Like The Innocent in Cirque du Soleil’s latest production of KOOZA, in the 1970s Gilles Ste-Croix was also in search of his place in the world.

His entrance into show business came in a most unusual and unpredictable way. Ste-Croix, today senior vice president of creative content for Cirque du Soleil, was working as an apple-picker in Victoriaville, Quebec. Speaking with his co-workers, he once mused that the job would be much easier if he could just attach the ladder to his legs — then proceeded to create his own custom-made stilts.

Little did Ste-Croix know that those stilts were going to lead him to something so grand.

Setting up their trademark blue and yellow Grand Chapiteau (Big Top) at the Santa Monica Pier through December, the company is celebrating its silver anniversary since making its North American debut in Santa Monica 20 years ago.

With KOOZA, Cirque du Soleil — which is now operating 20 touring shows across the world, simultaneously — hearkens back to its roots of combining two circus traditions: acrobatic performance and the art of clowning.

Situated at a posh beachfront hotel and wearing a simple T-shirt and faded jeans, Ste-Croix recently spoke to the Independent about KOOZA, why Cirque du Soleil creates outside the box and how exactly a company 4,000 strong manages to stay afloat in a sinking economy.

Why Santa Monica?
The first time we performed in this region was in 1988. In celebrating our 25th anniversary, we realized it was important for us to connect with our past. That first production was a very important moment in Cirque history. It was the first time we played in North America outside of Canada and we were a small company with a 1,700 seat big top. No matter how far we’ve traveled or where we’ve performed, it was Santa Monica and Los Angeles who made a success out of us, those audiences back then, they created this company today … and now we are playing all over the world.

I’ve heard that opening night is going to benefit two of the area’s largest environmental organizations — The OneDrop Foundation and Heal the Bay. Is KOOZA a green circus?
We try to be as green as we possibly can, with all of our shows. But with the size of our tours, it is very difficult to provide electricity without using fuel. Changing that would require some very, very large solar panels. Of course, we could do smaller shows, but people expect us to give them mega productions. Still, we are very supportive of our environment. OneDrop strives to be an agent of change and influence in making water accessible to everyone, all over the world.

You’ve been with Cirque du Soleil since its inception. When you were handed the title of senior vice president of creative content, what was the first thing you wanted to do with in the show?
I’ve always been a creator, the title simply changed recently. Every show builds on the previous one. In the year 2000, the company was already big and it was obvious that the company became the platform where different creators could come and really bring the art of circus to other levels, to someplace else. The styles that we use at Cirque du Soleil are really tools for the creators to bring the circus out in different ways. … My role is coordinating all of the creative processes of the different shows to make sure they evolve.

The definition of KOOZA is a circus in a box, yet Cirque du Soleil has always thought outside of the box.
People are not used to expecting the unexpected, but with KOOZA, they know they have to. KOOZA begins with a box, where out of this box comes a Trickster. This Trickster carries you through an unexpected world, where fear is present, where humor brings you to the edge, a place that you do not know what the next gag is going to be … all of that is part of what KOOZA is all about, a box of tricks, and it keeps the audience on the edge.

How big is Cirque du Soleil now, compared to its size of 70 employees back in 1984?
When we first started, it was a temporary show, for the summer only. Now we’re year around, with [20] shows we have 4,000 employees, 1,200 of those are artists. KOOZA has 125 people on tour, 52 are artists and it’s a major production. We have 25 trucks that carry all of the materials to do this, an entire kitchen, and we have a school on tour because some of our artists have children. Plus, we have young artists who still go to school. Some of our artists were born while on tour, they went to school while on tour, they were child performers with their parents, they graduated from high school while on tour, and now some of them are adult performers in our shows.

Four-thousand employees — that’s a big number. How do children benefit from going to school while being a part of Cirque du Soleil shows?
We have one performer who grew up on the show, and she graduated from high school while on the show, and now she is a solo performer in KOOZA. The great [part] of it all, is that she knows many different languages, not just one or two. People here grow up accepting of other cultures and of knowing other cultures, because they grow up with other cultures. There are at least 20 different origins together on stage with every show. Our shows are a communal effort to entertain the public every night, so if there are differences, they are left outside. In here, we’re working and living together. Basically, it’s a great lesson how the world can be. If it is possible inside a circus ring, it should be very possible everywhere else. Living and working together is not that hard.

What should audiences expect from KOOZA?
This show is renewed with one great thing about circus art — tradition. When you come to the circus, you come to see the unexpected, you come to see human beings perform to a limit, what you don’t expect is the push of the human possibility. There are acts in the show that push that limit, that push the human possibility. One example of that is Salto del Morte. As a spectator, I believe for a moment that maybe death doesn’t exist because he pushed the limit of defying death and survived. That’s the only part of the show that pushes the limit like that because we don’t risk people’s lives, but it’s a form of art that pushes the possibilities of human beings.

In thinking outside the box and pushing envelopes, what do you expect from your performers?
Any performer who is dedicated to his art and says I can and I will, that’s the only thing that drives artists. I cannot impose on an artist to be a wire walker if he doesn’t have it inside of him to say I want to go on that wire, I want to do that. I come from that type of approach, that as a teenager I wanted to do theater, although my parents didn’t want me to. So in the ‘80s when I wanted to perform on the street, I thought if I don’t do it I will want my children to do it, so I did it and I kept doing it. So today, I am happy to say that there are now 4,000 families who live off the saying: ‘I can do it, I want to do it.’

How, in this economy, does Cirque du Soleil stay afloat?
In today’s world, and even in today’s economy, people still want to be entertained, people still want something to forget about their worries. Some people go see movies, some people see theater. Families will calculate their funds, but they won’t give up on themselves. People say to themselves, we won’t forget about this economy, rather we will choose very carefully.

Cirque isn’t just fighting against a sinking economy, but it’s also being challenged by the digital world. CD sales have dropped because people can download music off the Internet. The same goes for movies, books, etc. How is the circus surviving?
The fact is that you can’t do that with live theater, or with the circus and we’re holding onto that. When television first came, people thought the movie business would be over. And when [Blockbuster Video] appeared, people thought that theater was going to be over. I think this digital medium will never eliminate the fact that human beings want to experience something live. Plus, people don’t like to go anywhere alone, we like to experience shows like this with others; it’s a communal effort. It’s a human trait in us to experience something live. I think that dates back to the time when people sat around fires and told stories. … If you have a choice to listen to Pink Floyd album in the privacy of your own home, or listen to them live with 12,000 people around you, you’re going to choose the live version. It’s a different experience. All of this social media is great, it’s a great way to network and keep in touch, but it won’t take away the need for humans to see one another eye to eye.