Make Way for the Circus!

Baie-Saint-Paul’s stilt-walkers at the Cirque du Soleil

Well, this is not exactly that kind of circus! This circus has come a long way since the time of strongmen and bearded ladies travelling from village to village.

And the modernization of circuses in Quebec owes a great deal to this area. Or rather, that modernization gained momentum here: it’s in the streets of Baie-Saint-Paul that Guy Laliberté and Gilles Sainte-Croix, two entertainers on stilts, would lay the foundations for what would later become the Cirque du Soleil! As the ‘80s began, these two young men, firebreather and stiltwalker respectively, had no idea that a future as businessmen awaited them. They are regular guests at the Balcon Vert youth hostel. They have fun devising a festive atmosphere for Baie-Saint-Paul’s downtown, and extend the hippie era there by creating a regular summer event: the Fête Foraine [fun fair]! This is followed by the famed yellow and blue big top which, these days, can be found standing in the world’s major cities, where Cirque du Soleil invites people to dream with a visit to its surreal, poetic, and wacky worlds!

Following in its footsteps, other Quebec circuses deliver elaborate creations, and draw on the talent of acrobats trained in the province’s circus schools. Among them, the Cirque Les 7 doigts de la main [7 Fingers Circus] was also able to break through internationally, thanks to the artistic powers of the creators behind this collective. For 20 years, they’ve shone brightly in 672 cities in 54 different countries, staging some 12,000 performances of various shows dreamed up by the collective. Their latest creation? It will happen this summer, in La Malbaie, at the Hotel Casino Charlevoix.

Éclats

Michel Granger, the project’s promoter, hailing from the theatre world, and formerly with the Cirque du Soleil, will set up a brand new big top on Casino de Charlevoix’s property, and promises a genuine fun fair atmosphere on Les Fééries de Charlevoix weekends, from August 10 to September 4, outdoors at the Hotel Casino de Charlevoix. And inside the big top? Isabelle Chassé, Cofounder and Artistic Director of the 7 Fingers collective features a show full of emotion and full of poetic scenes, inspired by Charlevoix itself: Éclats. Ten circus artists will do their acts. Tightrope, trapeze, the Chinese Pole, juggling: plenty to delight both the young and old who will throng through the tent’s big canvas door to take up a spot in the bleachers for the sheer pleasure of it, and for the wonder that keeps the circus arts alive! 

From zero to 120 years old, whether you live in the neighbourhood or all the way across the globe, let's all head to the ticket booth and share in the enchantment together - from August 10 to September 2!