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Biography
about|the Cirque du Soleil production|Polish progressive rock group|Quidam (band)Infobox stage production| name = Quidam| image = Cirque du Soleil Quidam logo.jpg| image_size = 233px| alt = Quidam logo| caption =| company = Cirque du Soleil | genre = Contemporary circus | type = Touring production| premiere = April 23, 1996| finalshow =| location =| creatortitle1 = Writer and director| creatorname1 = Franco Dragone | creatortitle2 = Director of creation| creatorname2 = Gilles Ste-Croix| creatortitle3 = Senior artistic director| creatorname3 = Richard Dagenais| creatortitle4 = Artistic director| creatorname4 = Fabrice Lemire| creatortitle5 = Composer| creatorname5 = Benoît Jutras | creatortitle6 = Costume designer| creatorname6 = Dominique Lemieux| creatortitle7 = Set designer| creatorname7 = Michel Crête| creatortitle8 = Lighting designer| creatorname8 = Luc Lafortune | creatortitle9 = Choreographer| creatorname9 = Debra Brown | creatortitle10 = Sound designer| creatorname10 = François Bergeron| creatortitle11 = Make-up designer| creatorname11 = Nathalie Gagné| creatortitle12 = Artistic guide| creatorname12 = Guy Laliberté | creatortitle13 =| creatorname13 =| creatortitle14 =| creatorname14 =| creatortitle15 =| creatorname15 =| otherlabel1 = Preceded by| otherdata1 = Alegría (Cirque du Soleil)|Alegría (1994)| otherlabel2 = Succeeded by| otherdata2 = O (Cirque du Soleil)|O (1998)| website = http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/quidam/show/about.aspx Quidam (IPAc-en|icon|k|i?|'|d|??|mrespell|kee|DAHM|') is the ninth stage show produced by Cirque du Soleil . It premiered in April 1996 and has now been watched by millions of spectators around the world.cite web|url= http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/~/media/press/PDF/quidam/Press%20Kit_Quidam.pdf|title=Quidam Press Kit|publisher=Cirque du Soleil (Press Kit)|accessdate=2011-03-03 Quidam originated as a big top show since its premiere in Montreal, but has since been converted into an arena format beginning with its 2010 tour in North America.cite web|url= http://www.montrealgazette.com/entertainment/Quidam+performers+adapt+arena/3961605/story.html|title=Quidam performers adapt to the arena|publisher=Montréal Gazette|accessdate=2011-03-03|date=2010-12-11
The entire show is imagined by a bored young girl named Zoé who is alienated and ignored by her parents. She dreams up the whimsical world of Quidam as a means of escaping the monotony of her life.
The show's title refers to the feature character, a man without a head, carrying an umbrella and a bowler hat . Quidam is said to be the embodiment of both everyone and no one at the same time. According to Cirque du Soleil literature "Quidam: a nameless passer-by, a solitary figure lingering on a street corner, a person rushing past. ... One who cries out, sings and dreams within us all."
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History
Quidam has won awards for some of its acts throughout its production history.
Banquine , 1999 Golden Clown at the International Monte Carlo Circus Festival.cite web|url= http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/press/kits/shows/quidam/resources/acts.aspx|title=Quidam Acts|publisher=Cirque du Soleil (Press Material)|accessdate=2011-03-03
Diabolos , 1995 Gold Medal at Festival du Cirque de Demain
Set and technical information
The minimalistic stage was designed by Michel Crête to represent a monolithic structure such as an airport or train station where people are always coming to and from. The major set element includes the five, all-aluminum, 120-foot (36.57-meter) arches above the stage, known as the téléphérique . These allow performers to be transported onto and off the stage from above. Each rail of the téléphérique has two trolleys: one to raise and lower the performer or equipment, and the second to transport it onto or off the stage. As for the stage floor itself, it is made of aluminum decks with a perforated, rubber-type mat. The perforations, of which there are over 200,000, allow light to pass through from below the stage, creating various visual effects.
Cast
The cast of Quidam has over 50 acrobats, musicians, singers, and characters, some of which are detailed below.cite web|url= http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/press/kits/shows/quidam/resources/characters.aspx|title=Quidam Characters|publisher=Cirque du Soleil (Press Material)|accessdate=2011-03-03cite web|url= http://www.debralynnebrown.com/about.html|title=About Debra Brown|publisher=debralynnbrown.com|accessdate=2011-03-05
Zoé : She is the principal character in Quidam . Although average in nature, she longs for excitement.
Father : Completely, though unwittingly, self-absorbed. His white shoes are the only indication of a hidden personality.
Mother : Conveys an air of absence and alienation. Inside her lie fear, frustration, and desire.
Quidam : The show's titular character, who is anonymous, everyone, and no one. He may have stepped out of a surrealist painting or been conjured up out of Zoé's imagination.
John : Part game-show host and part substitute teacher who is the guide through the world of Quidam .
Target : A living human bullseye (target)|bullseye fired at by everyone, but is always smiling.
Chiennes Blanches : The silent chorus, the nameless and the faceless, the dehumanized, mechanical crowd, simultaneously leading and following. They also accompany the principal characters as they make their entrances and exits.
Boum-Boum : Enjoys screaming at the audience and walking away proudly, but will run away if an audience member screams back.
