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Costumes & Characters
DELIRIUM showcases 44 talented
and multidisciplinary artists, 8 of whom have collaborated with Cirque du Soleil in the
past. Each artist has been selected for individual virtuosity. They include 11 musicians,
6 singers, 18 dancers, 8 acrobats and 4 main characters. In all, 20 countries are represented
in the troupe, including 2 Americans: Karl Baumann (Las Vegas) who portrays one of the main
characters and dancer Alexandra Apjarova (New York). To heighten the musical experience,
DELIRIUM is infused with acrobatic dances as well as classic Cirque du Soleil feats including
aerial, acro-sport and hand balancing acts.
The sources of inspiration for the costumes of DELIRIUM are myriad. While some get-ups
call to mind the extravagant creations of great designers such as John Galliano and
Alexander McQueen, others are evocative of the styles of the 1930s and 1960s - for
instance, the flamboyant dress worn by Diana Ross and the Supremes. The costumes of
the musicians - explorers, if you will, of an imaginary world - suggest various eras
as well. Each musician plays a different character; the bandleader resembles a 1970s
singer, while one of the instrumentalists sports a Davy Crockett look. Costume designer
Michel Robidas designed intricate complex structural costumes were designed to give
body and life to the music of DELIRIUM - not least the 80 foot (25 meter) "volcano
dress", or the dress representing the sea, made from close to 400 meters of blue
organza interlaced with fiber optics emitting white and red twinkling light.
The design on the whirling dervishes' robes is inspired by tree roots - in shades of
purple on some and red with golden yellow on others. Unlike the traditional dervish
costume, which has a skirt fanning out from the waist, these robes fan out from the
dancers' chest thus heightening the spinning effect.
Bill
Bill is an ordinary man living inside a bubble, more and more recluse
in a society where even relationships are “virtual,” and where television
and computers have become ubiquitous devices that isolate us from one another.
DELIRIUM is his journey to break out of the bubble and once again connect with
those from his past, present, and future.
Cerbère
Teetering about the stage on stilts with aplomb, Cerbère is Bill’s
sidekick antithesis - a grouchy-but-friendly demon rooted to the earth who
guides and helps him open each new door of his journey.
Businessman
The Businessman lives in a technological world where there’s no real
interaction between people. He’s a bossy working man with a boring, gray-tinged
life, intent on suppressing the emotions and colour in Bill’s life.
Diogenes
Diogenes is an androgynous shaman who comes from the luminous tribe. He
brings creativity, nobility and sensuality to Bill’s imagination, showing Bill
a journey into another imagination. Diogenes offers a meditation on the
masculine and feminine sides of our nature - the sense of ambivalence and
sexual dialogues that lies within each of us. He is a light carrier represented
through a red ball, a representation of Bill’s childhood.
La Yumé
Adorned in a bright white dress, La Yumé is the manifestation of Bill’s
hopes and dreams. Flowing about the stage throughout Bill’s journey, she
provides the core connection between him and the outside world.
Golden Boy
Dressed in a glimmering gold getup similar to that of Bill’s, the Golden
Boy is Bill’s younger self - a memory of his childhood and the youth, energy,
and curiosity that he has lost.
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