Varélia: Love In Full Color also known as Varélia is the fourth Cirque du Soleil at Sea resident production created by Cirque du Soleil: Events + Experiences for MSC Cruises. It is one of two Cirque du Soleil at Sea show for MSC Cruise's MSC Bellisima alongside the show Syma. Varélia premiered on March 2, 2019, in the Carousel Lounge on the MSC Bellisima.
Production[]
In 2013, MSC Cruises and Cirque du Soleil created a partnership to develop 8 unique shows for 4 MSC cruise liners. The first two shows, Viaggio and Sonor, premiered on June 4, 2017, on-board the MSC Meraviglia. On December 5, 2018, Cirque du Soleil and MSC Cruises announce the second pair of shows Syma and Varélia will premiere on March 2, 2019, on-board the MSC Bellisima.[1]
Yasmine Khalil, chief executive officer of Cirque du Soleil and president of Cirque du Soleil: Events + Experiences, stated, "We are thrilled to embark on our second MSC Cruises ship as we pursue Cirque du Soleil’s journey at sea...Joining Viaggio and Sonor, our first two shows on MSC Meraviglia, Cirque du Soleil continues to reinvent itself through an intimate theatre experience where two new shows are created exclusively for MSC Bellissima".[1]
The third pair of MSC Cruise shows will launch on November 2019 for the MSC Grandiosa and the final pair will launch on October 2020 for the MSC Virtuosa.[1]
Set and Technical Information[]
Like the Viaggio and Sonor's stage on the MSC Meraviglia, the Carousel Lounge for Syma and Varélia is an intimate 360-degree stage were designed by Marco De Jorio. The lounge seats 413 guests and contains a long interactive LED screen that crossing the entire lounge.[2]
The LED stage contains a rotating disk and the LED Screen has a section that can convert to a staircase. Also above the center ring is a carousel aerial tramway used for rigging props and performers above the stage. The development cost for The Carousel Lounge is €20 million ( $22,045,840 USD ).[2]
Laser lights are used throughout Varélia to convey the theme of a futuristic setting and the atmosphere of the show.[2]
Costume Design[]
Inspired by urban looks, modern fashion, costume designer Nicholas Vaudelet designed the costumes of Varélia to have a more saturated, with higher contrasts cartoonesque look to them.[2]
The creative processes used to create the costumes for Varélia are double meshing, tissue spacer, molded silicone, 3D patterning, and laser cutting.[2]
Characters[]
- Varélia: A princess who feels rejected because of her rare purple skin. She is kidnapped by Mr. Pourprier and must be rescued by The Hero. Varélia performs the Fixed Trapezes act.
- The Hero: A blind man who is in love with Varélia. He must rescue her from Mr. Purprier. The Hero performs the slackwire act.
- Mr. Pourprier: A comic book-ish villain who is obsessed with the color purple. When he sees Varélia with her purple skin, he kidnaps her to make her his wife. Mr. Purprier performs the aerial cube act.
- The Raccoon: Varélia best friend and protector
- The Warrior Friend: A warrior skilled in martial arts and weaponry. He assists The Hero in his plan to rescue Varélia.
- The Angels: Representing romanticism and the celebration of love. The Angels are apart of the Roller Skating and Aerial Hoop Duo act.
- The Joggers: City dwellers in Varélia's kingdom.
Acts[]
Due to Varélia being on a cruise ship, the acts in the performance are rotated out or scaled back due to either the weather, the season, or the current sea state.[3]
- The Opening ( Opening ): Varélia is born and feels isolated due to her purple skin.
- The Princess ( Fixed Trapezes ): Varélia performs on three Fixed Trapezes
- The Hero ( Slackwire ): The Hero performs on a slackwire performing various tricks including juggling on a unicycle.
- The Chamelion ( Contortion ): A chamelion performs a contortion act.
- The Villain ( Aerial Cube ): Mr. Pourprier performs a cube manipulation act.
- The Rescue Plan ( Diabolos ): The Hero recruits The Warrior Friend to help rescue Varélia. The Warrior Friend shows his skills by performing with Diabolos.
- Happily Ever After ( Roller Skating / Aerial Hoop Duo ): A duo performs a Rollerskating pairs trick while the angels perform on a aerial hoop.
- Finale: The Hero saves Varélia and they are finally reunited.
Music[]
The music Varélia for was composed by Félix-Antoine Couturier. The music is inspired by classical music and electronic music. Additionally, each character in Varélia has a distinct instrument to represent them. Varélia is represented by the piano, the Hero is represented by the strings, and Mr. Pourprier is represented by the brass.[2]
The song "Disco Inferno" by The Trammps is used for the finale of Varélia.
Gallery[]
Promotional
Characters
Performance
Concept Art: Performance
Concept Art: Characters
Video[]
Trailers
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 MSC Cruises reveals new, exclusive Cirque du Soleil at Sea shows for MSC Bellissima. Retrieved from https://www.cirquedusoleil.com/press/news/2018/msc-cirque-du-soleil-at-sea-new-shows
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 (2019, March 2). Retrieved from http://cdn.msccruises-platform.com/msc/press/media/press-materials/attachments/msc-cds-en-v12-web-small.pdf
- ↑ Marcellin, F. (2018, February 27). Cirque du Soleil takes to the high seas for the first time aboard MSC's lavish new cruise ship. Retrieved from https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/cruises/articles/msc-meraviglia-cirque-du-soleil-at-sea/
External Links[]
Cirque du Soleil at Sea Official Site
Events + Experiences Official Site
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