Cirque du Soleil has joined a list of artists and companies who are canceling engagements in North Carolina after the state passed HB2, a “religious freedom” bill that allows individuals and businesses to deny services to LGBT individuals based on personal religious beliefs.

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Upcoming performances of Ovo in Greensboro (April 20-24) and Charlotte (July 6-10), as well as Toruk – Avatar in Raleigh (June 22-26), have all been canceled in the wake of the legislation.

The troupe is set to make its Broadway debut with the new musical Paramour, beginning April 16 at the Lyric Theatre.

Cirque du Soleil issued the following statement:

“Cirque du Soleil strongly believes in diversity and equality for every individual and is opposed to discrimination in any form. The new HB2 legislation passed in North Carolina is an important regression to ensuring human rights for all. We therefore choose to cancel our scheduled performances of Ovo in Greensboro (April 20-24) and our scheduled performances in Charlotte (July 6-10) and our scheduled performances of Toruk – Avatar in Raleigh (June 22-26).

Cirque du Soleil believes in equality for all. It is a principle that guides us with both our employees and our customers. We behave as change agents to reach our ultimate goal of making a better world with our actions and our productions.

We sincerely hope that the customers that have purchased tickets for our performances in North Carolina will understand our motivation and we look forward to performing in North Carolina when this issue is addressed.”

Online and phone ticket purchases are being automatically reimbursed. Customer service can be reached at (877) 924-7783.