The Quebec circus company and Ex Machina intend to reproduce the atmosphere of wrestling galas in a show with the working title Arène – Lutte Cirque Théâtre.
“There is nothing more circus than wrestling,” Robert Lepage said at a webcast press conference in Quebec City at Le Diamant on Wednesday morning.
The director’s interest in this spectator sport is already well known, the room he co-founded regularly hosting North Shore Pro Wrestling (NSPW) events. He is also currently working on an exhibition retracing the history of the struggle in Quebec, which is to be presented in the spring of 2024 within the walls of the Musée de la civilization, in the capital.
It is also in the spring of 2024 that Arène – Lutte Cirque Théâtre (working title), a production by Lepage, will be shown at Le Diamant, before going on tour in the provinces, then around the world. For Bruno Gagnon, the general and artistic director of FLIP Fabrique, this announcement marks the culmination of a decade of dreaming of a collaboration between his team and that of Ex Machina.
The fruit of this union worthy of the team formed in another era by Hulk Hogan and “Macho Man” Randy Savage will revisit the codes of theatre, circus and wrestling. “The ring becomes a trampoline there,” the statement said, “while the side cables serve as wires for tightrope walkers or the announcer’s microphone becomes an aerial acrobatic device. »