By Joseph Varghese/Staff Reporter

Canadian entertainment firm Cirque du Soleil will showcase one of its signature productions, Dralion, from September 19 at the Aspire Dome in Qatar.
The same group had performed Saltimbanco in Doha last year.
Supported by Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA), SDI Marketing, and Chevrolet, the production is expected to have minimum six shows.
Speaking about the production at a news conference held at Doha Exhibition Centre yesterday, QTA director Abdulla al-Badr said: “We believe that bringing an international event like this to Doha is in line with our objective to build a thriving entertainment tourism industry in Qatar.”
Canada’s Ambassador to Qatar Audre Dubois said: “The show sheds light on different aspects of Canadian culture. It also gives room for establishing a sound relationship between two countries and providing global exposure to the art.”
Giving the details of the programme, SDI Marketing general manager Nick Grana said that the production this year would be bigger and better than last year.
“The website for the show will go live from tomorrow. This year people can buy tickets online and get them printed out in the comfort of their homes. Similarly the locations where tickets will be available, will be announced soon.”
Cirque du Soleil Dralion artistic director Sean Mckeown emphasised that Dralion will be a unique show.
He explained: “The show combines elements of a traditional Chinese circus complementing the ‘East Meets West’ theme implied in contemporary circus. The dragon represents the east and lion standing for the west  … hence Dralion.”
The officials said that the four elements of earth, fire, water and air are represented in Dralion.
Each element, in human form, has its own colour: air is blue, water is green, earth is ochre, and fire is red.
In Dralion cultures blend, man and nature are one, and balance is achieved.
Tickets for the show range from QR250 to QR2,000.