''Solstrom'' is a

Cirque du Soleil Cirque du Soleil (, ; "Circus of the Sun" or "Sun Circus") is a Canadian entertainment company and the largest contemporary circus producer in the world. Located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 Ju ...

television series in thirteen 45-minute episodes from 2003. It was initially broadcast on the U.S.

Bravo Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels *Bravo (band), a Russian rock band * Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984 *Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing company ...

cable network and aired on

Bold In typography, emphasis is the strengthening of words in a text with a font in a different style from the rest of the text, to highlight them. It is the equivalent of prosody stress in speech. Methods and use The most common methods in W ...

in Canada and

SBS Television The Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) is an Australian hybrid-funded public service broadcaster. About 80 percent of funding for the company is derived from the Australian Government. SBS operates six TV channels ( SBS, SBS Viceland, SBS World ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. It has also been released on DVD.

Overview

The series is structured as a unique combination of the

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical theatre, musical performances, sketch comedy, magic (illusion), magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is ...

and

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

format. Its episodes connect assorted circus acts and variety acts by means of simple storylines, all of which emerge from the premise that a diverse group of extraterrestrial creatures with transformative powers have arrived on Earth. Invisible to humans, these creatures from the sun individually observe and magically alter various situations wherever they go, changing normal humans into graceful and athletic performers, transforming their mundane realities and enchanting them to perform graceful acts of wonder. Meanwhile, an eccentric scientist named Fogus Punch (performed by Cirque du Soleil veteran clown John Gilkey and voiced by Alex Ivanovici) remotely observes the creatures' interactions through an observatory telescope. The series features regular performers from Cirque du Soleil's live shows as well as many accomplished guest performers, including partners and family members, clowns and

Guinness Book ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

record holders. Some acts are creative re-adaptations of performers' acts from Cirque du Soleil's other productions; other acts feature performers and acts that have never appeared in any of the company's other shows. Music from previous Cirque du Soleil shows accompanies some of ''Solstroms acts, though a great deal of original music was written by several different composers to accompany other acts.

Sun creatures

Each episode features one or more characters appropriated from one of Cirque du Soleil's stage shows, here presented as "creatures" from the sun who catalyze the other characters' various transformations from mundane to magical. Their roles are largely confined to brief appearances where they initiate transformations by blowing "solar winds" on the people they encounter. Below is a list of the sun creatures in the order they appear in the series. Listed after each creature is the name of the Cirque du Soleil show in which the character originally appeared. *Fiona, one of the baroques (''

Saltimbanco ''Saltimbanco'' was a touring show by Cirque du Soleil. ''Saltimbanco'' ran from 1992 to 2006 in its original form, performed under a large circus tent called the Grand Chapiteau; its last performance in that form was in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, ...

'') played by Andrea Conway *Les Cons (''

La Nouba ''La Nouba'' was a Cirque du Soleil show that ran for 19 years in a custom-built, freestanding theater at Disney Springs' West Side at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. It was a contemporary circus performance featurin ...

'') *Zebras ('' O'') *The Baron (''

'') *Gaia (''

Dralion ''Dralion'' (pronounced Drah-lee-on) was a touring production by the Canadian entertainment company Cirque du Soleil. The show combined elements of traditional Chinese circus with Western contemporary circus, complementing the "East-meets-West" ...

'') *"Quidam" (''

Quidam ''Quidam'' ( ) was the ninth stage show produced by Cirque du Soleil. It premiered in April 1996 and has been watched by millions of spectators around the world. ''Quidam'' originated as a big-top show in Montreal and was converted into an arena ...

'') *Boum-Boum (''

'') *L'Ame Force (''

'') *Lizard (''

Varekai Varekai was a Cirque du Soleil touring production that premiered in Montréal in April 2002. Its title means "wherever" in the Romani language, and the show is an "acrobatic tribute to the nomadic soul". The show begins with the Greek myth of Ica ...

'') *The Aviator (''

'') *The Comet ('' O'') *The Dreamer (''

'') *The Guide (''

'') *Venus ('' Mystère'') *The Barrel Organ Grinder ('' O'') At the beginning of the episode Wind from the Past, some classic Alegria characters appears as ''children'' version. As Sun creatures, they don't appear in the episode with the exception of their landing of the shuttle, accompanied by The Dreamer (which is itself the main creature of the episode). *''Baby'' White Singer ('' Alegria'') *''Baby'' Monsieur Fleur ('' Alegria'') *''Baby'' Tamir ('' Alegria'') *''Baby'' Shoulder-Pole Wire act character (voltigeur) ('' Alegria'') *''Baby'' Shoulder-Pole Wire act character (porteur) ('' Alegria'') The last episode takes place on a space station frequented by the Sun creatures. Although they does not come on Earth (and therefore are not perceived in any one episode besides this one), here is the list of these Sun creatures: *Moon Head ('' O'') (note that this character is the creature associated with the episode Cosmic Wind: he descends from the shuttle at the beginning of each episode. In fact, he is the only main Sun creatures in the serie to never blow solar wind) *One of the Double Faces ('' Mystère'') *Two Nostalgic Old Birds ('' Alegria'') *Bungee act character ('' Mystère'') *A Spermatos ('' Mystère'') *Two Musicians ('' Alegria'')

Episodes

Each episode has a different theme that is explored through various loosely interwoven storylines. * ''Wind of Romance'' (set in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

) : An Italian village becomes a festival of passionate excursions. * ''Twin Winds'' (set in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

) : A vain man pursues his stolen reflection in a world of pairs. * ''Howling Winds'' (set in

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...

) : An old-fashioned hotel turns into a haunted house of fun and horror. * ''Rockin' Wind'' (set in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

) : An orchestra rehearsal goes awry and takes on a rock 'n' roll beat. * ''Once Upon a Wind'' (set in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

) : A storybook turns those who touch it into adventure heroes. * ''Wind of Freedom'' (set in the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

) : Prisoners flee captivity by exceptional means. * ''Ghostly Wind'' (set in

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...

) : A night watchman is frightened by costumes brought to life in a warehouse. * ''Gone With the Winds'' (set in

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

) : An airport employee experiences a unique adventure in the desert. * ''Wind from the Past'' (set in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

) : For a fleeting moment, an old man becomes a child in the world of his toy box. * ''Winds of Courage'' (also set in

) : An armchair sports fan enters into a series of competitive games. * ''Wind of Imagination'' (set in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

) : A boy's building blocks become an actual construction site. * ''Wind of Life'' (set in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

) : In a toy shop in Salzburg, an old artisan's marionette comes to life. * ''Cosmic Wind'' (set in

outer space Outer space, commonly shortened to space, is the expanse that exists beyond Earth and its atmosphere and between celestial bodies. Outer space is not completely empty—it is a near-perfect vacuum containing a low density of particles, pred ...

) : Creatures of the sun live it up in an intergalactic

discothèque A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

References

External links

Official Solstrom website
*{{IMDb title, 0824521 Cirque du Soleil Circus television shows