This Roaming Concert Series Is Basically the Traveling Version of the Sphere
The series that lets you dance among Egyptian pyramids, the French Alps, and even the Moon is headed to Los Angeles.
You’ve probably seen a Cercle performance, even if you’ve never physically attended one. The French music company has become famous in recent years for staging concerts in some of the most dramatic landscapes in the world, including the sands of Lençóis Maranhenses National Park in Brazil, the front steps of the Abu Simbel temples in Egypt, and under the Aurora Borealis in Finland. Billions of viewers dance along to electronic music as it reverberates off some of the most magnificent landmarks on the planet.
For most of these concerts though the artists are physically alone and the attendees are completely virtual, tuning into the performances via Cercle’s livestream. The sensitive nature of these iconic locations means they usually can’t accommodate a rowdy, in-person crowd. But, for its next act, Cercle is reimagining a way to transport its fans to these awe-inspiring places.
“A lot of people are wanting to come, but we cannot host them,” says Derek Barbolla, the founder and Creative Director of Cercle. “So what can I do, but provide them with the Cercle experience?”
The answer is Cercle’s new touring concept: Cercle Odyssey. By taking over temporary venues and using the most advanced visual technology available, Barbolla will be able to host a traveling live music experience that evokes the same visceral majesty as a traditional Cercle performance.
“We will host more people in just six weeks than in the eight years we did [before at] Cercle,” Barbolla says.
The nomadic concert experience will take over spaces in Los Angeles, Paris, and Mexico City, erecting five screens that are over 160 feet long and 40 feet high, which will wrap around and hang above the dancefloor to create an encapsulating layout with the artist in the center. As the artists perform, 29 projectors will display an original movie directed by Neels Castillon, a French film director who is represented by Ridley Scott Creative Group. Think of it as a traveling Sphere, one they plan to construct and deconstruct around the world.
To make the shows feel on par with Cercle’s typical epic presentations (like DJs playing sets in hot air balloons), Castillon is gathering footage from all over the world to create unique projections for each Cercle Odyssey show. His film, which is reflected in the live music series, will take inspiration from the theme of Homer’s The Odyssey: finding your way home after a long journey. Throughout the show, central characters will face challenges—just as Odysseus does on his way back to Ithaca—while their journey is spliced with footage Castillon gathered elsewhere, as well as images provided by the artists.
“The movie is very, very special for [Castillon] because he's used to doing videos for one screen; now he needs to do a video for five screens. His creative process is starting from scratch, which is very exciting,” Barbolla says. “We won't be using AI. We won't be using fake images. We're into realism. We want to create emotion with the beauty of our world. That’s the essence of our project.”
Cercle Odyssey’s artist lineup is currently under wraps, however, Barbolla mentioned he is strongly considering moving out of electronic music and booking bands that require more intricate stage setups.
When it comes to the potential venues, Barbolla’s ultimate dream is to host Cercle Odyssey on the moon, with Earth as the show’s backdrop. For now, he’ll just have to project the celestial bodies on massive screens as thousands of people dance amongst them.