Creator/CirqueDuSoleil's seventeenth show launched in 2005.

"Corteo" is the Italian word for ''cortege'', which means "funeral procession". The story takes place in the deathdream of a turn-of-the-20th-century European circus clown. While this sounds terribly morbid, and the show opens with his mourners gathering round his deathbed, what ensues is extremely warmhearted and uplifting, a celebration of a life on Earth and a joyous homecoming in Heaven. The characters, besides the angels watching over the Dead Clown, are primarily his dear colleagues from the circus; their relationships provide the show's heart.

This was filmed for [=TV=] and [=DVD=] in 2005 during the Toronto engagement. The original production closed at the end of 2015, as Cirque determined that it could not be faithfully recreated in an arena format as previous tent tours had. Three years later in 2018, however, the company launched a revival staging for arenas, making it the first time the company had revived a show since the 1992 limited-run stagings of ''Theatre/LeCirqueReinvente'' and ''Theatre/NouvelleExperience''.

!!!This show contains examples of:
* {{Balloonacy}}: RealLife example with the "helium dance". The Clowness (a little person) is placed in a harness attached to several giant balloons, and from there drifts over the stage and audience -- who [[Main/AudienceParticipation helps her along on her flight]].
* BilingualBonus: The songs have Spanish or Italian lyrics. Notably, and probably due to the more-realistic-than-usual setting, this is Cirque's first tour in years to completely eschew SpeakingSimlish / SingingSimlish; most of the dialogue is in English.
* CatchPhrase: "I '''am''' calm!" for the Loyal Whistler (the ringmaster).
* CostumePorn: The classical traditional circus outfits. Also counts as GorgeousPeriodDress.
* DyingDream: The premise.
* EverythingsBetterWithSparkles: The judicious use of a handful of glitter in the final moments of the duo-straps act.
* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: The Teatro Intimo is '''truly''' intimate, because it's '''truly''' small. Many of the character names fit this trope as well.
* GentleGiant: The Giant Clown.
* {{Motifs}}: Circles. The show presents death as a homecoming for the soul in question, and thus a life come full circle.
** The stage, unique to Cirque, is circular instead of the traditional 3/4 thrust design; it's not an in-the-round setup (the side entrances for the performers split the seating into two halves), but it's close enough for symbolic purposes. As a bonus, several of the acts have the stage revolving as they unfold.
** The cyr wheels.
** The adiago duet is performed on and around a large, fixed hoop.
** The jugglers are adept with rings and hoops.
** The tightwire walker uses hoops as part of her routine, as well as a unicycle.
** The Dead Clown is last seen riding a bicycle in the sky.
* NamelessNarrative
* NoAntagonist: The story is an examination of a little "family" of performers who do their best to put on a good show and are sometimes stymied by such things as unpredictable animals, a too-small theatre, bizarre incidents (raining chickens?), and individual performers' desire to be the center of attention. (Imagine a human version of ''Series/TheMuppetShow''.)
* NonIronicClown: Most of the principal characters. A stated goal of this show was to create clowns that would be embraced by audiences, especially children, more familiar with the MonsterClown trope than this.
* OcularGushers: The preshow has several of the Dead Clown's mourners gathering in the tent aisle and wailing their hearts out -- and their "tears" leave those nearby damp.
* PantomimeAnimal: The horses.
* SpectacularSpinning: Three acts invoke this: chandeliers, cyr wheel, and duo-straps.
* TheShowMustGoWrong: The Teatro Intimo segment.