Drawn to Life: New Cirque du Soleil Production to Open at Disney Springs in 2020

Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group and Disney Parks, Experiences and Products are thrilled to announce Drawn to Life, the highly anticipated, new family friendly show coming to Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Written and directed by Michel Laprise and with Fabrice Becker as Director of creation, this collaboration between Cirque du Soleil, Walt Disney Animation Studios and Walt Disney Imagineering will open for previews March 20, 2020, and officially premiere April 17, 2020. The show will take residency at Disney Springs. Tickets are on sale now at cirquedusoleil.com.

 Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group President and CEO Daniel Lamarre, says, “For Cirque du Soleil, this is a beautiful way of celebrating Disney’s legacy in the art of animation. This new and exciting production is most certainly the best way to highlight the privileged relationship we have with our colleagues at Walt Disney World and our joint commitment to continually bring audiences new experiences that surpass their expectations.”

 The show is a result of years of research and extraordinary collaboration that included extensive visits to Disney theme parks, Walt Disney Archives, Walt Disney Imagineering, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, The Walt Disney Family Museum, as well as hands-on work between Disney animators and Cirque du Soleil. In fact, the Cirque du Soleil teams collaborated extensively with legacy animators to create the show.

‘’What fascinates us is that moment when life appears in drawings. Just like in an acrobat’s body, the visceral physicality of animation. The way they perform, the way they create the illusion of life,’’ says Michel Laprise Writer and Show Director.

”In creating this show, we’ve brought to life an extraordinary new entertainment experience for the whole family,” said Josh, D’Amaro, president, Walt Disney World Resort, “It blends all the heart, humor and joy of Disney storytelling with new acrobatic performances and effects never before seen in a Cirque du Soleil production.”

This new show follows the story of Julie, a courageous and determined girl who discovers an unexpected gift left by her late father: an unfinished animation piece. Guided by a surprising pencil, she embarks on an inspiring quest sprinkled with her Disney childhood memories. Through this journey, she learns to imagine new possibilities and animate the story of her future.

Drawn to Life will transport guests of all ages into the world of Disney animation in Cirque du Soleil’s signature style. This entirely new experience will wow Walt Disney World guests and Cirque du Soleil fans, while bringing timeless Disney stories to life in an unforgettable new way.

‘’It has been a fantastic collaboration between Cirque du Soleil, Walt Disney Animation Studios and Walt Disney Imagineering. We had the chance to work with some of the animators that have worked on iconic Disney movies. You’ll get to meet some of your favourite characters, but maybe in a very different way,’’ says Fabrice Becker, Creation Director.

With an international cast of more than 65 artists, the Cirque du Soleil theater located in Disney Springs at Walt Disney World Resort, will welcome up to 1,580 spectators for each show, five days a week.

Show Team

The creation team of Drawn to Life, the 50^thoriginal production of Cirque du Soleil:

Chief Creative Officer                                                                Diane Quinn

Executive Producer                                                                     Charles Joron

Creative Director                                                                         Fabrice Becker

Writer and Show Director                                                         Michel Laprise

Set Designer                                                                                  Stephane Roy

Costume Designer                                                                       Philippe Guillotel

Make-up Designer                                                                       Eleni Uranis

Acrobatic Designer                                                                     Germain Guillemot

Acrobatic Equipment Designer                                               Danny Zen

Music Composer                                                                           Benoit Jutras

Projections Producer                                                                  4U2C producer

Projection Designers                                                                  Mathieu St-Arnaud & Félix Fradet-Faguy

Production Director                                                                    Matthew Whelan

Magie Nouvelle                                                                             Raphaël Navarro

Puppets Designer                                                                         Johanna Elhert

Sound Designer                                                                             Jonathan Deans

Light Designer                                                                               Martin Labrecque

Comic act Designer                                                                      Joe de Paul

Choreographer                                                                               Kostiantyn Tomilchenko & Andrew Skeels

Walt Disney Animation Studios

Custom Animation                                                                       Eric Goldberg

Walt Disney Imagineering

Executive, Theatrical Development                                        Michael Jung

Executive, Music Studio                                                             Matt Walker

Vice President, Production                                                        Natalie Woodward

Producer                                                                                           Omar Kamal

Principal Technical Director                                                     Larry Sonn

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