, 18, and 19, 2008, in the U.S. and Canada.

Tour

Delirium toured in arenas instead of under the grand chapiteau. This allowed it to play in many cities for much shorter periods of time.
The following colorboxes indicate the region of each performance: Europe North America South and Central America Asia/Pacific Oceania

Arena tour

2006 schedule

Montréal, QC - From 26 January 2006 to 29 January 2006

Albany, NY - From 3 February 2006 to 4 February 2006

Bridgeport, CT - From 7 February 2006 to 9 February 2006

Buffalo, NY - From 13 February 2006 to 14 February 2006

Columbus, OH - From 17 February 2006 to 18 February 2006

Toronto, ON - From 20 February 2006 to 21 February 2006

Detroit, MI - From 23 February 2006 to 24 February 2006

Indianapolis, IN - From 27 February 2006 to 28 February 2006

Kansas City, MO - From 3 March 2006 to 4 March 2006

Oklahoma City, OK - From 7 March 2006 to 8 March 2006

Houston, TX - From 10 March 2006 to 12 March 2006

Memphis, TN - From 15 March 2006 to 16 March 2006

San Antonio, TX - From 19 March 2006 to 20 March 2006

Little Rock, AR - From 22 March 2006 to 23 March 2006

Dallas, TX - From 27 March 2006 to 28 March 2006

Birmingham, AL - From 30 March 2006 to 31 March 2006

Atlanta, GA - From 2 April 2006 to 3 April 2006

Jacksonville, FL - From 6 April 2006 to 7 April 2006

Tampa, FL - From 9 April 2006 to 10 April 2006

Raleigh, NC - From 12 April 2006 to 13 April 2006

Tallahassee, FL - From 15 April 2006 to 16 April 2006

Orlando, FL - From 18 April 2006 to 19 April 2006

Fort Lauderdale, FL - From 21 April 2006 to 23 April 2006

Charlotte, NC - From 28 April 2006 to 29 April 2006

Columbia, SC - From 2 May 2006 to 3 May 2006

Greensboro, NC - From 6 May 2006 to 7 May 2006

Nashville, TN - From 9 May 2006 to 10 May 2006

St. Louis, MO - From 12 May 2006 to 13 May 2006

Minneapolis, MN - From 16 May 2006 to 17 May 2006

Des Moines, IA - From 19 May 2006 to 20 May 2006

Montréal, QC - From 16 June 2006 to 18 June 2006

Toronto, ON - From 23 June 2006 to 24 June 2006

Pittsburgh, PA - From 29 June 2006 to 1 July 2006

Atlantic City, NJ - From 7 July 2006 to 8 July 2006

Baltimore, MD - From 14 July 2006 to 15 July 2006

Worcester, MA - From 21 July 2006 to 22 July 2006

Hartford, CT - From 29 July 2006 to 30 July 2006

Charlottesville, VA - From 1 August 2006 to 1 August 2006

Cleveland, OH - From 3 August 2006 to 5 August 2006

Milwaukee, WI - From 19 August 2006 to 20 August 2006

Grand Forks, ND - From 23 August 2006 to 23 August 2006

Winnipeg, MB - From 25 August 2006 to 27 August 2006

Denver, CO - From 30 August 2006 to 2 September 2006

Las Vegas, NV - From 8 September 2006 to 9 September 2006

Phoenix, AZ - From 11 September 2006 to 12 September 2006

Los Angeles, CA - From 15 September 2006 to 17 September 2006

Fresno, CA - From 19 September 2006 to 20 September 2006

San Jose, CA - From 22 September 2006 to 24 September 2006

Los Angeles, CA - From 27 September 2006 to 29 September 2006

Seattle, WA - From 3 October 2006 to 4 October 2006

Vancouver, BC - From 6 October 2006 to 7 October 2006

Calgary, AB - From 10 October 2006 to 12 October 2006

Edmonton, AB - From 13 October 2006 to 15 October 2006

Portland, OR - From 19 October 2006 to 20 October 2006

Omaha, NE - From 24 October 2006 to 25 October 2006

Louisville, KY - From 27 October 2006 to 29 October 2006

East Rutherford, NJ - From 3 November 2006 to 4 November 2006

New York, NY - From 8 November 2006 to 9 November 2006

Uniondale, NY - From 11 November 2006 to 12 November 2006

Philadelphia, PA - From 17 November 2006 to 18 November 2006

Hampton, VA - From 21 November 2006 to 22 November 2006

Ottawa, ON - From 24 November 2006 to 25 November 2006

2007 schedule

Detroit, MI - From 24 January 2007 to 27 January 2007

Grand Rapids, MI - From 31 January 2007 to 2 February 2007

Moline, IL - From 7 February 2007 to 8 February 2007

Minneapolis, MN - From 9 February 2007 to 10 February 2007

Fort Wayne, IN - From 14 February 2007 to 15 February 2007

