Art

A Declaration of Love to Life: VIVID Grand Show Dazzles Its Audience in Berlin

A Declaration of Love to Life: VIVID Grand Show Dazzles Its Audience in Berlin October 21, 2018
For the first time in the Palast's 99-year history, a woman is responsible for writing and directing the Grand Show.

With the most prominent production budget yet for a European show – totaling €12 million – VIVID Grand Show premiered at the Friedrichstadt-Palast in Berlin this October to a sold-out audience of 2000 guests and celebrities. An audience that continues to rave about the mesmerizing show, and its production.

The new VIVID Grand Show is a declaration of love to life and surprises with exuberant sensory impressions. For the first time in the Palast’s 99-year history, a woman is responsible for writing and directing the Grand Show. Canadian Krista Monson lives in Las Vegas where she was instrumental in the long-running success of the Cirque du Soleil show ‘O’ as Artistic Director. “VIVID features futuristic elements, but also remains close to reality,” She tells us. “Many people experience that life can change in just a split second.”

After Christian Lacroix, Thierry Mugler and Jean Paul Gaultier, the Palast’s General Director and Producer Dr. Berndt Schmidt has now commissioned the talented headpiece designer Philip Treacy as Design Director and Costume Supervisor. Treacy raves: “VIVID is the most exciting project I’ve ever been involved in. The Palast gave me the creative freedom to work on ambitious designs and to reinterpret revolutionary headpieces from my career with experienced eyes.” Under the direction of Philip Treacy, the Paris-based fashion designer, illustrator and art director Stefano Canulli is responsible for the extravagant costumes for the world’s biggest theatre stage.

For General Director Dr. Berndt Schmidt, VIVID is also the antithesis to recent developments: “We counteract many of the latest tendencies with a declaration of love to life. As such, VIVID is entertainment at its best. While it does not point any fingers, it also is not apolitical in the contemporary context.” It is not without reason that the headpiece designed by Philip Treacy that features on the show poster dazzles in all colors of the rainbow – it is a clear commitment to respect and diversity.

In the show, the main character R’eye enters a binary world as she is made an android. Throughout the show, she attempts to gain her humanity back by seeing all the beauty in life- the good and the bad. In English, “vivid” means colorful, bright, lively. The acronym “ID” emphasized in the VIVID show name refers to the human identity that R’eye so dearly hopes to find for herself.

The show is scheduled to run for at least 12 months. – GM

Stefano Canulli is responsible for the extravagant costumes for the world's biggest theatre stage.
Paris-based fashion designer, illustrator and art director Stefano Canulli is responsible for the extravagant costumes.
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