The Cirque du Soleil at the Saville

When Yoo Capital sought planning permission to put a hotel on the site of the old Saville Theatre, it sweetened its proposal with the big attraction of the Cirque du Soleil. The development, it stated, would provide “Cirque du Soleil’s first permanent show space in Europe”.

Published in 2024, well before planning permission was granted, Yoo Capital’s ESG report stated that, “The proposed development will transform Saville Theatre, a Grade II listed building, into the first UK-based permanent home of Cirque du Soleil, a mission-oriented, contemporary circus producer.”

As if it were an after-thought, it added that the development “will also create a boutique hotel operated by citizenM”, but its emphasis was on the social and cultural strength of the proposal.

Not only was citizenM “a brand built around its social value strategy”, but the Cirque du Soleil was “working with Go Live Theatre Projects to support disadvantaged London families to visit the theatre for the first time”. It would also help young people with special educational needs “to develop confidence and new skills”.

These are the sorts of things that any local authority would love to hear, but more than a year after Camden Council granted permission, Yoo Capital has fallen mysteriously silent over how it intends to live up to its promises. The once publicly accessible website dedicated to the project,  www.saville-theatre.com, was recently made private. So something must obviously be going on.

After the Theatres Trust told me that the Cirque du Soleil had withdrawn from the project, I sought confirmation from Yoo Capital. “We’re not able to comment on operator arrangements at this stage,” it told me, “but any updates will be shared publicly once we’re in a position to do so.”

I suspect that this is corporate speak for the fact that the Cirque du Soleil has indeed fallen from the trapeze.