‘Ka’ is back, and so is Cirque, finally, on the Strip

The Final Battle carried caller meaning, for a amusement that spent 19 months warring backmost to the stage.

“Ka” bounced backmost Wednesday nighttime astatine MGM Grand. Cirque du Soleil’s astir lavish production, with a $165 cardinal outlay and 300 formed members. The accumulation checks Cirque’s last container among shows returning to the Strip from the company’s interminably agelong COVID-forced pause.

Importantly, immoderate 1,250 Cirque employees are backmost to enactment successful Las Vegas.

Cirque du Soleil Cirque du Soleil Senior Vice President Eric Grilly took his presumption with the institution astir 4 months earlier the cosmopolitan amusement shutdown successful March 2020 He has present seen each 5 Cirque shows travel back, with “Mystere” astatine Treasure Island, “O” astatine Bellagio,”MJ One” astatine Mandalay Bay, and “Love” astatine the Mirage, successful that order, preceding “Ka” to the stage.

Welcome backmost @Cirque “Ka” to @MGMGrand, aft a 19-month “dark” spell. Pop-up show for instrumentality amusement tonight. They observe done combat … #RjNow @reviewjournal #Cirque #Vegas pic.twitter.com/0A3TFNjJgB

— John Katsilometes (@johnnykats) November 25, 2021

The MGM Grand spectacle, which opened successful February 2005, was held due to the fact that the grandiose accumulation carried large-scale challenges. The amusement was primitively planned to reopen successful October, past nudged backmost to Thanksgiving weekend.

“It’s a monolithic theater, with a precise ample formed and a precise ample method unit needed to run it,” Grilly said earlier Wednesday’s relaunch. “We added an further mates weeks of rehearsal, clip to origin successful that … We had to regenerate a fig of technicians, fixed the timing of the show, arsenic good arsenic a fig of artists. But adjacent with integration of that galore people, you’re going to spot a beauteous show.”

The conflict has been won, #IntermissionIsOver for #KA @MGMGrand! Thank you for an unthinkable Grand Reopening! pic.twitter.com/gUDdbO6WyH

— Cirque du Soleil (@Cirque) November 25, 2021

As has been evident successful each of Cirque’s returns, the institution spent the shutdown remaining sharp. The amusement delighted the packed location successful the 1,950-seat theater. The amusement returned specified signature elements arsenic the Wheel of Death, attacks connected the signifier by archers and spearmen, the bumbling Valets clown characters, and the Imperial Guard martial artists.

The show’s 2 signifier decks are backmost successful the show, including its Sand Cliff Deck, which rotates 360 degrees and tilts toward the assemblage to let video projection. By the clip the 80 “rod actuators” statesman sprouting from the platform truthful performers tin ascent and autumn erstwhile the signifier is vertical, you cognize Cirque has returned to form.

“There are a fistful of caller artists that person been added to the show, but nary worldly changes person been made,” Grilly said, and mentioned immoderate elements of the amusement that were upgraded conscionable arsenic helium stepped into his administrative relation inactive remain. “The amusement did get a spot of a refresh successful 2019. It is successful beauteous shape.” The full-house, lasting ovation served arsenic “Ka’s” exclamation mark.

Box-office acrobatics

As has been the lawsuit for Cirque since it reopened “Mystere” connected June 28 and “O” connected July 1, the formed and unit are required to beryllium vaccinated and non-verbal performers are successful look covers. The theatre unit wields “Masks Up” signs arsenic readily arsenic performers brandishes their crossbows, arsenic assemblage members are required to deterioration look masks erstwhile not “actively” eating oregon drinking.

Another pop-up clip from @Cirque “Ka” @MGMGrand, backmost successful enactment aft a 19-month break. First instrumentality amusement … #RjNow @reviewjournal #Cirque #Vegas pic.twitter.com/8y7Z5QfsVb

— John Katsilometes (@johnnykats) November 25, 2021

The result, not conscionable for Cirque but for respective accumulation shows, has been a dip successful attendance aft the archetypal burst from “Mystere” and “O” reopening, erstwhile those shows were selling retired astir each show done July and into August.

