Cirque du Soleil to return to Toronto in April with touring show

A performer balances on a stack of cylinders high above the floor during a preview of the Cirque Du Soleil production of "Kurios - Cabinet of Curiosities" in Sydney, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Rick Rycroft

TORONTO -

Cirque du Soleil is poised to leap back into Toronto next spring with its first show in more than two years.

The Montreal-based circus company says its critically acclaimed touring spectacle "Kurios -- Cabinet of Curiosities" returns to the city April 14 for a limited showcase at Ontario Place.

Cirque du Soleil has been performing in Las Vegas since June, when it reopened its resident productions "Mystere," "O," "The Beatles Love" and "Michael Jackson One."

The company says the return of "Kurios" marks the relaunch of its "big top" touring operations, following "Alegria" in Houston in November, "Luzia" in London and "Kooza" in Punta Cana, both beginning January 2022.

Cirque du Soleil also returns to Montreal with "Kooza" in April 2022, and Trois-Rivieres, Que., with "Vive Nos Divas" in July.

Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group cancelled its shows last year and cut nearly 3,500 employees due to the pandemic.

It was sold to a group of its creditors led by Catalyst Capital Group late last year after it was forced to file for creditor protection.

The last Cirque du Soleil show in Toronto was "Alegria," which concluded in December 2019.

Daniel Lamarre, president and CEO of Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group, called Toronto a "special place for us."

"More than ever, we need the shared connection that live entertainment brings," Lamarre said in a statement Monday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2021.