Rabbit : A minor character who chases and gets chased by other characters.
Aviator : A character who has skeletal wings who looks like he is not ready to take off.
Les Égarés : Lost individuals who gather together in the streets and abandoned buildings of Quidam . They perform in the banquine act.
Acts
Quidam combines a mix of acrobatic skills and traditional circus acts. These acts are listed below.cite web|url= http://www.cirquetribune.com/database/show.php? show=Quidam|title=Quidam Acts|publisher=Cirque Tribune|accessdate=2011-03-03
Wheel gymnastics|German wheel : An acrobat performs tricks within a German wheel.
Diabolo s : Four performers manipulate diabolos (i.e. Chinese yo-yo ), which are two sticks linked by a string on which a wooden spool balances.
Silks|Aerial contortion in silk
Jump rope|Skipping ropes : Drawing inspiration from dance, acrobatics, and the art of manipulation, a group of 20 acrobats performs this familiar child's game in a steady stream of solo, duo, and group jumps and figures.
Aerial Hoop|Aerial hoops : Three performers use hoops attached to the ceiling to perform various tricks.
Handstand|Handbalancing : Using strength and balance, a performer contorts into different poses while on balancing canes.
Spanish web s : Artists fly over the stage, attached to trolleys on the overhead tracks. In turn or as a group, they occasionally perform a sudden drop, stopped only by the ropes looped around their waists or ankles.
Statue : Two acrobats perform hand to hand.
Cloud swing : A unique combination of Trapeze and Spanish web techniques are combined in this act.
Banquine : An Italian people|Italian acrobatic tradition going back to the Middle Ages that combines gymnastics and ballet. Showcasing the agility of the human body, up to 15 artists perform sequences of feats and human pyramids with their perfectly synchronized movements.
Acts in rotation
Juggling : Up to 5 balls fly through the air, with additional manipulation of a briefcase, umbrella, and bowler hat .
Retired acts
Manipulation
Aerial straps : Two artists grasp cords that dangle from the overhead rails, sometimes performing on the ground, sometimes in the air.
Hooping|Hoops : A sensational routine involving up to 20 spinning hoops that a seductive performer manipulates all over her body, combining the agility and skill of a gymnast with the flexibility of a contortionist, the dexterity of a juggler, and the grace of a ballerina.
Costumes
Quidam 's costume designer, Dominique Lemieux, drew inspiration from Surrealism|Surrealist art, particularly the works of René Magritte and Paul Delvaux . The costumes convey the alienation of the characters and represent an urban landscape through the use of painted textures and fabrics. The dominant color throughout Quidam is grey, but is supplemented by deep, rich, warm colors and embellished with metals. Quidam was the first Cirque du Soleil show to utilize everyday clothing for the outfits, although those in the acrobatic acts are modified. The fabric chosen for Quidam is primarily stretch linen, but also includes leather, jute , linen crepe, wool, velvet and 42 types of cotton.cite book |title= Cirque du Soleil 25 Years of Costumes |last= Clément |first= Ronald |year= 2009 |publisher= Dépôt légal, Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |location= Canada |isbn= 978-2-9803493-4-8 |page= |pages= 40–45 |language= CN, EN, FR, JP
Quidam has approximately 250 costumes, 500 costume accessories, and 200-300 shoes. The reason for the large amount of costumes for the cast is that each artist has anywhere from 2 to 7 costumes, of which there are at least 2 spares. The costumes, although washed every day, can last anywhere from 6 months to 2 years.
Music
Quidam ’s music was composed by Benoît Jutras , and has been released in three album editions featuring additional songs, alternative new cover designs, and higher quality sounds. The first CD was released on January 14, 1997. (ASIN|B000003G5M) The album features the voices of Audrey Brisson-Jutras and Mathieu Lavoie , with the exception of two bonus tracks sung by Brisson-Jutras and Richard Price on the extended CD released in 2001 (recorded live in Amsterdam , 1999).cite web|url= http://www.cirquetribune.com/music/quidam.html|title=Music – Quidam|publisher=Cirque Tribune|accessdate=2011-03-24
Below is a list of tracks as featured on the original 1997 release, alongside which the acts to which they accompany are listed. The two tracks on the 2001 extended album are also included at the end: Mìsere and Enfant d'Acier.
further2| Cirque du Soleil discography#Quidam|Cirque du Soleil discography
Tour
Quidam started as a Grand Chapiteau touring show before being fully converted to an arena touring show in 2010. For a short period of time in 2009, Quidam toured the UK and IE in arena format before switching back to Grand Chapiteau when it went to South America.
Cirque du Soleil started using a customized tour bus as a method of helping to advertise Quidam during its tour in the Northeastern part of North America during the fall of 2011. During the shows stops in various cities, the tour bus makes appearances at local merchants allowing people to meet part of the crew.
The following colorboxes indicate the region of each performance: colorbox|#00CCFF| EU& nbsp; & nbsp;Europe colorbox|#00CC33| NA& nbsp; & nbsp;North America colorbox|#CB55FF| SA& nbsp; & nbsp;South and Central Americas colorbox|#FF5572| AP& nbsp; & nbsp;Asia/Pacific colorbox|#FFB655| OC& nbsp; & nbsp;Oceania
