viva elvis

The King returns in Cirque du Soleil’s latest Las Vegas production.

By EMILY LA BRECQUE | January/February 2010

Photo: Used by Permission, Elvis Presley Enterprises, Inc.

Elvis Presley is synonymous with Las Vegas. His legacy can be seen in the city’s gift shops and wedding chapels and felt throughout Nevada’s entertainment capital. Now, at long last, the King returns.

The new Cirque du Soleil production, “Viva ELVIS,” is not a show about Elvis; it is a show starring Elvis. “You can hear him, see him, and feel him in this show,” Armand Thomas, Cirque du Soleil director of creation, says. “He is not just some icon that we are singing about, he is the star of the show.” “Viva ELVIS,” which opened in December at CityCenter’s ARIA, is the first Cirque show to include a spoken theatrical aspect.

An actor portraying Elvis’ manager, Colonel Tom Parker, will provide a theatrical through every line of the show, carrying the narrative from act to act, place to place, and time to time. “The only Elvis you hear or see singing will be the real one on our screens,” Thomas says. “We would never put some guy onstage, make him sing, and ask you to close your eyes and pretend that it’s Elvis.” The music is rearranged and pulled from master recordings. His songs are intermixed with a live band and four female backup singers. “This is Elvis new again, and that is something truly special,” Thomas adds.

“Viva ELVIS” is a grandiose combination of song, dance, rock ’n’ roll, and explosive acrobatics. Presented on a large high-end stage, the production is full of lifts and flying apparatuses that allow the cast to swing and dance their way into the audience. “This show pays homage to a man who was larger than life, so the show can be nothing less,” Thomas says. “The show is geared to not only bring out Elvis as the phenomenon he was in the entertainment world, but to show that he was a likable and approachable human being.”

The events of Elvis’ life and music are not presented chronologically in the show. Songs are played to fit the atmosphere rather than a timeline. “Viva ELVIS” was created in association with CKX Inc.—which owns Elvis’ name, image, and likeness—and with help from his family and friends. “We have had Priscilla at our side for a few years now,” Thomas says. “We really feel that we have become a part of the Elvis family.”

Elvis has a fan base that is among the most loyal in entertainment history, and Cirque hopes to inspire the next generation of Elvis lovers with this production. According to Thomas, this is a family show geared toward all ages. “Elvis’ music has never really gone out of style; instead, it has influenced new styles,” Thomas says. “Anyone from any generation can sit down and listen to his music, look at what the man did, and the way he moves, and it will knock their socks off.”

When Elvis played in Las Vegas—he performed regularly from 1969 to 1976—it was an automatic sellout. He helped transform the city into a family destination. “He made this a place to entertain, a place to amaze, and a place to be a little bit eccentric,” Thomas says. “Elvis is Las Vegas. That’s why we named the show the way we did. Elvis is eternal, so viva Elvis.”