Dubai:Tickets now on sale for Alegría by Cirque du Soleil®

Tickets now on sale for Alegría by Cirque du Soleil®

- Cirque du Soleil, in partnership with Nakheel, will present Alegría™ under the
‘Grand Chapiteau' at Ibn Battuta Mall from March 5 - April 5, 2009 -
- Buy four or more tickets and receive a 20 per cent discount -
- Three matinee performances a week plus a dedicated family only seating area -

13th January, 2009, Dubai: Tickets go on sale today, Tuesday 13th January for the highly acclaimed Cirque du Soleil show Alegría which is coming to Dubai for a month this March.

Held in partnership with Nakheel, Alegría will be a prelude to the resident show that Cirque du Soleil is developing specifically for Dubai and which is scheduled to open in a purpose-built 1,800 seat theatre on Palm Jumeirah in 2011.

Alegría, which will be performed between March 5 – April 5, 2009 at Ibn Battuta Mall will feature an evening performance daily (excluding Monday) as well as matinee performances on Friday, Saturday and Sundays with all shows offering a special family only seating section, which takes into consideration the local cultural customs.

Tickets for Alegría, regarded as one of the world’s premier live entertainment productions, will go on sale today and will be available to buy online at www.cirquedusoleil.ae or by calling 800 CIRQUE (800 247783). Tickets will be priced from 180 AED through to 1,000 AED. For bookings of four or more people for a Sunday, Tuesday or Wednesday performance people can benefit from a 20 per cent saving.

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Following the success of Quidam™, the first ever performance by Cirque du Soleil in the Middle East in 2007 which more than 100,000 people attended Nakheel expects tickets for Alegría to sell quickly and recommends that customers buy their tickets early to ensure that they don’t miss out on experiencing the magic of Cirque du Soleil.

Robert Lee, Managing Director, Investment Projects, Nakheel said:

“We are delighted to be launching tickets for Cirque du Soleil’s return to Dubai. Alegría is an incredible show packed with the most breathtaking acrobatic performances and accompanied by fabulous live music.

“We are confident that the show is going to be hugely popular, following on from the success of Quidam, and we recommend people buy early to ensure they see one of the biggest events of the year. For anyone who has seen a Cirque du Soleil show before they will know that it is an awe-inspiring and life-changing experience and we can recommend it to people of all ages.”

Brett Judd, Head of Entertainment and Leisure, Nakheel Retail, added:

“We have taken into consideration that people are looking to cut their expenditure in 2009 so we are offering a 20 per cent discount on bookings of four or more people for certain performances. In addition, we have a designated family only seating area to encourage families to come and enjoy the show together. The ticketing solution that Nakheel has implemented for booking tickets is a very reliable and user-friendly system with credit card security a key priority for us.”

Alegría’s international cast of 55 acrobats, musicians, singers, clowns and characters from 17 countries will perform their talents over two hours in the Grand Chapiteau which caters for 2,500 spectators. Beginning in Montreal, Canada, in 1994, Alegría has visited 65 cities across 17 countries and has awed over 10 million spectators around the globe.

The return of Cirque du Soleil follows a partnership struck last year between Nakheel and Cirque du Soleil to develop a permanent show on Palm Jumeirah beginning in 2011 and is expected to run over a 15-year period. This was followed by an announcement that saw Istithmar World, the investment arm of Dubai World, and Nakheel acquire a 20 per cent stake in Cirque du Soleil earlier this year.

Performance dates, times and ticket prices:
Performance dates: Thursday 5th March – Sunday 5th April
Performance times: Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at 8.30pm; Friday and Sunday at 4.30pm and 8.30pm and Saturday at 1.00pm and 5.00pm
Ticket prices: Children (2-12 yrs) from AED 180* to AED 425, Adults (13 years +) from AED 240* to AED 550. VIP** tickets from AED 800* to AED 1000.

* Cheapest tickets are available when four or more tickets are purchased together for performances on a Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday evening only.
** The VIP area is reserved for 21 year olds and above

Booking information:
To purchase tickets visit www.cirquedusoleil.ae or call 800 CIRQUE (800 247783).

About Nakheel
Nakheel is one of the world's largest privately held real estate developers, and a key player in realising the vision of Dubai for the 21st century: creating a world class destination for living, business and tourism.

Nakheel is developing an iconic portfolio of innovative landmark projects in Dubai, and now in key markets around the globe, across a range of sectors - residential, commercial, hotels, retail, and leisure. Nakheel's projects are conservatively estimated to be worth US$80 billion. Upon completion, Nakheel's waterfront projects will have added more than 1,000km of shoreline to Dubai's coastline.

Nakheel's Dubai portfolio includes Palm Jumeirah, Palm Jebel Ali, Palm Deira, The World, Waterfront, The Universe, Nakheel Harbour & Tower, Jumeirah Islands, Jumeirah Village, Jumeirah Park, Jumeirah Heights, The Gardens, Discovery Gardens, Ibn Battuta Mall, Al Furjan, International City and Dragon Mart.

Nakheel is a key entity within Dubai World. Dubai World is one of the world's largest holding companies and supervises a portfolio of businesses and projects for the Dubai Government across five continents and more than 100 countries.

About Cirque du Soleil
From a group of 20 street performers at its beginnings in 1984, Cirque du Soleil is a major Quebec-based organization providing high-quality artistic entertainment. The company has almost 4,000 employees from over 40 different countries, including 1,000 artists. Cirque du Soleil has brought wonder and delight to close to 80 million spectators in over 200 cities on five continents. In 2008, Cirque du Soleil will present 18 shows simultaneously throughout the world. The company has received such prestigious awards as the Emmy, Drama Desk, Bambi, ACE, Gémeaux, Félix, and Rose d’Or de Montreux. Cirque du Soleil International Headquarters are in Montreal, Canada.

Fast Facts about Alegría

- Two of the current artists belong to the original cast, having performed in over 54,000 shows
- The oldest artist is 67, and the youngest is 13
- Approximately 500 balls of knitting yarn, 1,094 yards of braid, 1,586 yards of lace, 22 pounds of glitter and 2,515 yards of silk jersey are used for the production of the costumes
- 1,000 buttons and jewels are used for the two singers' costumes alone!
- More than 1,000 springs hold up the Power Track trampoline … end to end that's 105 meters
- Over 10,000 kilos of "snow" have been used in the "Storm" act
- Alegría travels with a 'village on wheels' that covers an area of 20 000 m² and is completely self-sufficient for power, water and all essential services. The village includes various offices, a box office, a kitchen and even a school.