Cirque du Soleil dazzles as Corteo dances into Ottawa

One of Cirque du Soleil’s most loved shows, Corteo, is back on the road to give more audiences the opportunity to experience it’s magic. Corteo first premiered in Montreal in 2005 and has visited more than 60 cities in 19 different countries as a Big Top show before transforming in an arena show in 2016.

Cirque du Soleil performs Corteo in Ottawa. Photo: Renée Doiron

Corteo, which means “cortege” in Italian, is a joyous procession, a festive parade imagined by a clown. The show brings together the passion of the actor with the grace and power of the acrobat to plunge the audience into a theatrical world of fun, comedy and spontaneity

situated in a mysterious space between heaven and earth.

The clown pictures his own funeral taking place in a carnival atmosphere, watched over by quietly caring angels. Juxtaposing the large with the small, the ridiculous with the tragic and the magic of perfection with the charm of imperfection, the show highlights the strength and fragility of the clown, as well as his wisdom and kindness, to illustrate the portion of humanity that is within each of us. The music, by turns lyrical and playful, carries Corteo through a timeless celebration in which illusion teases reality.

Initially we were invited to experience Corteo on opening night in Ottawa but personal engagements made it impossible but special thanks to the amazing people at Flip Publicity for inviting us to come out the following night.

Cirque du Soleil performs Corteo in Ottawa. Photo: Renée Doiron

Although quite familiar with Cirque du Soleil, a family friend is currently on tour with one of their shows, I had personally never had the opportunity to experience one of their shows. Corteo was the perfect show to start with. The story is beautiful and gives a whole new perspective on life and death. For two hours we became a part of the celebration of life for Mauro.

Corteo will make you laugh, gasp in amazement, sometimes make you want to hide your eyes (but you won’t) and even cry. Most of all Corteo will make you jump out of your seat and cheer. It’s the closest thing to true magic you will ever experience.

Corteo runs through tomorrow at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa before heading south to Kingston where it will set up at the Rogers K-Rock Centre from July 4 to July 8. If you aren’t one of the more than 8 million people that have experienced Corteo do yourself a favor and take advantage of the opportunity and see it while it’s here.

Remaining showtimes in Ottawa for Corteo are June 30: 3:30pm and 7:30pm, July 1: 1:30pm and 5:00pm get your tickets at http://www.canadiantirecentre.com/event/cirque-du-soleil/