Zaia was a Cirque du Soleil stage production based at The Venetian Macao on the Cotai Strip in Macau. The 90-minute show opened in August 2008, bringing together 75 high-calibre artists from around the world. Zaia was Cirque du Soleil's first resident show in Asia and was directed by Neilson Vignola and Gilles Maheu. The custom-built theater housing the performance was capable of seating 1,800 spectators at a time. Zaia presented a young girl's dream of journeying into space, discovering worlds populated by a panoply of otherworldly creatures. The title, Zaia, came from a Greek name meaning "life". Due in part to the global financial crisis at the end of 2008 that contributed to low attendance, the show closed on 19 February 2012. Despite its closing, Venetian Macao resort owner Las Vegas Sands Corp. claimed, "Using Las Vegas as a benchmark, Zaia’s 3 1/2-year run should be deemed successful and provide strong support for the argument that the future of entertainment in Macau is on the right track."
History
Zaia opened in 2008 and had a rough start, due in part to the worldwide financial crisis which hurt audience turnout. With the addition of Chinese-style elements such as a lion dance performance and a flying dragon, increased ticket sales were eventually reported. Despite the improved box office sales, the show was still recording losses in 2011, Sands China president Edward Tracy revealed on 18 November 2011. The Venetian Macau show remained "the only business sector that doesn’t make a profit," he added. Criticism from Sands China chairman Sheldon Adelson led to rumours that the 10-year contract of Zaia would be terminated earlier. But Edward Tracy rejected this possibility. "We are prepared to take a loss to provide that kind of entertainment," he stressed. On 7 February 2012, Sands China and Cirque du Soleil announced that Zaia would close on 19 February 2012.
Cast
Some of Zaias creatures and characters are listed below.
Weathervanes: This group of characters performed in the Chinese poles on globes act and represented the directions on the compass.
Primitives
Sage: As the keeper of knowledge, the Sage watched over Zaia.
Fossils'
Acts
Circus and dance elements comprised Zaia's acts, listed below.
Choreography I - Cityscape: A fast-paced dance act set on a group of high-rise buildings; each performer used different dancing techniques from around the world.
Aerial bamboo: Zaia's parents dangled on a long bamboo pole. The father clung to the top of the pole while the mother dangled beneath him by wires connecting their teeth, or she held onto his arms or legs.
Skating: A couple performed a fast-paced dance, continuously circling with roller skates at a high speed on a raised platform.
Lion dance: An acrobatic take on the lion dance; the performers in lion costumes walked on a seesaw, balanced on globes, and even balanced on each other.
Choreography II - Dance of the automatons: Another fast-paced dance; each dancer performed as if they were a robot or a toy.
Juggling: A group of jugglers tossed clubs, balls and rings to each other.
Flying trapeze: A group of artists swung from one trapeze to another, performing elaborate flips before being caught in mid-air.
Hand to hand: A man and woman representing Adam and Eve balanced atop each other in a series of poses requiring extraordinary strength.
Handbalancing: An understudy act for hand to hand, it saw a male performer balance on high handstand canes.
Choreography III - Fire dance: The dance troupe performed with fire clubs, fire staffs and other fire performance apparatus.
Trampoline and X-board: An X-shaped trampoline had two crossed teeterboards where the trampoline tracks met. The acrobats would flip on the trampoline and send other performers flying in the air with the X-board.
Retired acts
Rola bola: A comical balancing act; a clown created a precarious structure using flexible planks.
Chinese poles on globes: A group of eight artists performed this dangerous act. Four performers balanced on rolling globes, each with a Chinese pole on one of their shoulders; the other four climbed up these poles and would flip or spin to the next pole.
Aerial frame: Two cradles were at each end; the porter would send the flyer to a catcher, and the flyer would perform flips while in the air. The two catchers had a swinging apparatus on which they were based.
Stranger: A clown met another lonely clown while riding in a hot air balloon.
Overture: One of the clowns performed an act originally created by Denis Lacombe.
Hoop Manipulation: An act that featured veteran Cirque performer, Elena Lev.
Dual Aerial Straps: An aerial ballet featuring two performers.
Aerial Cube: An act previously performed in Mystère and Alegría.
Aerial Silks: A performer flew around on silks.
Aerial Hoop: Three performers spun around on a single hoop.
Costumes
Costume designer Dominique Lemieux took inspiration from the inventive dress styles younger generations create for themselves; thus the costumes for Zaia were an eclectic merging of genres. The different styles of outfits represented the differences among the groups of performers. As one of the urban characters, Zaia was seen wearing primarily red, one of the warmer colors. To complement her, Romeo wore warm earth tones with copper and gold highlights. In contrast to the style of the wardrobe of the acrobats and dancers, the clowns wore patches of fabric with patina; their costumes drew inspiration from 18th-century explorers.
Music
The show's score was composed by Violaine Corradi and was released as a CD album on May 26, 2009. Below is a list of the tracks featured on the CD.
