New Show "Kurios": Cirque du Soleil Has Set Up Tent in Vienna
The 35th production of the entertainment company from Montreal, Canada "celebrates the magic of imagination," according to the announcement. In the "Cabinet of Curiosities," 50 artists from 21 countries perform in dazzling costumes.
Cirque du Soleil as a Cabinet of Curiosities
More than 60 employees set up the Grand Chapiteau this weekend. Before that, a team mapped the entire site. One of the final steps in the preparations was to "secure all the anchors with which our tents are fastened to the ground. Each anchor is 1.5 meters long, and we have about 1,200 in total," said Site Operations Director David Constantineau.
Welcoming Visitors from a Great Height
The tent with brand new tarpaulins is erected on 1,000 steel pipes, 25 meters high, and accommodates around 2,600 visitors. For the first time, three acrobats will welcome guests with a number before the actual performance begins: If the weather permits, the trio will climb onto the large roof and perform music and play from a great height.
"Curious" is inspired by cabinets of curiosities, precursors to museums and known as "wonder rooms" during the Renaissance. Aristocrats, merchants, and scientists collected historical relics, mysterious travel souvenirs, and artifacts. The show builds on this: "It's as if Jules Verne and Thomas Edison meet in an alternate reality, outside of time," says set designer Stéphane Roy about "Curious".
100 Costumes and Acrobatics Spectacle
The presentation by Cirque du Soleil features a giant, 340-kilogram mechanical hand made of fiberglass. It is operated by two performers using a pedal and a gear mechanism. A hot air balloon is also used - its outer shell serves as a projection surface with a diameter of about 4.2 meters.
More than 100 costumes are to be admired. The character of "Mr. Microcosmos" includes a belly weighing more than nine kilograms, equipped with its own independent lighting and ventilation systems. The costumes of the "Cradle Duo" - aerial acrobats performing on gigantic "mercury drops" - resemble wax dolls. The number "Acro Net," developed exclusively for "Curious," is a mix of street style and trampoline technique, with the outfits of the jumping artists serving as a nod to how filmmaker Georges Méliès ("A Trip to the Moon," 1902) imagined extraterrestrials.
"Curious" premiered in Montreal in 2014. Since then, there have been 3,000 performances in 35 countries. Other highlights include an acrobat on an aerial bicycle, a contortion act by four "deep-sea creatures," a master of yo-yos, a human pyramid, and a chair-balancing act. The spectacle is accompanied by live music from a seven-member ensemble.
(APA/Red)
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