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Cirque du Soleil leaves Bellvitge after eight years and looks for a new home in Barcelona
Cirque du Soleil is preparing to say goodbye to Bellvitge after eight years based in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat. The Canadian company will leave in October the large plot where it has set up its big top since 2016, while the City Council prepares a new phase for these grounds with green areas and public facilities.
The farewell will have a name: Kurios. Cabinet of curiosities. The show will premiere on 3 September and run until 18 October, becoming the last production by the company to be seen at this site next to the Travessia Industrial and the Estadi Municipal.
Over the years, the site has become a regular stop for those coming from Barcelona and other metropolitan municipalities to see Cirque du Soleil’s major productions. Shows such as Totem, Luzia and Alegría have been staged under the big top, establishing L’Hospitalet as the company’s base during its visits to Barcelona.
Now the City Council wants to reclaim the approximately 19,000 square metres occupied by the circus. The land will be used for new public facilities and green spaces, bringing an early end to an agreement that initially allowed the company to remain there until 2030.
However, the departure does not mean that Cirque du Soleil wants to leave Barcelona. The company is looking for another site within the metropolitan area that can meet the needs of a production of this scale: enough space for the big top, access for trucks, technical areas, and capacity to welcome thousands of spectators.
There are already three possible locations on the table, although none have been made public so far. The aim is to find a stable solution that will keep Barcelona on the regular circuit of international circus shows once the Bellvitge site is finally dismantled.
Before that change comes Kurios, a production with around fifty artists that blends acrobatics, humour, and a universe inspired by inventors and fantastic machines. Performances last about two hours and five minutes, including an interval, and tickets are already on sale.
The change leaves two open questions on both sides of the Gran Via: what form the future public space in Bellvitge will take, and where the next big white big top will appear. Until 18 October, however, the scene will remain familiar: lights, masts, and spectators arriving in L’Hospitalet for one last Cirque du Soleil season on the site it has occupied for eight years.