Cirque Eloize Return to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe with CIRKOPOLIS

This August, Fringe audiences can enjoy Cirque Éloize's stunning Cirkopolis at the Pleasance, an imaginative and funny show seen by over 450,000 spectators in 100 cities in 30 countries and which won the Drama Desk Awards for Unique Theatrical Experience in 2014.

This marks Cirque Éloize's second time at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and follows a critically-acclaimed 1999 run of Circus Excentricus.

With Cirkopolis, inspired by the legendary 1927 film Metropolis, Montreal-based Cirque Éloize takes its breathtaking blend of circus arts, theatre and dance to a highly-stylized metropolis setting, where twelve acrobats and multidisciplinary artists rebel against monotony, reinvent themselves and challenge the limits of the factory-city as only they can. Accompanied by an original musical score, video projections and an inventive stage design, they live in a world where fantasy defies reality - the veil of anonymity and solitude is lifted and replaced by bursts of colour.

"Cirkopolis was imagined as a crossroads-between imagination and reality, between individuality and community. The show is driven by the poetic impulse of life, the physical prowess of the circus and its humor, at once serious and light-hearted. Entering Cirkopolis is all about letting go and allowing yourself to be borne aloft by hope", explains Cirque Éloize's Artistic Director and Co-Director Jeannot Painchaud.

Since Cirkopolis began touring in September 2012, it has received rave reviews from the public and critics alike. The New York Times wrote "There aren't more beautiful [shows than Cirkopolis]", while the New York Post wrote "Extraordinary! There's the circus, and then there's Cirque Éloize. These guys are on a whole other level." Perez Hilton said "If Christopher Nolan directed the circus, it would be CIRKOPOLIS. Moody. Sexy. A must-see!" and the Montreal Gazette described it as follows: "Cirkopolis is a wonder. This was to be expected, given that it is a Cirque Éloize creation."

When the show visited Europe, the reviews were equally enthusiastic, with The Stage writing "An impressively coherent production. Way more than simple entertainment!". Cirkopolis was performed at the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh in April 2015 to a great press response: "a wow with a capital W!" (EdinburghGuide), "it leaves you with the distinct feeling we could all get up and try something new" (The Scotsman), "Wow! Wow! Wow! This really does what it says on the ticket, a full-blown spectacle of the best of modern circus" (Reviews Hub).

Cirkopolis is co-directed by Cirque Éloize Artistic Director and Co-Founder Jeannot Painchaud and co-directed and choreographed by Dave St-Pierre who danced with, among others, Marie-Stéphane Ledoux and Jacques Brochu of Mia Maure Danse. The show features set design and illustrations by Robert Massicotte, music by Stefan Boucher, acrobatic designs by Krzysztof Soroczynski, costumes by Liz Vandal who has designed for, among others, Cirque du Soleil and Backstreet Boys, lighting design by Nicolas Descoteaux who has worked with some of the greatest directors, including Robert Lepage and video projections by Robert Massicotte and Alexis Laurence. Make-up design is by Virginie Bachand, Renald Laurin acted as Drama and Acting advisor and Emmanuel Guillaume as Artistic Coordinator.

ABOUT CIRQUE ÉLOIZE:

A driving force in the circus art reinvention movement, Cirque Éloize has been creating award-winning entertainment content for nearly 25 years and ranks among the world's leading contemporary circuses. Cirque Éloize has taken part in numerous prestigious international festivals and has seduced both New York's Broadway and London's West End. Its productions are crafted for a wide range of audiences and have been embraced by over fifty cultures. In the last 24 years, Cirque Éloize's eleven shows have proudly boasted more than 4,000 performances in over 500 cities and have been seen by over three million spectators. In addition to its touring shows, more than 1,500 Cirque Éloize-designed events have taken place worldwide.