Thursday, September 16, 2004
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

SPIRIT AND SOUL

New Cirque du Soleil saga `Ka' coming to life at MGM Grand

Performers from "Ka," the new Cirque du Soleil show at the MGM Grand, give a glimpse on Wednesday of what their performance will be like when the show opens in November. Photo by John Locher.

The ancient spiritual concept known as the ka is going high tech in the long-awaited $165 million new show from Cirque du Soleil at the MGM Grand.

"There are a lot of things here that people will see that so far have been done only in movies and television with special effects. Here it is for real," said Guy Laliberté, the founder of the Montreal-based company debuting its fourth show -- titled "Ka" -- on the Strip.

The carefully protected title -- code-named "Duality" in company memos -- was unveiled along with segments of the show in a news conference Tuesday.

"Ka" will have a "soft" opening Nov. 26 with an official debut in February, allowing for Cirque du Soleil's customary period of adjustment for audience reaction.

Tickets went on sale Wednesday for the preview performances through Feb. 2; so far, there is no plan to raise the prices of $99, $125 and $150 after that, a company spokeswoman said.

Cirque du Soleil's first show with a linear story combines circus acrobatics, martial arts, puppetry, video and pyrotechnics. Audiences "will scratch their heads trying to figure out how it is possible to achieve such a thing," Laliberté said.

Two scenes were performed in the 1,950-seat theater that accounts for $135 million of the budget, displaying how a fixed stage has been replaced by a fog-filled "void" in which different platforms and riggings move in and out of position.

The hotel took on the bulk of theater construction costs, and Cirque du Soleil will share the box-office and show-related revenues with MGM Mirage. Hotel President Gamal Aziz noted the resort also will see incremental spending from new bars and restaurants in place to entice the nearly 4,000 showgoers expected nightly.

The title derives from the Egyptian concept of each human's spiritual "double." Guy Caron, Cirque du Soleil's director of creation, said the word is the root of many disciplines incorporated into the show, such as kabuki, karate and the Brazilian martial art capoeira.

"Ka" tells the story of Asian twins, male and female, who are separated at birth and threatened by various dangers along their separate journeys. In keeping with Cirque du Soleil tradition, however, the story is told without dialogue.

With four Las Vegas shows and a fifth being discussed for The Mirage, "we have to reinvent the way to do a Cirque du Soleil show," Caron noted. "We don't call it an `act.' We call it a `performance.' We integrate all the elements."

The stage and refurbished showroom are created by Robert Fisher, production designer for rock tours by U2 and the Rolling Stones, as well as the new Queen musical "We Will Rock You." The puppetry, designed to be operated by contortionists, is by Michael Curry, who worked on the stage version of "The Lion King."

The creators did not unveil all of their technical surprises, but indicated the action extends into the network of catwalks linking cylindrical towers that wrap around the seating area. Fire also is described as a key motif in the complex production.

The show was originally announced for summer, but delayed by its technical challenges. "They're not really problems, they're obstacles," said director Robert Lepage. "In the Buddhist philosophy, obstacles are your friends. We've made a lot of friends in this production."