Cirque du Soleil marks its return to Sydney with a Big Top twist
The circus Cirque du Soleil has somersaulted into town, setting up camp with one of the largest Big Tops ever set up in Australia.
National
Don't miss out on the headlines from National. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Cirque du Soleil went up in typically spectacular fashion at Moore Park, setting up camp with one of the largest Big Tops in Australia.
It takes a few days to set up, with its satellite tents and the infrastructure required to dazzle audiences ahead of the October 2 opening of KURIOS: Cabinet of Curiosities — Cirque’s latest offering to Sydneysiders.
Sure, it’s not an engineering marvel like the Sydney Harbour Bridge, but it’s a serious building site involving muscles, minds and machines.
Those involved — over 60 technicians — in the construction of the circus village are performers of a more mundane, but most necessary, task than the stars of the show.
Already in position were four masts, each 24 metres tall, anchored to the floor by metal plates, through which had been driven in with nails.
A mass of blue vinyl tarp, several steel masts and hundreds of support poles were needed to transform the Showring at the Entertainment Quarter into the huge 2400-seat tent.
And then — “on the count of three” — the crew of men heaved those support poles into position.
From the outside, on top of the sloping roof, the Big Top began to take its shape.
More than 550 pegs are needed to anchor the 20m Big Top, a tent once habituated to a blue-and-yellow Grand Chapiteau now flaunted a spanking new white-and-grey top.
“The Grand Chapiteau does not go anywhere until we say it can,” the supervisor said.
All of the equipment comes in 85 containers, but not just any container — a shipping container carrying the entire Cirque du Soleil village as the crew and performers travel from city to city.
The Showring setup also includes offices, training and dressing rooms, and a kitchen for the full-time circus cooks.
KURIOS is Cirque du Soleil’s 35th production since 1984.
The newest big top production to tour Australia arrives with a cast of 47 artists from 17 countries including world-class gymnasts, acrobats, contortionists, hand-puppeteers, yo-yo wizards, clowns, actors and musicians.
The Sydney season will run from October 2 at the Entertainment Quarter, Moore Park.
Originally published as Cirque du Soleil marks its return to Sydney with a Big Top twist