Podcast Alert: Daniel Lamarre – Cirque du Soleil

Transcript

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Daniel Lamarre: [00:00:00] For us in Montreal, we have been able to observe the genesis of this organization. They were a bunch of street performers, literally digging at the corner of the street and hoping to have enough money one day to travel the world. Today we have 40 shows around the world.

Anne Ristau : Welcome to the Navigating Sports Business Podcast. I’m your host for today, Anne Ristau Executive Vice President of Consulting at Navigate. We started this podcast to showcase some of the incredible people that we get to interact with every day and the impactful work that they’re doing in our industry. We hope you learn something about them,

and something from them, in our conversation.[00:01:00]

Today, I am absolutely thrilled to be joined by Daniel Lamarre. Who is currently the Executive Vice Chairman of the board at Cirque du Soleil, an organization he joined in 2001 and then served as President and CEO from 2006 through 2021. Daniel’s also a recent author. His book Balancing Acts, unleashing the Power of Creativity and Your Life and Work was published last year.

Danielle, thank you so much for being with us today. It’s my

Daniel Lamarre: pleasure, and thank you for inviting me.

Anne Ristau : 15 years is a pretty extraordinary tenure for any CEO and your leadership has spanned many pivotal moments, transformational periods, both very high highs and also very challenging situations. Many of which almost seem to defy gravity, [00:02:00] like a Cirque du Soleli show.

I wonder because the origin story of Cirque is so incredible and even though it’s well known, could you tell us a little bit about how Gee actually got started?

Daniel Lamarre: Yeah, this is an amazing story and for us in Montreal, we have been able to observe the genesis of this organization. There were a bunch of street performers literally begging at the corner of the street and hoping to have enough money one day to travel the world.

And then in 1984. They got the support of the Prime Minister of Quebec to financially, uh, bring the first Canadian circus, and that’s how Cirque du Soleil was created in 1984.

Anne Ristau : It’s really incredible. Obviously, we will talk more about the global footprint and everything that you’ve been through, but I’d love to also hear about your first encounters with Cirque and with Gee, which was an interesting [00:03:00] relationship.

Daniel Lamarre: Yeah, that’s right. At the time I was, uh, the owner of the largest PR firm in Canada, and I, I did a mandate for Gee, and that was in 1986. By then, Cirque was still struggling and Gee came in my office with a bill that, uh, he couldn’t pay. I told him, I said, what you’re trying to do is so amazing. I wish you the best of luck.

So that was how we first got together in 1986.

Anne Ristau : And then you had an amazing career. You led a PR agency, you became the CEO of, I believe it was Quebec’s largest television broadcaster. Talk about how Gee convinced you to join the circus.

Daniel Lamarre: Yeah, when I became the CEO of the company. I managed to have the rights, the TV rights of Cirque du Soleil, and by then Gee and I start seeing each other on a more regular basis.

And then typically, Gee called me out [00:04:00] of the blue. He was in London and he says, how are you doing? I said, I’m doing great. He says. No, you can do much better. And I said, what are you talking about? And he said, you are going to join the circus. And three weeks later here I was. And that was more than 33 years ago.

Anne Ristau : That’s wild. And quite honestly, in 2001, when you joined. Cirque was successful, but it sounded like many internally felt like it almost had reached saturation and the peak of its growth. That was clearly a explosive period of growth. Can you talk about those first couple years as well as what it’s like to lead a creative artist-driven organization?

Daniel Lamarre: Yeah. When I joined, I felt that the brand was ready to explode around the world. And people here internally thought that we were almost at the peak and, and I had to argue with people internally, including [00:05:00] Gee, that there was much more growth potential for us internationally. When I joined, we had two permanent shows in Las Vegas,

and three touring shows. Today, we have 40 shows around the world, so I guess, and thank to Gee, we together develop the brand in almost everywhere on the planet. And that was an exciting trip. And it’s still, by the way, a very exciting trip because I still believe there is a lot of growth in our organization.

