I've been watching the Cirque shows since I was a child, since I live here in Quebec, and yes, they've influenced my writing a lot too during the past few years (one of my upcoming characters is a bat who's had his wings surgically removed to keep the risk factor and public interest up...). I make up a different plot for their shows every time I see them, even when I see the same one several times, because I figure that's what they're for, although I do fast-forward through some of the "comedy" parts when I watch them on tape or DVD after having seen them live.