Three steel giants, 52 feet (more than 15 meters) each, will carry the circus on their shoulders this summer in three different places in Montreal, from July 7 to 17. These three giant structures will respectively welcome the artists of the Cirque Éloize in the Gamelin gardens, those of the 7 fingers on the esplanade of Place Ville Marie, and those of Machine de cirque in Vinet park, near the Atwater market, as part of the Montreal festival. completely circus.
With these shows presented free of charge twice a day during the festival, Tourisme Montréal, which largely financed the operation, hopes to revive the aura of Montréal as the world capital of the circus, among Montrealers and tourists alike.
The three giants are identical at the start. They are designed by Scène éthique, a company that has already collaborated with Cirque du Soleil and Celine Dion.
Each of the circus companies will occupy them according to the orientation of their show and the scenographic concept associated with it. And each of them also explored the theme of gigantism.
For Isabelle Chassé and Patrick Léonard, two co-founders of the circus of the 7 fingers, the giant is the one in whom we find the values of perseverance, authenticity, passion, stubbornness, resilience and sensitivity. This giant will therefore be, for the company, attached at the start, before gradually freeing itself from its chains over the course of the show.
For Jean-Guy Legault, who will act as director for the Éloize circus, the show will be an opportunity to highlight the island reality of Montreal, by integrating water into it. The Éloize circus show should also evoke key figures in the city’s history.
Circus machine, the youngest of the three companies, which will take over the Vinet park, has for its part decided to welcome the world to come by reconnecting with the ecosystem, promises Maxim Laurin. Not only will the giant in Circus Machine be overgrown, but that vegetation will be replanted in the park after the giant leaves.
A new collaboration
The project is particularly unique in that it has led the three circus companies to work in collaboration rather than in competition. After the three lean years caused by the pandemic, this collaboration, launched by Montreal completely circus, was positively welcomed by the community.
Initially, La Tohu, which produces the Montreal completely circus festival, responded to the call for cultural projects from Tourisme Montreal. This is also the largest of the twelve projects that have been selected by the organization.
“It’s a 4 million dollar project, of which 2,848,000 are provided by Tourisme Montréal,” says Nadine Marchand, director of the Montreal completely circus festival.
Between them, the giants collect 100,000 pounds of metal. And Nadine Marchand would like all these structures to be reassembled in Montreal every year. “But we will have to find other financial partners,” she says.
For its part, Tourisme Montréal is hopeful that tourist traffic will reach at least 70% of the levels this summer it had in 2019, before the pandemic. “Montreal has not lost any hotel rooms,” says Yves Lalumière, CEO of Tourisme Montréal, adding that, on the contrary, some hotels have been added to the offer.
It is a 4 million dollar project, of which 2,848,000 are provided by Tourisme Montréal
It is on the Montreal restaurant front that the pandemic has left the most traces, he said, adding that certain popular restaurants, such as Entrecôte Saint-Jean, had to close their doors.
Banking once again on solidarity, Nadine Marchand announced on Monday a project of cooperation with Montreal restaurateurs, which would allow them to take advantage of the popularity of the festival.