Anne Ristau : It was pretty amazing to recently see that, um, Mystere, which has been running, still running at Treasure Island since the 1993, I believe you have your own street.

Daniel Lamarre: Yeah, this is amazing. And believe it or not, after 30 year, I have just renewed the contract for an additional 10 years. So this show is there forever.

It’s [00:06:00] amazing.

Anne Ristau : That’s incredible. I’d also love to talk about 2006. You’ve driven a ton of growth at Cirque and Gee has handed you the reins. Founder, CEO transitions are notoriously terrible. Especially the first one who goes through that door almost. There has to be a acclimation period. Talk about how that was a success and how you continued to work closely with Gee and complimented one another.

Daniel Lamarre: Yeah, I think what you just said, compliment each other is really the key, because Gee was not interested about all the financial and the management of the company. What he was interested about was really creative content, and that’s how we’ve been able to work very well together. People told me, oh, it must have been difficult to work with Gee, because he’s a visionary, he’s a creators.

And I said, [00:07:00] no, that was very easy because I never said no to Gee. I always said, gee. Yes, we will evaluate it. And that was my way to not be a turn down person and not be a downer, but at the same time not exploring every single idea that Gee could have because he had about a thousand idea per minute. So that was important for us, that we take the appropriate amount of time to do the analysis and then keep the idea that we thought could work.

Uh.

Anne Ristau : I do think that’s the ultimate balancing act, and few organizations get that right of the financial discipline, but also allowing creativity to flourish. And certainly we’ll talk a bit more about your book, but the message of creativity is the business and is the imperative. I think it’s very true, even not only in live entertainment, but entrepreneurs, anyone who’s working on a product [00:08:00] launch or.

A sales team having to be creative in, in putting a deal together. So many parallels of how to translate creativity into to everyday life. Early in your career at Cirque you had the incredible experience of meeting with all the remaining living members of the Beatles, as well as Yoko Ono. Tell us a bit about that and how the show Beatles love came to be.

Daniel Lamarre: Yeah, that was a very special story because Gee, every year used to organize a big party in Montreal when there was the Formula One race, and George Harrison was a big fan of Formula One, and he came to the party to start jamming with our musician, had a lot of fun, and then he said, we, the Beatles are going to have a meeting in London in a couple of weeks.

So if the gang. Are in a good mood, you should come and join us. And then we said, yeah, but if the gang is not in a good mood, [00:09:00] he says, oh, we’re just going to go out and have a beer in a pub. So here I am flying to London with Gee, not knowing if I’m there to have a beer with George Harrison. Or if I’m going to have one of the most important meeting in my life.

So we’re in the hotel. Gee and I we’re talking to each other, but we’re not listening to each other. We’re just watching the phone to ring. So finally the phone rhymed. Then he say, yeah, the gang is in a good mood. Hang off the phone, jump in a cab. Went to the Mandarin Hotel in London, and then that was like in a movie because nobody knew that the Beatles were there.

All there was in the hotel were a security guard, and all you can hear was people from Cirque du Soleil are coming, people from Cirque du Soleil are coming, and then we arrive in the suite. And I wanted to pinch myself to be in touch with the Beatles. It was really amazing. And then we shut down and Ringo said, what’s the pitch?[00:10:00]

And Gee said, there is no pitch. You are a creative force. We’re a creative force. We’re here to see if we can work together. And then Ringo looked to Paul and say, wow, that’s a change. For 30 years, all the live organization, all the live entertainment company in the world, wanted to do a show with the music of the Beatles and the Beatles never ever accepted.

And we’ve been able to manage a process, a smooth process that involved us in doing a show with the Beatles.

Anne Ristau : That’s a surreal moment, and I think just an incredible testament to respecting creativity and the creative process and being able to come to a collaborative agreement that seemed like the point.

