Cirque du Soleil’s “Crystal” takes the pageantry and acrobatics of a typical Cirque du Soleil show and puts it on ice.
Created in 2017, Cirque du Soleil’s “Crystal” will perform for seven shows March 22-24 to the NOW Arena in Hoffman Estates. Times are at 7:30 p.m. March 22, 3 and 7 p.m. March 23 and at 1 and 5 p.m. March 24.
“Crystal” is Cirque du Soleil’s 42nd creation and the company’s first show on ice. The performance features seven traditional circus acts; including trapeze, hand-to-hand, Banquine, aerial straps, hand-to-trapeze, juggling and hand balancing – all adapted to be performed on ice.
Senior Publicist Roberto Larroude, who was born in Brazil and lived in Peoria for five years, has been with Cirque du Soleil for two years and tours with the production.
Created by Shana Carroll and Sebastien Soldevila, “Crystal” premiered in 2018 and has been touring the world since, he said. It’s about a teenage girl named Crystal who feels misunderstood at home and at school. She’s ice skating on a pond when the ice breaks and she falls into a sort of “upside down” world, he said.
“She encounters different characters such as her own reflection, who pushes her to be strong. She meets a juggler who shows her life can be fun,” he said. “Not to spoil anything, but she comes back and connects with her family and friends. It’s a very heartwarming finale.”
The idea to put a Cirque Du Soleil show on ice came from the company wanting to raise the bar, Larroude said.
“Cirque du Soleil is known for their incredible performances and acrobatics,” he said. “They did big tops and arena shows and I think they wanted to push the envelope and add another factor of awesomeness and ‘wow’ moments on the ice with figure skating and acrobatics.”
The performing cast is comprised of figure skaters and acrobats.
“The figure skaters had to learn a few acrobatic disciplines and the acrobats had to learn to skate to do different parts of the show,” he said.
It’s a show for a whole family. Teens and adults alike will identify with the main character, he said, and the acrobatics speak for themselves.
“Cirque du Soleil is known for their incredible acrobatics so everybody can expect amazing jaw-dropping moments and awe-inspiring moments,” he said.
It takes a village to stage this production, he said. They travel with 97 people and also hire local staff to help set up. They travel with two physical therapists, a full gym and a full kitchen. They travel with 464 road cases and 169 racks of varying sizes to transport more than 500 set pieces. They use 18 trucks to transport the 183 tons of equipment, he said.
Additionally, there are currently 23 nationalities represented in the production, he said.
Because the stage is made of ice, they use 28 projectors that map the ice with incredible images that interact with the skaters while they’re gliding on the ice, he said.
The production also uses real snow – the team makes approximately 300 snowballs each week.
Larroude loves seeing the crowd reactions and hearing the incredulous comments afterwards.
“It’s a joy to see the performances every night. I never get tired of it,” he said.
Annie Alleman is a freelance reporter for the Courier-News.
Cirque du Soleil’s ‘Crystal’
When: March 22-24
Where: NOW Arena, 5333 Prairie Stone Parkway, Hoffman Estates
Tickets: $40-$139
Information: 847-649-2270; nowarena.com
