Its boundaries correspond to the former city of Ville Saint Michel, which was annexed to Montreal in 1968. This formerly independent city was known as Saint-Michel-de-Laval from its inception in 1912 to 1914 and Ville Saint Michel from 1914 to 1968. This was one of the last cities to be merged into Montreal before the 2002 municipal reorganization.
Originating as a performing troupe called Les Échassiers (IPA:[lez‿eʃasje]; "The Stilt Walkers"), they toured Quebec in various forms between 1979 and 1983. Their initial financial hardship was relieved in 1983 by a government grant from the Canada Council for the Arts to perform as part of the 450th anniversary celebrations of Jacques Cartier's voyage to Canada. Their first official production Le Grand Tour du Cirque du Soleil was a success in 1984, and after securing a second year of funding, Laliberté hired Guy Caron from the National Circus School to recreate it as a "proper circus". Its theatrical, character-driven approach and the absence of performing animals helped define Cirque du Soleil as the contemporary circus ("nouveau cirque") that it remains today.