I hope that in many ways, that Gee felt, okay, you’re ready, and he could. Maybe turn over the day to day to you as he focused on creative and you could run the [00:11:00] business. How were you able to keep constantly innovating over that growth period? And then also the 2008, the great recession was not easy for Cirque or anyone in live entertainment, and probably other companies wouldn’t have survived that.

How did creativity keep you progressing and innovating?

Daniel Lamarre: First of all, we invest quite a bit in research and development. We have been working with Microsoft on All Land. We have been working with Samsung on virtual reality. We are always on the lookout where we’re collaborating with 11 universities around the world about new technologies.

Uh, our casting department is. Looking and fishing for new talent all the time. In our artistic data bank, we have more than 300,000 artists, so if there is a good artist somewhere in the world, I want that artist to join Cirque du Soleil. So [00:12:00] that’s what we do all the time. Is trying to push the boundaries of our creativity by bringing new technologies, new talent.

And one of the reasons of our success is we have over 90 different nationalities represented within Cirque and people come here with their own value, their own background, and I think it’s one of the many reasons of our success.

Anne Ristau : I believe you’re also the largest employer of former Olympians, is that correct?

Daniel Lamarre: Yes, we are. And I was very touch recently because there was the Olympics in Paris and the woman from Britain who won the gold medal on trampoline and, and you can imagine our emotional a moment, it was for her and her first statement was. Now as I won the gold medal, I’m ready to join Cirque du Soleil. I couldn’t believe she was saying that [00:13:00] alive after winning a gold medal.

It says a lot about the relationship between the Olympic athletes and our organization.

Anne Ristau : It also says a lot in how you’ve approached your role as enabling artists to have jobs. I loved that. Talk a little bit more about what artists mean to Cirque, and to you personally.

Daniel Lamarre: The thing is the way it works in our society, sadly, it’s less than 1% of artists that can live through their passion, and I have the luxury here at Cirque to offer jobs to more than 2000 artists.

It’s so rewarding for us to have the opportunity to develop them and give them, a decent job that they can have a good life traveling around the world, and that’s my main motivation [00:14:00] is to create job for arches that they can finally have a good living through their passion.

Anne Ristau : In 2015, you were probably one of the first entertainment entities that took private equity financing.

I think we’re hearing about it. Everywhere across sports and entertainment, and now potentially in the collegiate landscape. Private equity isn’t always associated with creativity or protecting it even in a downturn. Can you talk about the relationship with TPG early on and how that was able to be a success and to work?

Daniel Lamarre: The reason why I maintain a great relationship with TPG is as I told them from the get go, I said, you can come in my office 10 times a day if you so desired to have some financial reporting, and I will be more than happy to do it because now you own the company. But one thing I will ask you for [00:15:00] sure is please don’t get involved with our creative team.

Because if you do that, you are going to kill this organization. And they just burst laughing to my remark because they had no ambition to be involved with the creative process. And that’s how we’ve been able to protect our creative process. And that’s why it did work, uh, quite well with TPG.

Anne Ristau : So certainly.

COVID had a devastating impact. And you had actually begun writing your book, I believe, 2019, going into early 2020, probably thinking you were at the apex of a career that 15 years. Incredible. An average CEO tenure, I think is seven or eight. You’ve described it as the toughest period in your life and a 48 hour period that was, I think, shocking to everyone around the world, but certainly to you and to your artists.

Could you take us through. [00:16:00] Those first few days.

Daniel Lamarre: Yeah, that was horrible. Within 48 hours, we went from 40 shows to no shows. From a billion dollars of revenue to zero revenue, so that was terrible. We had to let go. Basically, everybody and I will never forget on Tuesday, the following Tuesday, because you will remember that the crisis happened on Friday the 13th, March 13th.

Then this Tuesday morning, all there was in the building was our CFO, myself and our uh, legal advisor. And I look at them and I said, we have to be creative. And they look at me like, if I was a zombie, this is Danielle. We have no company. What are you talking about? I said, no, listen, we still have a little bit of money.