Chicago, IL - From 17 February 2007 to 19 February 2007

Kansas City, MO - From 21 February 2007 to 23 February 2007

Green Bay, WI - From 28 February 2007 to 28 February 2007

Peoria, IL - From 1 March 2007 to 2 March 2007

Madison, WI - From 4 March 2007 to 4 March 2007

Indianapolis, IN - From 7 March 2007 to 9 March 2007

Ames, IA - From 10 March 2007 to 11 March 2007

Oklahoma City, OK - From 14 March 2007 to 16 March 2007

Charlotte, NC - From 21 March 2007 to 22 March 2007

Birmingham, AL - From 24 March 2007 to 25 March 2007

Shreveport, LA - From 27 March 2007 to 27 March 2007

Baton Rouge, LA - From 28 March 2007 to 28 March 2007

New Orleans, LA - From 29 March 2007 to 30 March 2007

Raleigh, NC - From 1 April 2007 to 2 April 2007

Miami, FL - From 5 April 2007 to 7 April 2007

San Antonio, TX - From 20 April 2007 to 21 April 2007

Corpus Christi, TX - From 22 April 2007 to 22 April 2007

Monterrey, MX - From 27 April 2007 to 30 April 2007

St. Louis, MO - From 4 May 2007 to 6 May 2007

Saskatoon, SK - From 10 May 2007 to 13 May 2007

Spokane, WA - From 16 May 2007 to 17 May 2007

Salt Lake City, UT - From 19 May 2007 to 20 May 2007

San Diego, CA - From 23 May 2007 to 25 May 2007

Phoenix, AZ - From 26 May 2007 to 27 May 2007

Little Rock, AR - From 31 May 2007 to 31 May 2007

Nashville, TN - From 1 June 2007 to 2 June 2007

Greenville, SC - From 6 June 2007 to 7 June 2007

Atlanta, GA - From 8 June 2007 to 9 June 2007

Charleston, SC - From 10 June 2007 to 10 June 2007

Richmond, VA - From 12 June 2007 to 13 June 2007

Buffalo, NY - From 15 June 2007 to 17 June 2007

Washington, DC - From 22 June 2007 to 24 June 2007

Manchester, NH - From 26 June 2007 to 28 June 2007

Boston, MA - From 29 June 2007 to 1 July 2007

Rotterdam, NL - From 13 September 2007 to 15 September 2007

Hamburg, DE - From 18 September 2007 to 19 September 2007

Helsinki, FI - From 22 September 2007 to 24 September 2007

Stockholm, SE - From 27 September 2007 to 29 September 2007

Oslo, NO - From 1 October 2007 to 2 October 2007

Mannheim, DE - From 5 October 2007 to 6 October 2007

Manchester, UK - From 8 October 2007 to 9 October 2007

Birmingham, UK - From 10 October 2007 to 12 October 2007

Sheffield, UK - From 13 October 2007 to 14 October 2007

Munich, DE - From 19 October 2007 to 20 October 2007

Vienna, AT - From 22 October 2007 to 23 October 2007

Prague, CZ - From 27 October 2007 to 27 October 2007

Budapest, HU - From 30 October 2007 to 31 October 2007

Cologne, DE - From 2 November 2007 to 3 November 2007

Zurich, CH - From 5 November 2007 to 8 November 2007

Pesaro, IT - From 10 November 2007 to 11 November 2007

Milan, IT - From 13 November 2007 to 16 November 2007

Turin, IT - From 18 November 2007 to 21 November 2007

San Sebastian, ES - From 23 November 2007 to 24 November 2007

Lisbon, PT - From 28 November 2007 to 2 December 2007

Madrid, ES - From 4 December 2007 to 9 December 2007

Valencia, ES - From 13 December 2007 to 16 December 2007

Barcelona, ES - From 19 December 2007 to 22 December 2007

2008 schedule

Oberhausen, DE - From 1 February 2008 to 2 February 2008

Hanover, DE - From 5 February 2008 to 6 February 2008

Bremen, DE - From 9 February 2008 to 10 February 2008

Stockholm, SE - From 13 February 2008 to 14 February 2008

Turku, FI - From 16 February 2008 to 17 February 2008

Zurich, CH - From 25 February 2008 to 26 February 2008

Budapest, HU - From 29 February 2008 to 1 March 2008

Berlin, DE - From 4 March 2008 to 6 March 2008

Nürnberg, DE - From 8 March 2008 to 9 March 2008

Milan, IT - From 11 March 2008 to 13 March 2008

Turin, IT - From 15 March 2008 to 17 March 2008

Birmingham, UK - From 22 March 2008 to 23 March 2008

Liverpool, UK - From 25 March 2008 to 26 March 2008

Paris, FR - From 31 March 2008 to 2 April 2008

Antwerp, BE - From 5 April 2008 to 6 April 2008

Glasgow, UK - From 9 April 2008 to 10 April 2008

Belfast, UK - From 12 April 2008 to 13 April 2008

London, UK - From 18 April 2008 to 19 April 2008