History Theatre / Alegria

* OverprotectiveDad: Fleur wants to shield his daughter from the cruelties of the world beyond the circus, and if it means humiliating Frac in public, then so be it.

* NiceHat: Fleur and Tamir each have a nice hat, appropriate given their {{Foil}} status.

* TheJester: According to the backstory Fleur was this to the ruler of the kingdom and became the new leader of the nobles because they couldn't think of anyone else to turn to, bringing out his MonsterClown nature in the process.

* DrivenToSuicide / StartsWithASuicide: A dual attempt, at that.

* LullDestruction: The story is told in flashback by an adult Momo, played by Mako. However, another actor is credited for narration, much of which describes the setting and the feelings of characters -- which Dragone and the actors do a pretty good job of getting across via body language. This suggests ExecutiveMeddling akin to the ''Arabian Knight'' cut of ''WesternAnimation/TheThiefAndTheCobbler'', possibly for similar reasons.

* HairDecorations: The White and Black Singers wear antennae-like ones to add a bit more whimsy to their looks.

* [[Main/ManInWhite Men In White]]: The musicians, to match with their WomanInWhite lead singer.

* [[Main/ManInWhite Children In White]]: The song "Mountain of Clothes", which was only on the soundtrack album, notes the symbolism [[spoiler: of hope in how ''all'' the kids pick out clean white clothes to wear once they're free.]]

--> ''There is a love in me raging, Alegria''
--> ''A joyous, magical feeling'' -- The title song.

In 1998, writer-director Franco Dragone (via a screenplay by Rudy Barichello) helmed a dramatic film of the same title, which incorporates the live show, its characters, and themes into a larger story. The protagonists are a street mime, Frac, and his urchin friend Momo -- the former is grieving over a lost love; the latter is one of many unwanted children forced into the employ of the cruel Marcello, who forces them to tend and sell roses for him. One night Frac attempts to commit suicide by lying on railroad tracks as a train approaches -- he is only stopped from doing so when Momo joins him with the same intent. The train comes to a halt and as the circus performers who were on it emerge to find out what happened, Frac falls in LoveAtFirstSight with their beautiful singer, who is also the daughter of the boss/Fleur performer (played by Creator/FrankLangella). The feeling is mutual, and from here Frac tries to find a way to woo her -- and learn her name! -- despite her father's misgivings; this eventually converges with Momo's struggle to liberate himself and the other children. The film was an independent effort that didn't get much theatrical distribution (just Canada and a few European countries) and is largely unmentioned by Cirque itself or its fanbase, but it's on [=DVD=].

* TheJester: According to the backstory Fleur was this to the ruler of the kingdom, and became the new leader of the nobles because they couldn't think of anyone else to turn to, bringing out his MonsterClown nature in the process.

* LongRunners: Close to 20 years.

* NostalgiaFilter: The ''Nostalgic'' Old Birds kinda live out this trope with regards to ''themselves'', via their mirrors. They have no glass in them, so their "reflections" must be purely imaginary...this is expanded upon in the new cyr wheel act (see IWasQuiteALooker).

!!!The movie it inspired also contains examples of:

* CityWithNoName

''Alegria'' is the eighth Creator/CirqueDuSoleil production, which launched in 1994 -- [[LongRunners and ran until the end of 2013]] -- as the company's 10th anniversary tour. The title is a Spanish word meaning "joy despite great sorrow", commonly used at funerals. Notable acrobatic segments include synchronized trapeze, manipulation, a fire-knife dance, fast track, and Russian bars.

The most seriously-themed show Cirque had mounted up to that point but (as ever) not without hope, it cemented the company's popularity and acclaim. Its soundtrack remains their biggest seller to date. It mostly toured as a tent show from 1994-2009, but for a two year period (1999-2000) it performed as a resident show at the Beau Rivage casino in Biloxi, Mississippi (owner Steve Wynn had hoped it would be the sensation that ''Mystere'' had been in Las Vegas). In mid-2009, it relaunched as an arena show and toured through 2013. In 2018, the show was revived as a tent tour to [[MilestoneCelebration mark its 25th anniversary]].

The most seriously-themed show Cirque had mounted up to that point but (as ever) not without hope, it cemented the company's popularity and acclaim. Its soundtrack remains their biggest seller to date. It mostly toured as a tent show from 1994-2009, but for a two year period (1999-2000) it performed as a resident show at the Beau Rivage casino in Biloxi, Mississippi (owner Steve Wynn had hoped it would be the sensation that ''Mystere'' had been in Las Vegas). In mid-2009, it relaunched as an arena show.

* TheKingdom: What the setting is in the process of becoming.