Let’s keep that money and create a task force. Because we cannot have this organization. [00:17:00] Not being in touch with this audience. So we have created a network called Cirque Connect, and we have a broadcast on social media every week, some artistic content coming from our shows, and after 12 months, we have reach out to 70 million people around the world.

So imagine the negotiation with the banker. You go to them, you say, I have no money. I have no show. And by the way, I need $350 million to relaunch the company. But the one argument that convinced them was the fact that we had to reach out during the COVID, 70 million people that was waiting for Cirque du Soleil to come back.

And that’s why even in huge crisis, like the one like COVID. You still have to be creative to find creative solutions,

Anne Ristau : and I believe your [00:18:00] valuation in 2020 as you completed that restructuring west north of a billion dollars, truly a testament to the power of the brand, to the millions and millions of audiences you’ve reached and inspired Joy.

As you came to the end of 2021, that was the point at which you elevated to the vice chairman and handed the CEO reigns to Stefan. Can you talk about that transition and maybe what you learned from Gee all those years ago and making that successful?

Daniel Lamarre: Yeah. First of all, Stefan, our new CEO and I at the time, he was CFO of the company.

We were in the trenches together during the crisis, and I could literally see through the process, Stefan emerging and showing leadership and I thought we needed to have some new energy at the end of the company. And I went to the board and I said. I think now it’s [00:19:00] the time to pass the button, the torch to someone else.

And they said, we would agree to your recommendation if you accept to stay with the company. So that’s what I did. And Stefan is doing a great job, which makes my life easier. And I do what I love to do, which is to do new business development, which allow me. To create new jobs for artists, which is awesome.

Anne Ristau : That is awesome. You also then published your book just last year. Who should read it?

Daniel Lamarre: I think anybody that has a little desire to be more creative, because creativity doesn’t matter. Sometimes people associate creativity with artistic content. It’s much more broader than that. You need creativity. In any industry, in any organization where you act.

So I strongly recommend that if you want to find a little bit of a spark [00:20:00] to enhance your creativity, I hope this book, uh, can help you.

Anne Ristau : I would agree with that. I would also add that anyone who’s thinking about a career pivot or coming into an organization with a very different culture than maybe you’ve operated in the past, I think there’s some great management and leadership lessons as well as business creativity and personal creativity, which again, I think I’ve been lucky to work with many creative business leaders and.

They don’t often get credit for that. It’s can be, I think, oftentimes assumed to be more of the accounting and finance folks. How does Cirque continue to push the envelope, and where do you see it going in these next few years as you reemerge and come back stronger than ever.

Daniel Lamarre: Again. By doing a lot of exploration.

So we are looking to ways to diversified our content. We’re looking about immersive [00:21:00] experience by having a stronger presence in multimedia. So there are some aspects of development that we’re exploring right now. We do it at the, at the appropriate pace because the core of our business remain live shows, but the brand is so strong that we think that there are oppor opportunity to develop ancillary source of revenues.

And, uh, that’s what we’re exploring right now.

Anne Ristau : The human artistry is obviously so powerful and so visual, but I think the technology is equally amazing and almost behind the scene, thinking about, oh, and putting that much water under a stage. Technology’s always been a part of a circ show, and I think continues to push the boundaries.

Daniel Lamarre: Yeah, exactly. And as I said, we’re in the lookout all the time. Yeah. I remember one day the vice president of Creation walking in my office [00:22:00] and says, there is this teacher in Switzerland that I was invited, invented, drove. And I said, what are you doing in my office? Go to Switzerland, bring back the technology.

I wanted

Anne Ristau : to turn

Daniel Lamarre: a clear signal that new technology and R and D. It is not only a speech and the CEO, but we’re acting on it, or that’s what we do.

Anne Ristau : I love how Cirque has the motto. The show is the star, but it’s also as living and breathing as your artist and even these very long running shows, you may replace an act or incorporate new technology.

