La Nouba premiered in 1998 and was the first Cirque du Soleil show outside of Las Vegas to play permanently in its own theater. For theme park fans who are unfamiliar with it, Cirque du Soleil is a Montreal-based contemporary circus company that started in 1984 and has grown into the one of the largest largest theatrical producers in the world, with more than two dozen shows in production or development around the world. In addition to resident shows in Las Vegas and at Walt Disney World, you can find Cirque du Soleil on Broadway, in Mexico, and on tour around the world. Cirque du Soleil is developing resident shows in Dubai and Hanzhou, China, and is working with Goddard Group and Grupo Vidanta to develop a Cirque du Soleil theme park in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico, scheduled to open next year.
"We are incredibly proud of the success that La Nouba has had for nearly two decades," Jerry Nadal, Senior Vice President of the Resident Shows Division for Cirque du Soleil said in a statement. "We want to thank Walt Disney World Resort for a wonderful run over the years. We look forward to announcing what’s next."
It doesn't take a whole lot of clairvoyant skill to read between the lines of that statement and guess that the end of La Nouba doesn't mean the end of Cirque du Soleil at the Walt Disney World Resort. Should we look for a new Cirque production in Disney Springs in 2018? Stay tuned.
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Obviously, that's a smart business decision. A 19-year run is an extraordinary feat. It's proof that the market can support a resident show.
My educated guess is that the theatre will get renovated and will become the home of a new show. Cirque is not shy about creating new work.
During the renovation, I'd expect to see one of their "tent" shows set up shop in the parking area near the theatre. The West Side shops and restaurants need something major to bring guests to that side of Disney Springs. If this happens, it won't be "Toruk" because that requires an arena. It wouldn't fit in the tent.
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