Cirque du Soleil cuts 400 jobs, cites rising production costs
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Artists perform during Cirque du Soleil's Kooza show in London's Royal Albert Hall on Jan 4, 2013. Cirque du Soleil announced on Wednesday up to 400 layoffs - nine per cent of its workforce - citing rising production costs for cutting deeply into profits, despite record ticket sales and revenue. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
MONTREAL (AFP) - Cirque du Soleil announced on Wednesday up to 400 layoffs - nine per cent of its workforce - citing rising production costs for cutting deeply into profits, despite record ticket sales and revenue.
"The Cirque is not facing a crisis. Things are actually going well," Ms Renee-Claude Menard, public relations director for the Canadian entertainment firm, told a press conference.
She said the flashy, musically-driven and modern circus show had sold 14 million tickets last year and revenues topped US$1 billion (S$1.23 billion).
But the company's rapid growth, and several "exterior factors" including a stubbornly high Canadian dollar, have taken their toll, she said.