That’s, I think, equally a hallmark besides trying absolutely new things, but keeping your long running shows very fresh.

Daniel Lamarre: Yeah. This is the key of our long-term commitment to our shows. Just recently, we bring new content in our Michael Jackson show in

Anne Ristau : Las

Daniel Lamarre: Vegas, and why didn’t [00:23:00] we do that? Because we thought that technology has evolved.

And that we can offer even a better experience to our fans and we don’t hesitate to do that, to refresh the content, bring new artists, bring new technologies, and that’s the only way we have found to remain relevant to our fans.

Anne Ristau : We’d love to turn a little bit just to you as a person. Do you ever wonder if your life was a dream?

I’ve

Daniel Lamarre: been very lucky, I have to admit that. And every day I’m trying to use this privilege position that I have in order to explore more network with the more people, and also have the opportunity at my stage to contribute to the success to

Anne Ristau : others.

You’ve definitely found more time to become active in philanthropy.

Talk about your involvement in the One Drop Foundation.

Daniel Lamarre: Yeah, [00:24:00] I’m involved. In philanthropy a lot where we’re helping youth at risk and obviously One Drop. That was very interesting. Again, that was an idea key that woke up one morning and said, the biggest issue in our, on our planet in the future is going to be the lack of water.

And he came to this idea that at our level we should bring our own contribution, to help resolve the issue of waters in the world. And that’s how we have created the One Drop Foundation. And I’m very proud that we can help in some cities, in some countries where they don’t

Anne Ristau : have

Daniel Lamarre: proper water and we like.

To resolve at our scale, that issue.

Anne Ristau : I love that both you and Gee are using creativity to tackle some of those incredible, hairy social issues. We’ll wrap up here with some [00:25:00] rapid fire questions first. This might be like picking a favorite child, but do you have an all time favorite Cirque show?

Daniel Lamarre: Because of the difficulty we had to bring to the table, the Beatles.

To me, it brought a lot of emotion with that show.

Anne Ristau : Is there any chance it will come back? Because I know many people who were very sad when you closed it this year.

Daniel Lamarre: Yeah, I certainly, we can find a new hope for that show. Yes.

Anne Ristau : Ah, there is hope. If you could perform any act in a Cirque show, what would it be?

Daniel Lamarre: I’d love to be a juggler.

Anne Ristau : Ooh, interesting. See, I’d go for the trapeze, but I’m actually afraid of heights, so I don’t think I could step out on it. How about the last book you read now that you’re done writing one?

Daniel Lamarre: I read a lot of biography ’cause I’m always interested to see how people is involved, and so the last one I read was about Steve Jobs on.

Anne Ristau : Very cool.

Daniel Lamarre: It’s really simulating [00:26:00]

Anne Ristau : you’ve been all around the world. If you had to pick a favorite place to travel, where would it be?

Daniel Lamarre: I love London. It’s, it’s one of my favorite city,

Anne Ristau : and if someone’s coming to Montreal and can only eat one meal, what’s not to miss?

Daniel Lamarre: There is an amazing fish restaurant called Ferreira.

I would put all my reputation on the line to tell you that you would have an amazing meal there.

Anne Ristau : I think everything in Montreal is pretty incredible. Daniel, thank you so much for giving all of us a peek behind the curtain, into the fascinating world and journey that you’ve been on at Cirque du Soleil.

Daniel Lamarre: Thank you very much, and, uh, looking forward to, uh, keep, uh, collaborating with you.

Anne Ristau : If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to reach out to us. My email is ANNE@NVGT.com and you can also connect with us on my personal LinkedIn or the Navigate page. [00:27:00] Again, this is Anne Ristau with Navigate Joined by Daniel Lamarre, vice Chairman of the Board at Cirque du Soleil..

Thank you for joining us on Navigating Sports Business. Please stay well.