Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico very well might just be the location of the world’s next great theme park experience – and no, it’s not coming from Disney, Universal, or even Six Flags. It’s coming from …
Cirque du Soleil.
Yeah, that Cirque du Soleil.
On November 12, the French-Canadian theater company announced their partnership with Grupo Vidanta in constructing and designing a new theme park in the Mexican resort community. The two entities have actually teamed up before, with Cirque producing a combination theater/culinary experience in the Maya Riviera district of Mexico. The forthcoming theme park is currently set to open in 2018, and while information is scarce, what we’ve been able to glean is really quite exciting.
Why? Well, a few reasons:
1. Cirque du Soleil has been very good at what it does
Image: Disney
Cirque du Soleil was founded in Montreal in 1984, and ever since, has been producing a very specific type of performance piece – one that combines comedy, clown, acrobatics, and circus work together into one cohesive event. Originally, those performances were done in one of Cirque’s traveling big-top tents, but while those venues are still popular, the company has become more famous for its resident shows in places like Las Vegas and Walt Disney World.
Many of those shows, such as O at the Bellagio in Las Vegas or La Nouba at Downtown Disney, have become tourist destinations in their own right, with audience members flocking from across the country to see the artistry on display. Others, like Love at the Mirage in Vegas or the nearby Michael Jackson: One at the Mandalay Bay, have drawn in guests with a combination of Cirque’s familiar aesthetic and a known pop-culture touchstone.
Those productions offer the best peek at what a successful Cirque du Soleil theme park might look at, because they’re performances in which Cirque takes its exquisite touch for spectacle, and combines it with the language, music, and visual aesthetic of another cultural item. If they’re able to create a moving show based on the music of The Beatles, it seems likely they’d be able to do the same within the context of a theme park.
2. The concept art is stunning … and vague
Thankfully for us, this announcement came complete with new concept art to pour over – something theme park nerds have grown rather accustomed to doing. Cirque du Soleil’s has certainly not disappointed.
The image you see above is an overview of what the entire resort will look like – which seems to include quite a few performance venues, possibly a hotel, and what appears to be a water park.
The other two images depict what are possibly two themed lands for the resort — the Village of the Moon:
And the Village of the Sun:
The “Village of the Moon” image doesn’t have a ton of clues as to what it might be about. It appears very natural and serene, but most of its allure comes from its mystery. The image features the subtitle, “the bridge to the Village of the Moon,” so we know this isn’t even the entire area — simply its entrance. Wow.
Meanwhile, the “Village of the Sun” image will make you want to stare at it for hours. At its center appears to be a structure similar to Walt Disney’s Tower of the Four Winds from the 1964 World’s Fair, and could wind up being a central performance space. To the left, you can see guests entering what seems to be an honest-to-goodness theme park attraction, meaning the resort won’t just house immersive theatrical experiences, but rides as well.
All of which is enough to whet the appetite, and kick the imagination into high gear – a promising sign from some early, blue-sky concept art.
3. The ride design company has quite the pedigree
Image: Universal
Now, while Cirque du Soleil is the main creative brand behind the theme park, they aren’t going to be the ones doing the actual engineering. For that, the two entities have contracted The Goddard Group to help put together the actual themed experiences in the resort.
What is the Goddard Group? Glad you asked.
The Goddard Group was founded by Gary Goddard, who is a candidate for one of Disney Imagineering’s most notable “ones that got away.” Goddard started his career working on the Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue at Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground at Walt Disney World, even rising to the role of director for the show.
From there, Goddard briefly moved into Imagineering, before setting off on his own to design attractions and direct theater. His resume includes Universal’s Terminator 2: 3D and Jurassic Park: the Ride, as well as one of the most critically acclaimed attractions of all time: The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man at Islands of Adventure.
Spider-Man and Terminator 2:3D both pushed the envelope on themed attractions. Terminator 2: 3D toyed with the idea of 3D projections interacting with physical actors and props, while Spider-Man perfected it in combination with a multi-axis, moving motion simulator.
It’s a good bet that when combined with Cirque du Soleil’s aesthetic of immersion, the resulting attractions will be unlike anything we’ve seen before. Whether or not it combines actual, physical performers with a show or ride vehicle, it’s a good bet that some form of interactivity and use of multiple media will be involved.
4. With all these parties involved, the possibilities are endless
In a post to their company’s Facebook wall, the Goddard Group said this about the forthcoming theme park:
“While we can’t get into too much detail at this point, we can say that the “star” attractions here are completely new experiences that don’t yet exist in the world.”
The key words in that are “don’t yet exist in the world.” Think about that for a second.
While we’re in the middle of another boom in the themed-entertainment industry, it also seems to be a time when it feels like there’s nothing new under the sun. Disney’s newest stateside attractions have mostly used minor updates on existing technology, while even the bleeding-edge innovation of Universal hasn’t quite made a major leap since Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. In that environment, it’s encouraging to hear someone boast about experiences that don’t yet exist in the world.
And more uniquely, the Cirque du Soleil park has another benefit: it’s not based on an existing media brand.
Universal’s newest attractions have been based on everything from Harry Potter to Transformers to King Kong. Meanwhile, Disney’s rides are focused on classic films such as The Little Mermaid and modern entries like James Cameron’s Avatar. Cirque likely won’t follow in that same mold due to their lack of intellectual property licenses. This gives them the freedom to come up with completely new experiences untethered to any existing property.
Ultimately, that’s what makes this entire project so exciting: a company with a remarkable theatrical aesthetic is combining with a designer with an unparalleled sense of technological innovation to create something that they hope will change the face of the industry. That’s a large goal, but so far, Cirque has earned the benefit of the doubt – and if the final park looks anything like that concept art, 2018 can’t come fast enough.
