Normand Latourelle is a creative visionary in a constant quest for innovation, a pioneer of Cirque du Soleil and has his name proudly associated with dozens of achievements and projects over a 40+ year career.
Here’s our exclusive interview with him on his upcoming show, Illumi, happening in Mississauga this September.

Jay Kana: What inspired you to create Illumi?

Normand Latourelle : I built the first light sculpture that was a huge horse in front of the Big Top in Chicago. I wanted to emphasize that it was inside the Big Top of Cavalia, it was a horse show so I had built those sculptures. As we were along a highway, I was not able to put any signs. So I said let’s do a big light sculpture! When we finished the sculpture and it was lit the first time at night, I said, “Oh my God, this is so beautiful! I have to do something with it. This is the best idea I’ve had in the last century!” 

I was very excited and started having ideas and started to do drawings. 

This is how we do it – little by little, and it ended up being Illumi; the world’s biggest light, sound and multimedia show. We have the horse world based on those first Chicago sculptures

JK: So one small brick turned into a massive castle?

NL: Exactly. It was beautiful, because we did those horses. Most of them are white so I wanted to keep them white. And we found some lights that looked a bit gold, like a warm white. And when they came out it was like a huge piece of gold in front of the Big Top (the biggest touring tent in the world!) It created such an impact that it lit the idea.

JK: Why did you select Mississauga to host Illumi?

NL: I was looking for a large location and, in touring with Cavalia in 2017, one of them was in Mississauga. We did very well and had very good contacts. I reached out to City Council and said “if you ever find the location, this is what we’re looking at doing.”
We were directed to the land owner Illumi will be held on and we made the deal.

In terms of marketing and access, Mississauga is well-located as all highways go to and through Mississauga.  As they say in French, “Tous Les Chemins menent a Rome” or “All the roads lead to Rome”, we can say in Canada  “all the roads lead to Mississauga.”

JK: What can guests expect when they experience Illumi?

NL: I like to say this is a small Disney World. You can have the same feeling as child just to enjoy, and as an adult, you return to the child. Lights always create something –  looking at fireworks creates something sparkling in your eyes that excites you. Illumi turns the fireworks into lights. You get this feel-good experience that’s a lot of fun. I haven’t seen anyone coming out of Illumi without a smile. Everybody’s happy and wants to return.

It’s a very generous event; we have all these themes and people go through different worlds. It’s like entering into a cartoon but live. What are the chances you get to travel through a cartoon-ish type of giraffe and going through dragons, going through lions, a horse field… it’s a feel-good show filled with happiness.

JK: You’re a visionary with a lifetime of experience in creating magical shows - How has Illumi added to your creativity?

NL: I’ve been working most of my life with live shows. Now, this is light, not live. The challenge is to stage every set to make the audience become the live part of the show. It’s an immersive experience because of the life.  At the Laval exhibit, every foot,  there’s somebody taking a picture and creating a memory; a memory of something that’s so beautiful.

I can go a step further than live action; the audience becomes the live action, live actors and performers through this fabulous journey. They improvise everywhere and have fun performing with the sculptures and lights. 

JK: What’s your favourite aspect of Illumi?

NL: The audience – they make it all come to life. We’ve created a live culture – it’s not like a museum.
I’m not a big museum fan because you always watch at a distance. You cannot touch or smell. Rarely, you’re able to be close to with the artifacts offer you. 

With Illumi, the artifact is a part of your life because you share the space, you can climb on them, you can run to them and this is something special.

To experience Illumi, visit mississauga.illumi.com