September 24 - Much acrobatics, colour and stagecraft can be expected from the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games Opening Ceremony after Cirque du Soleil was today revealed as the firm tasked with the job of creating the spectacle.
The Canadian entertainment company, which has drawn more than 100 million people around the world to its shows in its nearly 30-year history, will produce the one night only performance on July 10, 2015, that will be broadcast to hundreds of millions of people across the Americas and Caribbean.
"Cirque du Soleil is proud and deeply honoured to join TO2015 as a sponsor and Official Creative Partner for the Opening Ceremony of the Toronto 2015 Pan Am Games," said Yasmine Khalil, Cirque du Soleil's director of events and special projects division.
"We are excited to create an original production for this special occasion."
Cirque du Soleil, which Toronto 2015 says "personifies many of the values of the Games, such as collaboration, joy and inclusiveness", will work with the organising committee to design the Ceremony, which is expected to feature Ontario artists and volunteers, who will be recruited from local schools and community organisations, alongside the iconic troupe's performers.
"Cirque du Soleil has an unmatched international reputation for staging some of the most imaginative and mesmerising shows ever performed," Toronto 2015 chief executive Ian Troop said.
"That magic, along with their world-class performers - many former athletes themselves - promises a thrilling Opening Ceremony for the Games that celebrates the wonderful diversity of the Toronto region and all of Canada, as well as the vibrant cultures of the Americas and Caribbean."
Cirque du Soleil now joins the likes of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC), Chevrolet Canada and CISCO as official partners of Toronto 2015.