In 1998, writer-director Franco Dragone (via a screenplay by Rudy Barichello) helmed a dramatic film of the same title, which incorporates the live show, its characters, and themes into a larger story. The protagonists are a street mime, Frac, and his urchin friend Momo -- the former is grieving over a lost love; the latter is one of many unwanted children forced into the employ of the cruel Marcello, who forces them to tend and sell roses for him. One night Frac attempts to commit suicide by lying on railroad tracks as a train approaches -- he is only stopped from doing so when Momo joins him with the same intent. The train comes to a halt and as the circus performers who were on it emerge to find out what happened, Frac falls in LoveAtFirstSight with their beautiful singer, who is also the daughter of the boss/Fleur performer (played by Frank Langella). The feeling is mutual, and from here Frac tries to find a way to woo her -- and learn her name! -- despite her father's misgivings; this eventually converges with Momo's struggle to liberate himself and the other children. The film was an independent effort that didn't get much theatrical distribution (just Canada and a few European countries) and is largely unmentioned by Cirque itself or its fanbase, but it's on [=DVD=].

* RewrittenPopVersion: "Mountain of Clothes" became "Time to Go" for ''Theatre/{{Delirium}}''; along with ''{{Quidam}}'''s "Let Me Fall", it sounds closer to its original take than most of the tunes in that show do.

* BilingualBonus: The songs "Vai Vedrai", "Valsapena", and "Querer".

* RealitySubtext: In the book ''20 Years Under the Sun'', set designer Michael Crete said the story of a battle for power was partially inspired by the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamie_Bulger murder of Jamie Bulger]].

* WomanInWhite ''and'' WomanInBlack: Only the latter is evil. The musicians, both male and female, are all white-clad.

* WouldHurtAChild: Marcello; physical abuse is one of the many ways he keeps the enslaved children in line.

* LullDestruction: The story is told in flashback by an adult Momo, played by Mako. However, another actor is credited for narration, much of which describes the setting and the feelings of characters -- which Dragone and the actors do a pretty good job of getting across via body language. This suggests ExecutiveMeddling akin to the ''Arabian Knight'' cut of ''WesternAnimation/TheThiefAndTheCobbler'', possibly for [[Main/ViewersAreMorons similar reasons]].

!!!This show contains examples of:

* LongRunners: Since 1994.

* MilestoneCelebration

* EverythingsBetterWithSpinning: Manipulation, in which a lithe lovely twirls hoop after hoop around her body, is one of the show's signature acts. Other acts to leave you dizzy include the fire-knife dance, flying man, and (new for the arena tour, for when another act can't perform) cyr wheel.

''Alegria'' is the eighth Creator/CirqueDuSoleil production, which launched in 1994 as the company's 10th anniversary show. The title is a Spanish word meaning "joy despite great sorrow", commonly used at funerals. Notable acrobatic segments include synchronized trapeze, manipulation, a fire-knife dance, fast track, and Russian bars.

The actual show was filmed during its Sydney, Australia engagement in 2001 and subsequently given a [=DVD=] release; the arena tour is spending 2013 in Europe.

* RewrittenPopVersion: "Mountain of Clothes" became "Time to Go" for ''Theatre/Delirium''; along with ''Quidam'''s "Let Me Fall", it sounds closer to its original take than most of the tunes in that show do.

* WhiteHairedPrettyGirl: The White Singer; actually, a lot of the good characters (i.e. the Nymphs) appear to have white hair.

* WalkingShirtlessScene: The handbalancing, flying man, and aerial high bar performers. Older acts that featured these were strong man and aerial cube (the latter now serves this function in ''Mystere''). The fire spinners and cyr wheel performer also have most of their chests exposed. (Whew.)

* ColorCodedForYourConvenience: The White and Black Singers individually represent the good and bad qualities of the old order; only costume and hair color differentiates them visually.

* HairDecorations: The White and Black Singers wear antennae-like ones to add a bit more whimsy to their looks.

* HeavenlyBlue / TrueBlueFemininity: The Nymphs, all of whom are female, wear blue.

* [[Main/ManInWhite Men In White]]: The Angels who perform the Russian bars act.

* LoveHurts

* TheStinger: Involving a cameo by the director; also a BrickJoke.

* NonIronicClown: The clowns of the circus are ''very strange'' but they are not evil. [[hottip:* :Fun fact -- the performers who play Frac and Old Taps are professional clowns. The former, Rene Bazinet, was the originator of ''Saltimbanco'''s clown act; the latter, Brian Dewhurst, was the Great Chamberlain in ''Nouvelle Experience'' and took over the principal clown act of ''Mystere'' a few years after this film.]]

* NonIronicClown: The clowns of the circus are ''very strange'' but they are not evil. [[hottip:* :In RealLife, the performers who play Frac and Old Taps are these. The former, Rene Bazinet, was the originator of ''Saltimbanco}}'''s clown act; the latter, Brian Dewhurst, was the Great Chamberlain in ''Nouvelle Experience'' and took over the principal clown act of ''{{Mystere}}'' (under the character name Brian Le Petit) a few years after this film.]]

* RewrittenPopVersion: "Mountain of Clothes" became "Time to Go" for ''Delirium''; along with ''Quidam'''s "Let Me Fall", it sounds closer to its original take than most of the tunes in that show do.

* WouldHurtAChild: Marcello; physical abuse is one of the many ways he keeps the enslaved children in line.