CIRQUE DU SOLEIL RETURNS TO SAN DIEGO
with its latest big top production
KOOZA
Opening in San Diego on Thursday, February 25 for a limited engagement
Tickets available
http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/kooza/tickets/san-diego.aspx
Cirque du Soleil returns to San Diego with its latest touring production KOOZA, set to open in San Diego on Thursday, February 25, for a limited engagement. Proudly presented by iShares, KOOZA will perform under the trademark blue-and-yellow Grand Chapiteau (big top) at the Del Mar Fairgrounds.
The Name
The name KOOZA is inspired by the Sanskrit word “koza,” which means “box,” “chest” or “treasure,” and was chosen because one of the underlying concepts of the production is the idea of a “circus in a box.”
About KOOZA
KOOZA is a return to the origins of Cirque du Soleil that combines two circus traditions – acrobatic performance and the art of clowning. The show highlights the physical demands of human performance in all its splendor and fragility, presented in a colorful mélange that emphasizes bold slapstick humor.
“KOOZA is about human connection and the world of duality, good and bad,” says the show’s writer and director David Shiner. “The tone is fun and funny, light and open. The show doesn’t take itself too seriously, but it’s very much about ideas, too. As it evolves we are exploring concepts such as fear, identity, recognition and power.”
The show starts with The Trickster bursting onto the scene like a jack-in-a-box right in front of The Innocent, and that is just the first of many surprises to follow. The Innocent’s journey brings him into contact with a panoply of comic characters such as the King, the Trickster, the Heimloss, the Pickpocket, the Obnoxious Tourist and his Bad Dog.
Between strength and fragility, laughter and smiles, turmoil and harmony, KOOZA explores themes of identity, recognition and power. The show is set in an electrifying and exotic visual world full of surprises, thrills, chills, audacity and total involvement.
Cast and acts
Several of the 53 performing artists in the show have received awards from important circus arts competitions, notably in juggling and trapeze. The show presents an unprecedented approach to the High Wire and a breathtaking Wheel of Death – an act that Cirque du Soleil has never before presented under the big top.
Cirque du Soleil
From a group of 20 street performers at its beginnings in 1984, Cirque du Soleil is a major Quebec-based organization providing high-quality artistic entertainment. The company has more than 4,000 employees from over 40 different countries, including more than a 1,000 artists. Cirque du Soleil has brought wonder and delight to close to 90 million spectators in over 200 cities on five continents. In 2009, Cirque du Soleil will present 19 shows simultaneously throughout the world. The company has received such prestigious awards as the Emmy, Drama Desk, Bambi, ACE, Gémeaux, Félix, and Rose d’Or de Montreux. Cirque du Soleil International Headquarters are in Montreal, Canada.
For more information about Cirque du Soleil, visit http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/kooza/tickets/san-diego.aspx
