Cirque movie follows near death, rebirth of ‘O’ during pandemic

More than four years after the world shut down, “Cirque du Soleil: Without a Net” is emerging as a time capsule of an era most of us would sooner forget.

The documentary, arriving Thursday on Amazon’s Prime Video, goes behind the scenes and under the water with “O” and its near death and rebirth during the pandemic.

Once nonessential businesses closed in mid-March 2020, Cirque laid off 95 percent of its more than 4,000 employees. Three months later, the company filed for bankruptcy protection, from which it eventually emerged with new ownership.

“Without a Net” recalls those grim days with haunting images of Bellagio’s empty theater and a shuttered Strip. It also ventures into the lives and homes of some of “O’s” performers, bringing out the personalities behind the elaborate makeup and costumes, as they adjust to a new reality.

“It’s really difficult to live without purpose,” trapeze artist Emma Garrovillo says during the shutdown.

At the time, some of her castmates were receiving unemployment benefits for the first time in their lives. Others in the multinational cast were unable to get temporary jobs because of the status of their work visas. In November, Cirque pulled the plug on “Zumanity,” its adult-themed show at New York-New York, after 17 years.

The mental hardship was very real.

Then, on April 15, 2021, Cirque officials met with the cast and crew of “O” to begin the reopening process after more than 400 days. They had just eight weeks to prepare.

What follows is the near herculean task of regrouping and relearning before (re)opening night.

Calluses had softened. Some performers faced the possibility of motion sickness after so many months without flipping or spinning. Others didn’t return, meaning there wasn’t much time to get their replacements up to speed.

Elsewhere, parts of some costumes had rotted during the downtime. Wardrobe technicians had 2,000 costumes to clean, repair and refit. Before the curtain could rise, it, too, needed a little TLC.

Directed by Dawn Porter (“John Lewis: Good Trouble”), “Without a Net” is, at its heart, a love letter to “O” and the people behind the acclaimed show.

It’s also a stark reminder of just how easily we could’ve lost it.

Contact Christopher Lawrence at clawrence@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4567. Follow @life_onthecouch on X.