The world’s largest contemporary circus producer is folding its tents, for now. Cirque du Soleil said Monday that it filed for bankruptcy and said: “We have no choice but to pause for a moment.”
The shows in the United States of the Montreal-based organization have been dark since March 15, when the growing coronavirus pandemic forced so many entities to close. Cirque laid off 95% of its employees, more than 4,000 people, 10 days later. The land of Fantasy, which reopened on June 3 in China, is the only one of its more than 40 current shows worldwide that is still active.
But the group insists that proceedings will resume once the pandemic is under control, “pending a reduction in government blockades and travel restrictions and in accordance with the new corporate structure in place.”
Cirque tweeted today that he “will come back, brighter than ever”:
The group, which has five current shows only on the Las Vegas Strip, also posted this on their website:
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group and the global entertainment industry in an unprecedented way. Border closings, collection bans, and social distancing regulations have kept us from doing what we all do for millions of fans around the world every day.
Due to the tremendous financial impact of the health crisis on the company and the fact that we do not have a clear timeline for when we will be allowed to return to the stage, we have no choice but to pause for a moment. This will allow us to build a more resistant and viable organization that will be able to face the unexplored territory created by COVID-19. We can’t wait for the moment when we meet again. “
