NOW Magazine 40 at 40: Cirque du Soleil flips back into action after pandemic As the world's most famous circus company reopens shows in Vegas and elsewhere, we look back at a story we did on them back in 1988 By Glenn Sumi and Jon Kaplan Jul 5, 2021 Original photos by Algis Kemezys Back in 1988, the future global sensation was still close to its roots in street theatre. It wouldn’t be summer without the circus – specifically Cirque du Soleil, who are back on stages after an absence of 15 months. Because of the pandemic, the internationally-acclaimed company was forced to close over 40 productions – including several resident shows in Las Vegas – and let go more than 95 per cent of its staff. They even filed for bankruptcy protection last year, selling the company to some of its creditors (Catalyst Capital Group) last November.