Up Close and Perfect
When Norwegian Cruise Line wanted the show of all shows, it knew exactly whom to turn to.
It’s been called a mash-up of Moulin Rouge and the circus. But guests aboard Norwegian Epic and Norwegian Breakaway are often speechless when they try to capture the Cirque Dreams & Dinner experience in words. “Fabulous,” “exciting,” and “unbelievable” are frequently used adjectives. And as many times as he hears these words used to describe the Cirque Dreams brand of entertainment, Cirque’s founder Neil Goldberg is not yet ready to rest on these superlatives.
Considered a visionary among his peers, Goldberg designs spellbinding productions that combine acrobatics with mime, with actors swathed in some of the most spectacular costumes seen on stage or screen. That many of these shows are often created for venues that present extraordinary physical challenges, such as cruise lines and, more recently, amusement parks, is a testament to Goldberg’s tenacity and determination to not only meet but also welcome these challenges head on.
What impresario wouldn’t shrink at the prospect of producing an entire show that is only a hair’s breadth away from the audience’s gaze? Yet that’s exactly the type of challenge that Goldberg embraced when he decided to create his show-in-the-round experience, the Cirque Dream & Dinner show, aboard the two Norwegian ships. And because he appreciated the extraordinary level of intimacy that these shows would create with cruisers, he left nothing to chance.
At the 20,000-square-foot Dream Studios complex located at Cirque Dreams headquarters in Pompano Beach, Florida, Goldberg built a replica of the Norwegian showroom. Here, every part of the show would be designed, choreographed, molded, sculpted, practiced, and refined within the boundaries of this simulated space, replete with “stand-in” diners who would give feedback from their vantage points. Since the set was co-located with Cirque’s design department, costume designers had the means at their fingertips to test designs from concept to use. This was no small feat since more than 50 unique costumes alone were created for the Norwegian shows.
But even if you have the wherewithal to create such a space, the question still remains: How do you develop the kind of mind that conjures up the wild and often wacky hats, footwear, pants, tops, shirts, and dresses that make Cirque Dreams & Dinner such a delicious smorgasbord for the eyes? While some celebrated costume designers acknowledge the influence of iconic designers past and present, Goldberg is quick to note that
It’s been called a mash-up of Moulin Rouge and the circus.
most of his inspirations come from simply observing life around him.
And what an interesting past he draws from. Raised as an orthodox Jew in New York, Goldberg understood early not only the constraints but also the benefits of a strict lifestyle. It was a Broadway production of The Miracle Worker that made a deep impression on the then 6-year-old Goldberg, and he says seeing this show was the pivotal experience that first ignited his passion for design and all things theater-related. By 15, he got parttime work in New York City as a retail
“When guests sit as close to the artists as they do in these shows, every Swarovski crystal, hand-painted fabric, custom shoe, and more — down to the eyelashes and makeup — needs to be perfect.”
store window dresser and followed this experience with stints in party-planning and event production services.
After studying at Long Island-based C.W. Post College, Goldberg headed for Manhattan’s garment district, landing his first design job with the global textile manufacturer, United Merchants & Manufacturers. Within two years, Goldberg would start a pattern that has become his signature work style: managing several large projects at once. He headed up United’s southern region while ramping up a continuous stream of event services, such as Parties by Neil, Entertainment Etc., Creative Cloths, and the Zanadu Dance Company.
Less than a decade later, Goldberg’s staff numbers more than 100 employees, handpicked for their abilities to design and execute often unorthodox party concepts, from a private celebrity-hosted trip down the Amazon River, Super Bowl extravaganzas, and symphony engagements to large-scale corporate events.
Norwegian cruise guests who experience the Cirque Dreams & Dinner shows are witnesses to a concept that Goldberg first launched 20 years ago, which has evolved in conventional theater settings as well as such varied venues as casinos, theme parks, and cruise lines. Accolades from some of the toughest entertainment critics keep coming; costumes created for Goldberg’s Cirque Dreams Jungle Fantasy, for instance, were nominated for an American Theatre Wing Best Costume Design Award. But whether he designs shows for land or for sea, one principle stays constant, says Goldberg: “The experience should always be the same.”
It’s a goal which translates into making costumes in duplicate so every show looks the same — to hand-dying fabrics so that they perfectly complement the myriad accessories that performers wear — to designing multi-stretch materials that not only look great, but can also stand the wear and tear of acrobatic feats. His peers in the theater community marvel that Goldberg, with so many challenges daily begging for his attention, can focus so intently on minute details.
To Goldberg, that’s where the magic lives. “The Cirque Dreams & Dinner experience offers guests an up-close and intimate look at not just amazing performance artistry and Broadway theatrics, but over a half-million dollars in one-of-a-kind costume creations,” he says. “When guests sit as close to the artists as they do in these shows, every Swarovski crystal, hand-painted fabric, custom shoe, and more — down to the eyelashes and makeup — needs to be perfect.”
Of course, what’s a dinner show without the meal. Guests rave about the menu, which includes a prosciutto plate, surf-and-turf offerings, and dessert specialties, and how it all seamlessly flows with the show. And when the applause finally dies down at the finale — and amazed guests retire to their cabins — somewhere else in the world, it’s a safe bet that Neil Goldberg is busy dreaming of the next version, even more fantastic and just as perfect.