La Nouba is a Cirque du Soleil show, which, like most Cirque du Soleil shows, is a circus-like performance featuring acrobats, gymnasts, and other skilled performers.
Its title derives from the French phrase faire la nouba, meaning “to party” or “to live it up”.
La Nouba is in permanent residence in a specially-made arena at Downtown Disney’s West Side at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
The Characters:
As in every Cirque show, in addition to the performances, there are several distinctive characters that participate in the show sometimes as performers and sometimes as spectators. In La Nouba, these include:
- The Green Bird
- Les Cons (The “nuts” or “silly people”)
- Le Titan (A mysterious “muscle man”)
- The Walker
- The Pierrot Rouge
- The Pierrot Clown and Lost Ballerina
- The Clowns
- The Cleaning Woman
Performances:
Prior to the beginning of the show, clowns “Balto” and “Serguei” enter the arena and set the stage by interacting with guests and pulling a stunt on a few unsuspecting audience members.
The show begins with the “Parade” as select characters and performers make their way across the aisle that separates the lower and upper seating sections of the house. Following the Parade, the cleaning woman appears, sweeping away at the stage until one-by-one the characters appear. First, the Green Bird, then Le Pierrot Rouge, an upside down biker crosses the stage followed by a model train and two clowns (one sleepwalking), then on what seems to be an elevator, les cons appear and begin to walk about the stage as if never seen it before, until she’s seen more than she can believe. In a sudden fanfare of activity on the stage, the Urbanites march in unison, with sounds of howling wolves, and the cracks of bullwhips filling the air.
In La Nouba, the performances include:
- German Wheels
- High Wire
- Diabolos
- Cycles
- Aerial Cradle
- Aerial Ballet in Silk
- Balancing on Chairs
- Flying Trapeze
- Power Track and Trampoline