Alegría was a sub-production of the world famous Cirque du Soleil, that dealt with themes of power and its corruption. Created by Gilles St. Croix and directed (at its inception, anyway) by Franco Dragone, Alegría was first witnessed in the early 1990s, and included a number of different characters, and a wide array of feats of performance, including trapeze, dance, bars, high bar, and clowns. The music for the production was composed by René Dupéré, and was first captured on soundtrack in 1994 on RCA Victor. A re-release of said soundtrack was made available on the Cirque's in-house label in 2002, and included a pair of new tracks recorded in Sydney in 2001. In 1998, a film version was developed, and featured Whoopi Goldberg and Frank Langella. 2007 saw the show wrap up a European tour, and in 2008, the troupe performed in South America, Africa, and Asia. ~ Chris True