Tourist attractions turned Orlando into a beacon for variety performers from around the globe, and there’s no bigger big top than Cirque du Soleil’s tent-shaped theater at Walt Disney World. As Drawn to Life approaches its fourth anniversary on Nov. 18, I spoke with original cast member Chloe Diane Polson — who is one of six current performers from the U.K. — about leaving London to create the leading character in this one-of-a-kind circus.
Growing up in Connah’s Quay, a small town outside Liverpool on the border between North Wales and England, Polson’s path to performing was initially inspired by her family’s love of music (especially British soul) and dancing. “None of my family are professional entertainers; however, they’re all very kooky and nutty, and they all love having a good time,” Polson says. “Just being surrounded by artistic people, that was what really sparked me.”
From ages 3 through 16, Polson was immersed in the world of dance, training with the Royal Ballet School associates, before being awarded a scholarship to the Bodywork Company at Cambridge Performing Arts to study musical theater. After graduation, she joined a contemporary dance company called Chrysalis London, then spent several years freelancing.
“I was auditioning for the West End, but it was such a struggle, because I’m only 4’ 11”. I’m very tiny and petite, so I was struggling so much to find where I fit in the industry,” Polson recalls. “Those three years were so hard, it was ‘no’ after ‘no’ after ‘no’: ‘You’re too tiny, you’re too petite. You don’t fit into the ensemble, you don’t fit the costume.’”
Ironically, Polson’s small stature helped land her biggest job yet: originating the role of Julie, the tween protagonist of Drawn to Life. Polson was cast in the central part (along with Miho Inaba) after submitting a video audition in May 2019. “They flew me over [from London to Montreal], and then the audition was literally in one day, which is crazy.”
Initially, Polson says she struggled to adapt her disciplined dance background to the more creative world of Cirque. “My dance skills definitely are needed, but it’s more acting, it’s more physical theater … so it took time for me to really get out of that, to play and have fun. I would definitely say those first few months were like, ‘Oh, I’ve got to really unlearn everything I’ve learned.’”
Unlike most Cirque du Soleil shows, Drawn to Life has a defined storyline, but that doesn’t mean it used a conventional script or rehearsal process. Rather, Polson and Inaba spent three months collaborating with acting coach Nico Lagarde and director Michel Laprise to develop Julie’s journey using a story outline. “A lot of that was just really playing in the body of a little girl. Who is she? How does she walk? How does she speak, how does she play, how does she laugh?” says Polson. “I learned so much, day by day, just finding who this little inner child was, which was actually a very beautiful process.”
Unfortunately, just as that process ended and Drawn to Life’s premiere approached, the world went into pandemic shutdown, delaying the opening by over a year and a half. “There was no endgame. We didn’t know when it was going to open, [and] I would actually work on the show a lot, to the point where my friends were like, ‘You need to stop it,’” remembers Polson, emphasizing that Cirque supported her and communicated regularly throughout the downtime.
In addition to performing Julie, Polson sometimes substitutes as Abricot Gouache, the Mary Blair-inspired role originated by Russian mime Ekaterina Pirogovskaya. “I definitely had to play with being very, very detailed and intricate. Physically, she’s so different to Julie, who’s free and loose and playful, but this is so precise,” says Polson, who has also trained for a third performance track involving aerial hoops and puppetry. “I love to play and be challenged by the complexities of each character and what they bring to the story.”
Even through her routine isn’t quite as rigorous as some of the death-defying acrobats who must train daily, performing two shows a day can be “quite exhausting,” admits Polson. Despite her busy schedule at Disney Springs, she still makes time to take acting classes at Art’s Sake Studio and sing at Judson’s Live with the Alain Bradette Quartet.
Even after almost four years, Polson has no plans to leave the show, although she hopes to someday see more of America. “I would like to stay in the United States and continue to explore and grow as an artist,” she says. “I take it year by year. It’s hard for me to say, but I’d still love to try other Cirque shows. Broadway would be amazing [and] I’d also love to try film.”
Until then, Polson carries on drinking a cuppa prior to each show “to keep a piece of home with me,” and continues to delight in “seeing the little kids and their eyes when they see Julie, especially when I come for the bow. Sometimes there will be little kids at the front, and they’ll want to touch or high-five. To see their joy through their eyes, that’s the reason why we do it.”
This article appears in Oct. 29–Nov. 4, 2025.
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Seth Kubersky
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