FRANCO DRAGONE (Director) has directed twelve of the Cirque’s stage productions, including "La Magie Continue" (1986); "Le Cirque
Réinventé" (1987); "Nouvelle Expérience" (1990); "Saltimbanco"
(1992), which earned him a Los Angeles Critics Award for Outstanding Achievement;
"Mystère" (1993); "Alegría"
(1994); "Quidam" (1996); "O" (1998); and "La Nouba" (1998).
Born in Cairano, Italy, near Naples, in 1952, Dragone moved with his parents at the age of seven to La Louviere, Belgium, where he still lives when he’s not commuting between North America and Europe. After graduating from high school, he studied acting from 1975-77 at Belgium’s Royal Conservatory. His interest in traditional theatre soon waned, however. In 1979 he began working with street performers, took a commedia dell’arte course in Italy, and studied political science at Belgium’s F.O.P.E.S. (Faculté Ouverte de Politique Economique et Sociale). Since then, his collaboration with theatrical companies throughout Europe has led him to integrate theatre and circus through new forms of expression, always infusing his productions with some political significance.
Consequently, he has spent ten years working with non-professional actors in political action theatre. He has been a member of Belgium’s Campus Company since 1979, where he has continued to act, create, and direct. He first worked in Canada in 1983, when, for two successive years, he directed the graduation show at Canada’s National Circus School, which led to his first Cirque du Soleil assignment.
Dragone made his feature film debut with "Alegría: the Film." He also collaborated on the screenplay, inspired by Cirque du Soleil’s stage production of the same name, which he created and directed. In 1995 he had his first film experience collaborating with director Norman Jewison on the dream sequences in BOGUS, featuring Cirque du Soleil performers. He also directed a music video of a song from the soundtrack of "Saltimbanco," which earned him a Best Video of the Year nomination from Canada’s Much Music.
In addition to working at Cirque du Soleil, Dragone has directed a number of spectacular shows, such as the cutting-edge Cirque Archaos (France); the riotously chaotic blend of gastronomy and theatre, "Pomp, Duck, Circumstance" (Germany); and the children’s show "Eldorado" (Canada), to mention but a few of his multitudinous and multifaceted endeavors. He keeps close ties in Belgium, where he directed the musical "Behind the Made-Up Eyes," and was responsible for the 1996 stage show "Dust of Time," produced in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Italo-Belgian treaty on Italian immigration. One of his current projects is the experimental production company Créations du Dragon, based in Belgium.
