ABSTRACT
The years 1993–2013 constitute the reign of Cirque du Soleil on the Las Vegas Strip. The theatre’s configuration was altered from a cabaret space, with booths, tables, and chairs, to a theatre that seats 1,951. A new set of catwalks and grid decking over the seating area was added for performer access and front-of-house lighting and technical systems. The control booth was reconfigured to allow space for the production’s extensive lighting, audio, projection, and automation controls. The building’s infrastructure had to be totally reworked to accommodate the new production. All spaces were connected with sound, video, and communications from the stage area. New company switches were distributed throughout the theatre, for chain hoists, special effects, and specialty gear. A new multi-tiered rigging system was developed at the grid level. All network equipment was designed to be housed in nine racks interconnected with three fully redundant fiber optic backbones.
