Circus Meets Burlesque During Dine Out Vancouver

Atlantis, Vancouver FanClub | BCBusiness
Sylvia Louis, a performer who will be in Atlantis, on aerial.

A new interactive performance mixes live music, circus, burlesque and theatre

A mix of risqué performance art is coming to Granville Street this month. Combining circus, burlesque, theatre and live music, Night Circus will debut on January 17 at Vancouver FanClub.

“Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding and Cirque du Soleil were my two points of inspiration,” says Dani Vachon, show creator and brand manager for Vancouver FanClub. “This was a concept that I came up with when I started working at FanClub as a way to differentiate the club from the other clubs in Vancouver.”

Vancouver FanClub, which opened in August 2012 by the owners of the Yale Hotel, has New Orleans-inspired decor complete with wrought iron accents and wooden shutters. Rigging for aerial performances had been installed since the club opened but the performance needed a story, says Vachon.

Night Circus is a pilot program which will run for nine shows every Friday, Saturday and Sunday during Dine Out Vancouver and will feature a story called Atlantis, which guests experience over a three course dinner. The story engages the audience with performers located around the room and a roaming perfromer dressed as a jellyfish that pours shots of limoncello out of her tentacles. Atlantis has three different endings with all options ending in a party complete with DJs and electronic music on Fridays and soul music on Saturdays. To encourage diner participation, each attendee will receive a Atlantis passport upon entry with a new name, unique character traits and a mission for the evening.

“When I went to Tony n’ Tina’s wedding the first time I just watched, but the second time I went I played along with the show and it was really a more fun time for me. So I thought what if we gave people passports? I was basically just trying to make the most fun experience possible,” says Vachon.

While the burlesque scene in Vancouver has been thriving, Vachon isn’t aware of any other shows that combine all of the elements of Night Circus. Tickets have been selling well and there are plans to extend the program, she says. Tickets are $50 for the show and meal.