The canon of classic holiday plays and films – which includes “The Nutcracker,” “A Christmas Carol,” “White Christmas” and more recently “A Christmas Story” and “Elf” – will be making room for a charming new addition this year.
The stage production of “POMP, SNOW & CIRQUEumstance,” a story of three best friends who bring holiday magic to children around the world, premieres later this month at The Diplomat Beach Resort in Hollywood, promising a dazzling theatrical spectacle fueled by an international cast of acrobats, aerialists, dancers, and theater performers; more than 200 costumes including 75 wigs; and a captivating, feel-good musical score. Oh, and Santa Claus makes an appearance, too.
(Courtesy of Neil Goldberg)
Neil Goldberg’s Dream Studios houses a Broadway-caliber costume workshop, where he designed more than 200 costumes for “POMP, SNOW & CIRQUEumstance.”
It all sprang forth from the imagination of theater director and producer Neil Goldberg, who after nearly 40 years of staging performances on Broadway, at two Super Bowls and at such places as the Kennedy Center, was semi-retired, in COVID lockdown and searching for something new to fill his days. That something was a children’s book, a medium he’d never before tackled.
“It was my pandemic project. My creative outlets during that time were writing, designing and imagining the story of three best friends who study music, magic and the circus at a secret university, and then go out into the world and share their talents,” he said from Dream Studios, his 25,000-square-foot Pompano Beach atelier. “Creating a story set in an imaginary place with imaginary characters who have personalities that are relatable, that was really appealing to me.”
Of paramount importance were the book’s illustrations.
(Courtesy of Neil Goldberg)
Children’s book “POMP, SNOW & CIRQUEumstance,” producer Neil Goldberg’s pandemic project, is now being brought to life as a fully fleshed out and staged theatrical extravaganza.
“I wanted them to paint the words into a visual picture that sparked kids’ imaginations, so they could envision all the possibilities of what can be,” said Goldberg, who began searching for an artist who understood what he wanted to convey.
Potential collaborators across the globe – including from India, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Israel, Germany and France – contacted him about the project, but his search ultimately stopped with John Kelly, a former animation professor based in North Carolina.
“He just got me, he got what I wanted to do,” recalled Goldberg. “We went back and forth, did some experimenting, and his attention to detail, his perspective and depth with color, was just spectacular – he actually animated the characters for me with old-fashioned, Walt Disney-style animation, where each cell is hand drawn.”
As Goldberg continued to develop his characters and their adventures, the award-winning founder of Cirque Productions and Cirque Dreams – both now live under the Cirque du Soleil umbrella – couldn’t help but see them as dancing not just across the pages, but across a stage. And that was the beginning of how “POMP, SNOW & CIRQUEumstance” the book became “POMP, SNOW & CIRQUEumstance” the show.
The book successfully published and received, Goldberg focused all of his attention on writing the show’s script, designing the costumes, working with a team of choreographers to stage the numbers, and teaming up with Kelly to pull the otherworldly backdrops from the book’s pages and transform them into stunning sets.
“I was experimenting with foam and thinking about how I could make the characters’ headpieces and wigs if I wanted to bring them to life and put them on real people,” said Goldberg. “I did some research, found a special kind of foam made only in the Netherlands and got some shipped in. I taught myself how to put it under heat, how to mold it, and that’s where that started.”
Goldberg realized his vision for the show at Dream Studios, which he affectionately refers to as his “playground of imagination,” home to a Broadway-caliber costume shop, scenic shop, rehearsal and recording studios, and video-editing bay, among other performance-centered spaces.
“Theatrically, this show is a much more complex staging than what would happen in a traditional theater,” he said. “It’s being performed in the round, so every performer, all the choreography – everything must constantly be moving around.”
He promises a wholly immersive experience.
“The audience will sit on four sides facing the center stage, where all the live action being adapted from the book will happen. John has helped me animate each one of the book’s illustrations, and they’ll be video mapped and projected around the entire perimeter and audience. So when you’re sitting in the theater, you’ll feel as if you’re sitting inside the storybook,” Goldberg said. “Every scene, the ‘page’ changes, and the illustrations relate to the action that’s happening on stage.”
After so many years of bringing awe and wonder to stages around the world, Goldberg says it’s “POMP” – aimed at children and with its message of embracing and appreciating the different and unusual – that perhaps holds the dearest place in his heart.
“I want to pave the way and support the path of any child my work touches to believe in themselves and know that whatever their path is, even if it’s unorthodox, it’s still their path,” said Goldberg. “Follow it, because it can turn out great.”
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(Courtesy of Neil Goldberg)
Aerialists and acrobats soar through the air above the “POMP, SNOW & CIRQUEumstance” stage.
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(Courtesy of Neil Goldberg)
Producer-director Neil Goldberg tapped into his Cirque Dreams background when selecting performers for his new holiday play.
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(Courtesy of Neil Goldberg)
More than 75 handmade headpieces and wigs were created as part of the play’s wardrobe suite.