Producers person pointed to the masking concerns arsenic a starring crushed for the driblet successful numbers, successful immoderate cases up to a 40 percent descent since indoor disguise mandates were returned successful precocious July.

Reportedly, Cirque’s midweek numbers, extracurricular of “Mystere” and “O” had dropped, and “Love” has slipped for each nights. But Grilly said the descent could beryllium attributed to the archetypal unreserved of fans arriving to fulfill pent-up demand, with the pendulum swinging backmost arsenic that assemblage returned the shows they wanted to see.

“It was unbelievable to beryllium astir 100 percent sold retired for ‘O’ and ‘Mystere’ done the summer, past we saw the accepted seasonal driblet we’ve seen close astir Labor Day,” Grilly said. “We had a batch much families present than successful years past, and we tin spot a dip owed to the information that they returned location to get their kids backmost successful school.”

Grilly says concern has rebounded, similar a Cirque acrobat successful a bungee harness.

“We’re having a fantastic November crossed each shows,” Grilly said. “Every amusement volition beryllium at, oregon above, pre-pandemic levels.”

What is next

“Zumanity” was the Cirque amusement that did not past pandemic, unopen down permanently successful November 2020. Cirque has since been processing a caller amusement and refreshing the erstwhile Zumanity Theater. Aside from a constricted engagement from ventriloquial ace Terry Fator, and a one-off from the resistance amusement “Bianca del Rio,” the venue has been latent.

The amusement volition transportation a New York-fashioned theme. It is astir apt opening successful the 2nd quarter, oregon spring, of 2022.

“We’re inactive finalizing plans with our partners astatine MGM Resorts for that offering,” Grilly said. “We haven’t decided connected a sanction yet, but we are narrowing it down.”

The accumulation volition antithetic from the extravaganzas that person been a Cirque trademark since “Mystere” opened successful 1993. The theater, though gorgeous successful Cirque’s contented connected the Strip, is agelong overdue for a makeover.

“We’re going to present things that you’ve not seen arsenic a Cirque amusement before,” Grilly said. “The theatre is 19 years old, right? So obviously, it needs to beryllium updated. There’s been a batch of advancements successful exertion successful presumption of sound, lighting, projection mapping, that we’ll beryllium capable to instrumentality vantage of and we’ve utilized crossed our different shows.

“And then, it’s going to beryllium a precise antithetic benignant of experience, some successful presumption of the intimacy of the seating arsenic good arsenic the food- and-beverage constituent to it.” That would springiness Cirque six shows connected the Strip, not including specified acquisition partnerships arsenic Blue Man Group and “America’s Got Talent: Live” (through The Works Entertainment), some astatine Luxor.

The institution that seemed each but finished successful the outpouring of 2020 has bounced back, expertly.

Tour time

Cirque has been buoyed extracurricular of Vegas, with instrumentality of the standout accumulation “Alegria” successful Houston, and the long-delayed, Cirque-Disney concern “Drawn To Life” has opened astatine Disney World successful Orlando. Reviews of that creatively fertile collaboration person been positive. Even longtime Cirque officials person cried during its premiere.

Disney characters are woven into a bid of accepted Cirque acts, sketched successful silhouette form. The amusement serves arsenic an homage to Disney’s elegant animation, and Cirque’s dazzling acrobatics.

Cirque does the bulk of its concern successful Vegas, and the Strip is its creator headquarters, but the institution remains an planetary entity, and is bringing backmost respective of the 44 touring shows knocked down by COVID. Over the apical of each this enactment is the concern of its new ownership group, led by Capital Catalyst Group, is simply a robust concern steadfast retired of Toronto.

“Our touring part has reopened, finally, truthful a precise important portion of our institution is present backmost successful cognition with the opening of ‘Algeria’ past week, actually, the time earlier we opened, ‘Drawn to Life,’ ” Grilly said. “And past six further tours volition beryllium rolled retired implicit the adjacent next respective months, which is simply a beauteous important improvement for america to get our concern backmost up and running.”

John Katsilometes’ file runs regular successful the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast tin beryllium recovered astatine reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him astatine jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats connected Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 connected Instagram.