Cirque du Soleil’s new show Toruk in Chicago Aug 3-7

image from the facebook page for Toruk

The new Cirque du Soleil touring show TORUK – The First Flight will be at the United Center in Chicago August 3-7, 2016. And you can win a 4 pack of tickets to Opening night on August 3! Scroll down to see how!

Inspired by James Cameron’s record-breaking movie AVATAR, TORUK – The First Flight transports the audience to a far away place (Pandora) using a combination of music, acrobatics, cutting-edge visuals, and puppetry to make the story come to life.

As you can see from this promo video, the puppetry, costumes, and props are sensational.

And here’s one of the first 30 second spots/ads from TV:

The story of Toruk

When a natural catastrophe threatens to destroy the sacred Tree of Souls, two boys on the brink of adulthood decide to take matters into their own hands. They and their newfound friend Tsyal, search for a flying predator (Toruk) that can help them in their quest. A prophecy is fulfilled when a pure soul rises among the clans to ride Toruk for the first time and save the Na’vi from a terrible fate.

As is true in many Cirque shows, I expect that the story will get lost somewhere in the second act, but considering the amazing spectacle that will unfold, including puppetry projections, performances, and everything else (and in an arena, not a circus tent) I expect to not care too much. (I’ve read that there are 40 video projectors in use during the show. The total projection space is over 20,000 square feet of area, 5 times as much projection space as an IMAX film.)

The puppetry also looks amazing!  Cruising around the Toruk website, I found these images/sketches of how they made some of the puppets.

There is also a new immersive aspect of the show, using smartphone technology.  Yes, there’s an app for this show! The app will enable audience members to be a part of the action before, during and after the performance! The app can be downloaded from here: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/toruk-the-first-flight/id1060239115?mt=8

Ticket information

TORUK – The First Flight will be presented at the United Center on August 3-7, 2016. Tickets can be purchased at https://www.cirquedusoleil.com/toruk.

HERE’S HOW TO WIN TICKETS TO TORUK

Visit our raffle copter giveaway. Tickets are a 4 pack for opening night August 3. Giveaway ends July 31. Winner announced August 1.