A French performer in Cirque du Soleil's Ka has died after a fall during a show in Las Vegas.

Sarah Guyard-Guillot fell about 50 feet from the stage on Saturday night at the MGM Grand hotel.

One audience member says he saw her slip free from her safety wire.

Performances of "Ka" have been cancelled until further notice.

Ka features dangerous acrobatic feats, here's the troupe's promotional video for the show:

Safety

Guyard-Guillot, a mother of 2 children, had been with the original cast of Ka since 2006, and had been an acrobatic performer for over 20 years.

Witnesses told the Las Vegas Sun that the accident occurred near the end of the production.

Visitor Dan Mosqueda, of Colorado Springs, told the newspaper that the performer was being hoisted up the side of the stage when she slipped free of her safety wire and plummeted to an open pit.

"Initially, a lot of people in the audience thought it was part of the (show)," he said.

"But you could hear screaming, then groaning, and we could hear a female artist crying from the stage."

Picture above, the show set at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas

The show continued briefly but then stopped. Minutes after the accident, a recorded announcement informed the audience that refunds or vouchers for future shows would be offered.

Cirque du Soleil founder Guy Laliberte said performances of Ka have been cancelled until further notice.

"I am heartbroken. I wish to extend my sincerest sympathies to the family. We are all completely devastated," he said.

"We are reminded with great humility and respect how extraordinary our artists are each and every night."

• There are 160 harnesses (of 21 different kinds) worn by the KÀ performers.

Cirque officials are working with authorities investigating the accident and have offered their full co-operation, he added.

The MGM Grand also issued a statement saying everyone at the company was "deeply saddened by the loss of one of the talented Ka artists".

Cirque's bad week

The accident happened while Cirque's top executives, including president Daniel Lamarre, were in Las Vegas to celebrate the premiere of new show Michael Jackson One at the Mandalay Bay resort.

On Wednesday night, a performer in a preview performance suffered mild concussion after missing the protective pad below an act and landing on the stage.

That artist is expected to return to the show.