Preparations and practice for Cirque du Soleil's latest production, 'Messi 10', are continuing in full swing at Ali Bin Hamad Al Attiyah Arena where the Asian and Middle East premiere of the show will take place on February 27.
“This is the first time the 'Messi 10' show by Cirque du Soleil is coming to Asia and the Middle East. Qatar is the first country to host this show. We started this show in Barcelona (Spain) in October 2019,” Dennis Pinero, official spokesperson of the show, told Gulf Times.
The show tells the story of football legend Lionel Messi who overcomes all obstacles to become one of the greatest players of his time.







“This is the first time Cirque du Soleil is taking sports as the theme for our performance. Barcelona being the home club of Messi, we started the show there. We did it for several months there with 268 shows,” noted Pinero
According to Pinero, the show is about the qualities and skills of Messi as a footballer. “This show will give an insight into his feats, it is not a biography of him. We are highlighting his achievements and skills and how he was able to achieve several of the feats as well as his classic performances. The show will highlight how he is one of the best football players in the world,” he explained.
The spokesperson said 'Messi 10' will be staged in Doha until March 7 with 14 shows. "From Qatar, we will move on to Argentina for six months and from there, we will embark on our world tour in 2021," he disclosed.
“Doha is the second city to host this show. Qatar is a major international sports centre and, therefore, we thought of coming here. People of this place are passionate about football and with the next FIFA World Cup happening here, we thought it is an ideal venue for the show,” he continued.
“There are 47 artistes from 17 countries and we are all set for the show. The practice sessions are going on in full vigour and everybody is excited about it. The artistes are mainly from Russia, Argentina, Brazil, Germany, Ukraine, France, Ethiopia, Taiwan, Chile and Venezuela, among other countries,” added Pinero.
'Messi 10' is an immersive experience that combines classical circus acts such as trampoline, trapeze and tightrope artistes with never-before-seen disciplines, audiovisual material and videos highlighting Messi's best plays, as well as exclusive images especially produced for the show.