Cirque du Soleil and Disney animation, two beloved art forms, began working on a new show in 2017 to bring an emotional and powerful story celebrating Disney’s history in animation to Orlando audiences with “Drawn to Life.”
“Drawn to Life,” which replaced Cirque’s long-running “La Nouba” show at Disney Springs, first premiered in November 2021 after several delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The production tells the story of Julie, a 12-year-old girl who is forced to navigate life after losing her father, a Disney animator, with whom she shared an intense love for all things animation.
The show features gravity-defying acrobatics, captivating choreography, new musical arrangements, whimsical characters, unique set design and playful costuming. It also features cast members Saulo Sarmiento Godoy, an aerial artist, and David Rimmer, a teeterboard artist, who not only have “Drawn to Life” to thank for giving them a stage to perform on but also for bringing them together. The two have been in a relationship since starting the show three years ago.
The two performers met briefly back in 2014 in Argentina during another show but reunited during the creation of “Drawn to Life” and have since been navigating working together and maintaining a relationship.
As a couple having to balance their work life with their romantic life, Sarmiento and Rimmer are big believers of “leaving work at work.” The men say that they make a point to not discuss work at home — they debrief on the way home if necessary, then move on to focus on their lives outside of the production.
(Photos provided by Cirque de Soleil Entertainment Group)
Sarmiento’s act in “Drawn to Life” features a flying aerial pole created to look like a pencil, which, through Sarmiento’s seemingly effortless movements, brings animations to life.
This aerial technique, featuring a diagonal and flying pole, was created by Sarmiento and built upon by “Drawn to Life” to create an immersive experience that audiences would be hard pressed to find elsewhere.
Rimmer can also be found flying through the air in his teeterboard act — a seesaw-resembling apparatus that allows performers to soar off of a board, executing grand tricks and flips as they do so.
One aspect of this production that makes it so special, Rimmer explained, is that every cirque act is not just a cirque act — each has a tie to an aspect of animation.
Rimmer explains that when animators set out to draw faces and expressions, they sit in front of a mirror and stretch their face in different expressions to look for details and gain inspiration.
“So our main goal is to give the illusion that we’re stretching our face,” Rimmer says.
Sarmiento goes on to say that the detail-oriented nature of this show is its strongest attribute.
“They did a very good job of mixing the world of animation with the acrobatics and you can tell that every act has a thought and a relationship with this,” he says. “It is not random. Every act is connected to the storyline of the show.”
Even the music used for the show ties into what is happening on stage, Rimmer notes.
He explains that the show features a band that plays the show’s music live, which features melodies from popular Disney movies woven into original music, filling audience members with a sense of familiarity and nostalgia, and allowing them to come in a just escape the real world for a bit.
Giving audiences a chance to escape their current world and slip into a new one is exactly what fuels Rimmer to perform, he adds. Especially amidst a time during which many Floridians are welcoming an escape from reality.
“I want people to come into the show and forget everything that’s happening outside and be transported into a completely surreal world,” Rimmer says. “Just for 90 minutes. For your body to destress and take you somewhere fresh, new, exciting.”
Sarmiento hopes to inspire and motivate people to find their way and to find strength through his performances.
“I see people’s faces, kid’s faces, the way they look at me when I do what I do,” Sarmiento says. “And when they leave, they leave with another type of energy.”
With June being Pride month, the men also spoke on what Pride means to them.
“For me, Pride means standing up for equality, education and rights. Especially kids who are LGBTQ+ need education and support for their mental well-being,” Sarmiento says. “Avoiding or ignoring the topic won’t make them stop being LGBTQ+. You can’t stop being yourself.”
“To me Pride commemorates the vibrant tapestry of the LGBTQ+ community,” Rimmer says. “I see it as a radiant celebration of love, resilience and equality. It represents a time of reflection and remembrance, honoring the pioneers who fought tirelessly for the rights and freedoms we cherish today.”
Catch Rimmer and Sarmiento’s awe-inspiring performances, among many others, in “Drawn to Life” at Disney Springs for a memorable experience for people of any age.
Reconnect with your inner child as Cirque du Soleil, Walt Disney Animation Studios and Walt Disney Imagineering take you on a journey through the world of animation you know and love, delivered by talented acrobats and performers.
Performances are scheduled for Wednesdays through Saturdays at 5:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and Sundays at 1:30 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. Tickets start at $85 and are available at CirqueDuSoleil.com/Drawn-To-Life.
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