Focusing on a few of the stories of the performers in the new show, Fire Within begins eight months prior to opening night. It remains to be seen how those on stage and those working behind the scenes will deal with the incredible physical and emotional demands made on them. Who will be strong enough to survive the challenging process — and more importantly, who won't? The producers had unprecedented access to the day-to-day lives of the people who played vital roles in the creation of Varekai. The camera captures the human experience, the burning desire inside each performer to succeed, with elements of drama, comedy, love and loss, work and play, victory and setbacks.

Share the intense ups and downs the performers go through as they work together to form personal and professional relationships in Montreal, the home of Cirque du Soleil. As the tension mounts and the world premiere of Varekai fast approaches, all the disparate elements — performance, costumes, sets, make-up, music — must unite under the Grand Chapiteau (big top). Cirque du Soleil Fire Within takes us, for the first time, deep into the characters and personalities of the extraordinary men and women, both onstage and off, immersed in the creative process of creating the magic that is Cirque du Soleil.

The following episodic reviews were originally published as a series of four incirments in Fascination!, the Cirque du Soleil fan newsletter, starting with Issue #14 (October 2002) and ending with Issue #17 (January 2003). Each review is written by Wayne Leung, reprinted at Le Grand Chapiteau with permission.