The creative artists at Cirque du Soleil are always looking for new ways to upgrade their larger-than-life shows and enhance the audience experience in their Las Vegas theaters. If you’re a frequent visitor and have seen any of these dazzling productions more than once, odds are you’ve noticed those upgrades, however slight they may be. There are always minute changes, tweaks, twists and turns that you probably don’t remember from your first visit, but those are the elements that keep the Cirque experience fresh and create even more lasting memories for the audience.
Subtle adjustments that make a big difference have been essential in the fascinating longevity of Mystère. The show at Treasure Island marked 25 years in December 2018 and remains one of the most popular productions on the Strip, as well as a personal favorite of dedicated Cirque du Soleil fans. Its acrobatics and artistry have been hailed as some of the most ground-breaking and influential acts in the history of Las Vegas entertainment, and each scene builds a colorful, cinematic landscape in the mind that’s impossible to forget.
One of those iconic acts went untouched for the first 23 years of the show’s enduring run. One of the closing segments of Mystère showcases many of the fabulously wild characters you’ve gotten to know throughout the course of the show—including the whimsical Red Bird, the adorable Baby Girl and the exuberant Laquais, considered the footmen of the Mystère universe—in a fast frenzy of acrobatics. These athletic artists take to the air thanks to a teeterboard they use to catapult each other across the stage and a series of trampolines arranged like a runway. Though the cast members may have changed through the years, they took the same positions and executed the same daring sequences from 1993 up until July of 2016, when Cirque elevated the experience for everyone involved.
The installation of a new teeterboard allowed the acrobats to vault up to 23 feet in the air using only the power of their own bodies and momentum, 10 to 12 feet higher than in previous performances. The flips and twists are higher and faster, and the choreography is breathtaking. And since this act occurs after aerial performances and some of the more comedic turns of Mystère, it serves as a crucial connection point by bringing the action directly in front of the audience and tying together the show’s dreamlike story. It’s frenetic yet harmonious and it leaves you wanting more, no matter how many times you’ve seen it. And if you have some kids in your group, be prepared for wide-eyed wonder and possible requests to start gymnastics classes.
That’s just one of the elegant, magnificent pieces that make up Mystère. Cirque du Soleil has clearly crafted this show to feel infinitely new and inspiring, a seemingly impossible task that this cast and crew pulls off twice nightly. If you’re ready to embrace the unimaginable, you’re ready to go back to the ever-expanding world of Mystère.
Treasure Island, 7 & 9:30 p.m. Sat.-Wed. (dark Sept. 21-25), $69-$125 plus tax and fee. 702.894.7722
