Cirque du Soleil

Cohn & Wolfe has scooped up global PR duties for Cirque du Soleil, the Montreal-based entertainment company that bills itself as the world’s largest theatrical producer.

The WPP unit will staff teams in New York, Austin and Shanghai to handle corporate positioning, media relations and events for the “Circus of the Sun.”

Expansion into the Chinese market will be another focus of the company that has entertained more than 180 people in more than 450 cities since it was founded in 1984.

Fosun Industrial Holdings, a Chinese investment company; TPG Capital, private equity firm; and Quebec Deposit and Investment Fund bought a 90 percent stake in Cirque du Soleil.