Cirque du Soleil Cancels North Carolina Shows in Protest of Anti-LGBT Legislation

Cirque du Soleil has announced that in protest of the new HB2 legislation passed in North Carolina, it has chosen to cancel the scheduled performances of OVO in Greensboro (April 20-24) and Charlotte (July 6-10,) as well as all performances of TORUK - Avatar in Raleigh (June 22-26).

The theatrical company released the following statement this afternoon:

"Cirque du Soleil believes in equality for all. It is a principle that guides us with both our employees and our customers. We behave as change agents to reach our ultimate goal of making a better world with our actions and our productions.

We sincerely hope that the customers that have purchased tickets for our performances in North Carolina will understand our motivation and we look forward to performing in North Carolina when this issue is addressed. On-line and phone ticket purchases will be automatically reimbursed and in-person purchases must return to point of purchase for refunds. Customer service can be reached at 1-877-924-7783."

From a group of 20 street performers at its beginnings in 1984, Cirque du Soleil is now a major Quebec-based organization providing high-quality artistic entertainment. The company has close to 4,000 employees, including 1,300 performing artists from close to 50 different countries.

Cirque du Soleil has brought wonder and delight to more than 160 million spectators in 400 cities in sixty countries on six continents.

For more information about Cirque du Soleil, visit www.cirquedusoleil.com.