As Montreal’s famed company Cirque du Soleil celebrates its 30th Anniversary, they are getting ready to bring their new production TOTEM to Australia. To get our head around what we can expect from the new show, we will be catching up with the performers and creative minds of the show over the coming weeks. Next up we are introduced to Yann Arnaud who’ll be dazzling us as part of the “Rings Trio”.
How did you first get involved in Cirque du Soleil and what made you want to be a part of it?
In 1998, I visited the Cirque du Soleil International Head Quarters in Montreal with the National French Gymnastics Team. At that time I was impressed by their facilities and what the company was doing but I never thought I would audition for them one day. A few years later, I got a contract to perform in the Tarzan show at Disneyland Paris for one summer. This first experience on stage got me simply addicted to live performance. At the end of my contract with Disney, I auditioned for Cirque du Soleil in Paris and literally 3 weeks later I was in training in Montreal for the “O” production.
What’s the hardest part about being a part of Cirque?
For me, performing on stage is not difficult at all; it is where I feel the best! I would say the hardest thing about being part of Cirque du Soleil is to always be packing and unpacking your suitcase and not having a stable home.
What’s the best part?
Same as Guilhem, I would say the best part is making people dream and having an impact on their lives. I also love touring the world and performing for very different audiences wherever we are.
Do you have a favourite Cirque production?
“O” presented at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas is my favourite production as I had never seen something as beautiful in my life before. There are not enough words to describe it. It transports the audience to another universe.
What can we expect from TOTEM?
Joy, joy and joy- TOTEM is a very enthusiastic production; it is positive and the performers bring a lot of energy to the crowd. It is a beautiful moment shared between the audience and the artists.
What other productions have you been a part of?
I performed in the production “O” in Las Vegas prior to TOTEM.
What do you think separates TOTEM from other Cirque productions?
There is extensive use of video projections in the show that are changing the setting of each act from a lake, to a volcano, to a waterfall to a starry sky etc. They support the action beautifully and make the audience travel around the world without leaving their seats.
Without giving too much away, tell us a little bit about what you do in TOTEM…
I play a Beach Boy character in the Rings Trio act. I basically fly around the Big Top using gymnastics rings attached to a motor that pulls me up to 12 meters above the audience. Rings Trio takes place on a beach where two Beach Boys are competing on the Rings until a beautiful woman arrives and shows them that she is as strong and skillful as them.
Throughout the show, I also play a Neanderthal comic character in some transitions between acts.
———–
TOTEM commences under the Big Top in Moore Park, Sydney on October 28th before touring around the country… For tickets and more details head to – http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/En/shows/totem/default.aspx – and stay tuned to the AU as we talk to more performers, the creative minds behind TOTEM and help celebrate the 30th anniversary of Cirque du Soleil with a series of articles in the weeks ahead…
Photo Credit: OSA Images. Costumes: Kym Barrett, Cirque du Soleil 2010.
