The Los Angeles Times is reporting that Cirque du Soleil's spectacular show "Iris," will be closing on Jan. 19 in the California city of Los Angeles.
The news outlet relayed an announcement from Cirque du Soleil on Friday with the Montreal based company saying that the demand for tickets to "Iris" had not "met expectations," so far the circus has declined to release box office figures for the show that opened up in September 2011 at the Dolby Theater.
In order for the show to be stage in Los Angeles a $30 million loan had to be granted that would cover production expenses and theater renovation that costs near $100 million. The loan was from the city's Community Development Department to a partnership set up by the CIM Group, which owns the theater and the rest of the Hollywood & Highland Center.
The project is a major one in the Los Angeles area and its premature closure may not go down well with locals and according to The Times top executives at the Community Development Department, the agency that designed the loan, could not be reached. A representative of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who is on a trade mission to South America, was not expected to have any comment until Monday.
However a spokesman for Eric Garcetti the city councilman who brought about the deal said.
"While disappointing, the theater can now be used year round instead of simply for Oscar night," Garcetti spokesman Yusef Robb said. "And our understanding is that there has already been interest from people who want to stage events at the theater."
Another city councilman Dennis Zine questioned the project from start and wonders why such an event received so much financial help.
"We were assured at the time this was a good investment, that it was going to bring folks to the Hollywood area. So I find this very distressing," said Zine,
Zine attended "Iris," in Santa Monica and thinks that the pricing for the event may have been a causing factor for a show that cost $43 to $133 according to Cirque's website.
"If you're going to take your wife and your kids [to the show] and you have dinner first, you're talking about a $500 evening, and a lot of people don't have that," he said.
Renee-Claude Menard of Cirque said the production cost the company $50 to $55 million to produce.
"We put a huge effort into marketing and overseas marketing, but nothing would tilt the needle," Menard said. "The L.A. market is not ready for a permanent show."
Iris- A Journey Through the World of Cinema
