Cirque du Soleil returns under the big top at Concord Pacific Place in Vancouver with Kooza, a return to the origins of Cirque du Soleil combining two circus traditions: acrobatic performance and the art of clowning.
Kooza is about human connection and the world of duality, good and bad. – David Shiner
Kooza is a journey viewed through the perspective of The Innocent, an endearing yet naïve clown looking for his place in the world. When a mystery item is delivered to The Innocent one day while flying his kite, the self-discovery journey of The Innocent, who is miraculously transferred to a bizarre but exotic world, followed under the watchful eye of an enigmatic trickster with remarkable abilities.
“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.”
Inspired by the Sanskrit word “koza,” which means box, chest or treasure, it was chosen because one of the underlying concepts of the production is the idea of a “circus in a box.”
In this edition of Before The Curtain Goes Up, Vancouver Presents contributor David C. Jones goes under the big top to speak with Cirque du Soleil’s senior publicist, Julie Desmarais, to learn more.