Robert Lepage
Creator and director

Robert Lepage, the writer and director of KÀ, was given the mandate by Cirque du Soleil Founder and CEO Guy Laliberté to create nothing less than an epic saga.

"The only way to do that is to find a pretext for a conflict in the story," he says. "And that's unusual for Cirque du Soleil. Even if they've had some kind of loose narrative in some of their shows, it's never been about confrontation or conflicts. Not that this show is specifically about that, but you can't create an epic saga if you don't confront your heroes with difficulty of some kind."

Lepage is perhaps best known for his innovative use of technology to tell compelling stories on stage, and that made him the ideal choice to write and direct KÀ, which calls for more visual and technical effects than any previous Cirque du Soleil production.

Robert Lepage says the rationale for this approach is the fact that today's audiences have developed a very rich visual narrative vocabulary and heightened expectations. "Twenty-five or 30 years ago we would go to the theatre, the circus or the dance or the opera with a very specific set of rules," he explains. "Now, people are exposed to more and more television and cinema and rock videos. The web has its own way of interacting and telling stories. We're being told stories in all kinds of crazy ways. The spectator's narrative vocabulary has evolved a lot. So you can allow yourself to do things in a live performance that you could never have done before. As a result, in this show, people will have the impression they're inside some kind of cinematic event—but actually everything is interactive, everything's happening at the moment."

The underlying theme of the story Lepage created for KÀ is the idea of fire. In the storyline and the saga, fire creates conflict and destruction as it gives life and light. "When you have the knowledge of fire, what do you do with it? Do you illuminate the world or do you destroy it? And that's a lot of what the show is about," he says.

One of the subtexts the show explores is the concept of duality, and the conflict inherent in duality lends itself very well to a martial arts treatment. "There's something very beautiful and elegant in martial arts," says Lepage. "Even if it's only a peaceful demonstration it's still about two people grabbing at each other. So the big challenge is, how do you do a show that's not violent, that's not about violence, that is still very full of hope, beauty and peace, but at the same time deals with conflict?"

Born in Québec City (where he still lives), Robert Lepage began his career in the theatre by studying at the Conservatoire d'art dramatique de Québec, where he trained as a designer, playwright and performer. Following an internship in France he returned to establish a solid career in Canadian theatre, eventually becoming the Artistic Director of the National Arts Centre's French Theatre wing.

In 1994, Lepage founded his own multidisciplinary production company, Ex Machina, which produced the critically acclaimed Seven Streams of the River Ota, Le Songe d'une nuit d'été and his one-man show Elsinore. His first feature film, Le Confessionnal, was invited to open the Director's Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival in 1995 and his fifth feature, The Far Side of the Moon, premiered in 2003.

Lepage's work directing opera, notably Bluebeard's Castle and Erwartung for the Canadian Opera Company and a production of The Damnation of Faust in Japan expanded his horizons and his reputation even further.

Lepage also conceived and directed Peter Gabriel's Secret World Tour in 1992, and he worked with Gabriel again in 2002 when he staged the Growing Up Live tour.

With KÀ, Robert Lepage is working for the first time with a cast that includes acrobats, gymnasts, martial artists, and only a few actual actors. This aspect of the show has presented him with its own set of challenges—and rewards: "I think you have to have a good sense of meshing and cross-breeding, if I can express myself that way. For example, the clowns in this show are being asked to do a lot of acrobatics. They've always done a certain amount, but this is really pushing it very far. And acrobats are being asked to perform more as actors creating characters than they ever have before. There's a lot of choreographic and dance quality to some of the movements, again more than ever. So we're stretching the boundaries."