Cirque du Soleil - Totem Tickets

Meaning 'Circle of the Sun', this Canadian acrobatic entertainment troupe was formed in 1984 by Guy Laliberte, a former street performer. It was one of the first 'nouveau cirque' acts to be successful, helped by the absence of animals, and innovative storylines that gave each show a narrative theme, instead of just relying on the conventional circus traditions of individual, specialised circus acts. The symbiosis of their shows, where the performers themselves change scenery and props around, coupled with high-end acrobatics, visual spectacles, light shows and dedicated musical scores which provide seamless storytelling, Cirque Du Soleil rapidly grew in popularity and was soon performing all over the world, in over 271 cities on six continents.

At any one time, the show employs around 4,000 performers in 40 countries, as well as six permanent shows in different Las Vegas hotels, including O at the Bellagio, Mystere at the Treasure Island, Love (inspired by The Beatles) at the Mirage and Zumanity at New York, New York. Since 1984, Cirque Du Soleil has presented a mind-blowing 29 different shows, with 22 of them still going strong in various cities around the world (many being touring productions).

The Totem touring show takes the evolution of mankind as its theme, using sets such as swamps, forests, mountains, and other natural environments, to trace our beginnings and lead us right up to the present day. Infra red cameras and vast projectors are used to help create this visual feat, as well as massive bridges and intricate acrobatics gantries and frames. The main characters are the Scientist, the Tracker, the Amerindian Dancer and Crystal Man, and there are 52 performers, 779 costume changes and 16 different acts in the show, all leading to a breathtaking visual finale.

Totem premiered in Montreal in April 2010, then went to Europe and North America in 2011, and returned to the UK (Royal Albert Hall, London) in early 2012 before heading back to the US and Canada.