Film News: Cirque du Soleil to Perform at Oscars While Muppets Will Only Present

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CHICAGO – In a move that I can only describe as head-scratching, the 84th Academy Awards producers Brian Grazer and Don Mischer have invited Cirque du Soleil to perform at this year’s Oscar ceremony. The decision is not head-scratching because Cirque du Soleil is a bad act, but because they have cancelled other performances that actually pertain completely to this year’s awards to make room for other parts of the telecast.

The performance is being described as a one-time only event that will feature the largest Cirque cast ever assembled on one stage. Accompanied by music from composer Danny Elfman, 50 Cirque du Soleil performers will create a tribute to Hollywood’s biggest night on the Oscar stage.

While some may be excited to see Cirque du Soleil perform for the second time at the Oscars, this humble writer is upset that this act trumps performances from actual nominees. The awards will not feature performances for the Best Original Song category, which means we will not have the chance to see Flight of the Conchords co-frontman Bret McKenzie, comedian Jason Segel, and a cast of Muppets singing the nominated song “Man or Muppet” on Hollywood’s biggest stage. Instead, the only featuring of The Muppets will come from Kermit and Miss Piggy presenting an award during the show.

In the past, we have seen Robin Williams perform South Park’s “Blame Canada,” the Three 6 Mafia tell us “It’s Hard out Here for a Pimp,” and Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová grace the stage with “Falling Slowly.” And while the press release about The Muppets presenting an award reminded us that “superstars Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy are undeniably still one of the world’s most celebrated Hollywood power couples…their place in motion picture and television history has been cemented for decades,” apparently they aren’t big enough to allow them to do what they do best: perform in front of a large crowd. The Cirque du Soleil performance may be dazzling and brilliant, but Grazer and Mischer made an awful decision in removing the whopping two performances for Best Original Song nominees to make room for other parts of the show.

By TIM MARTENS Staff Writer HollywoodChicago.com tim@hollywoodchicago.com