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Moving from the real world of the Chicago World’s Fair to the fantasy realms of The Night Circus a question arises: why do we call it the Blue Sky phase?

Book number 5 in my 10 Best Books for Themed Entertainment industry insiders is The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. It’s the only novel on this list and comes with a premise so simple that it’s spelled out on the front flap of the dust jacket, “The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it, no paper notices plastered on lampposts and billboards. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not.”

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As the story unfolds we quickly discover that beyond the tantalizingly unexpected arrival of the circus comes a series of inviting experiences spread out under black and white striped tents, each more imaginative than the last. In time we learn what’s happening behind the scenes — I had to keep a list of the many characters — but it’s the time spent inside Le Cirque des Reves, where the real magic happens. Lighting, costumes, illusion, theatrical design, performance… all the elements of what we love about Themed Entertainment design are woven into the story of the Night Circus. Imaginative worlds designed to be explored. That’s why this book is on my list! 

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The Night Circus is so evocative that it has inspired many homages to this magical world of Victorian romance with goth-adjacent cosplay, fan art and even tattoos, particularly of the enigmatic character Celia Bowen. There’s a limited clothbound edition from Books Illustrated with artwork by Anne Yvonne Gilbert.

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We often start our projects with a “Blue Sky” phase, where anything is possible and we allow ourselves to dream big. But I’d like to suggest perhaps a “Dark Sky” or maybe a “Starry Sky” phase, where we focus on the unique sensation that only happens when a show takes place at night, under a moonlit sky, when everything feels more enchanting and surprises emerge from the shadowlands of our imagination.

— Ryan Miziker