The world famous Cirque du Soleil will return to London next year with Kooza, an electrifying show which promises to take the company back to its origins, combining acrobatic performances with the art of clowning.
Playing at the Royal Albert Hall for a limited run from 5 to 27 January, Kooza tells the story of The Innocent, a melancholy loner in search of his place in the world.
Highlighting the physical demands of human performance in Cirque du Soleil’s trademark epic style, the show features a host of comic characters from the Trickster to the Obnoxious Tourist, promising thrills, chills and surprises along the way.
Written and directed by actor, clown and playwright David Shiner, Kooza will begin its European tour at the legendary London venue. Speaking about the concept of the show, Shiner said: “Kooza is about human connection and the world of duality, good and bad. The tone is fun and funny, light and open. The show doesn’t take itself too seriously, but it’s very much about ideas, too”.
Exploring themes of fear, identity, recognition and power, the show has already been seen by more than four million people in North America and Japan since its world premiere in 2007.
The hugely successful circus troupe, which was last in London for 2011’s Totem, has evolved from humble beginnings in 1984 as 20 street performers to become a world famous company working with more than 1300 artists from more than 50 different countries with around 100 million spectators having watched its gravity-defying performances.