Euro Wings vol. 9 - Paris

EuroWings no.9 Paris – July 2007

In this Edition 12 year anniversary page 2 Welcome to Amsterdam 3 The shot 4 Special performance 5 Interview with cirque mom and wfes 6 Tulip mania 7 Premiere 8,9 School page 11,12 Who’s who 13 What is it with out toilets 14 Topos News and Departure 15 Visit by dralion 16 Miss or not to miss 17 Total cast change 18 Last page 19

Euro Wings! Team: Ken, Charlie, Tanya, Shannan Contributors: Shannan, Toddler, Particia, Genevieve, David aka “Gloria” Photos: Tanya, Paul Reul, Katya, Patricia, Toddler, Ken

From the editors by Charlie At times over the last 5 months, Italy and I did not always agree – that’s for sure. However, like any potentially bad relationship that’s headed for disaster, I would like to take a moment and focus on the surprisingly large number of the unique and finer things that I had the privilege of experiencing here in Italy instead of dwelling on the obvious issues that may or may not have caused some of us trouble… For me personally, Rome was definitely one of the highlights of the Italian leg of our tour. Of course, now all of those famous expressions like, “When in Rome – do as the Romans” or “All roads lead to Rome” or “Rome wasn’t built in a day” have a much more deeper and profound meaning to me after walking the streets and absorbing the local atmosphere for a couple of months – I’m sure you would agree. In addition to all of the history, culture, and cuisine here in Rome I also felt like it was just much easier and more enjoyable to do almost everything. Maybe it was the sunshine or maybe it was the new ping-pong table on site or maybe even the fact that we had such a nice place so close to the beach – I don’t know… But one thing is for sure; something must have been in the air here because we had an overwhelming number of extremely creative and informative contributions to this issue! So, the next time someone cuts in front of me in line or I see a completely insane driver on the highway or perhaps my only choice for food is pizza or pasta – hopefully I will just smile and remember what a true cultural experience it was just to be in such a different place as Italy…;-) I hope that you enjoy this issue and on behalf of the EuroWings team I would like to say “Grazie mille et arrivederci Italia!”

12 Year Anniversary of Alegria!!

Two thumbs up for our Pioneers of the show, Tamir and Alexey- the longest surviving cast members of Alegria. And thank you for organizing such a great Beach party! Looking forward to the next one!

Its not worth going into a castle with your rules.

- If someone ask you tomorrow’s weather forecast, tell them its same as today, and you would

be right 83%of the time.

New boss = New mop

In Russia

we have a saying! By Misha

PERMANENTLY TEMP by Nacho Ugarte Gomez

9 cities as a temp, one and a half years of dreams and travelling with Cirque. It has been a time to feel a certain passion for this world, to love my job, to enjoy every city I have seen. Yes, I even liked Milan, maybe because it was my first city after a long break, but I felt very happy there just eating a delicious gelato before going to work or a panzerotto seated on the steps of the Duomo. Also I have had enough time to learn a few things: to learn about the “tapis rouge”, about the strawberries with chocolate at the premiere, to learn that I should try to save some money for the double dark, always knowing that, as in every big family, everything isn’t always sunshine. There are also rainy days.

On the way I have made many friends: Sophie, Jenna, Sue, Nuria, Nani, Ines, Caro, Oli, Anna, Virgina,…I had to learn to say “goodbye” without shedding tears. I have had to make some more room in my heart for all my new friends and the memories I have of them…

In every city I have the feeling that maybe it will be the last one I spend working for Cirque. Perhaps the boss won’t hire me anymore or I will get another job offer that, honestly, I won’t be able to refuse. Or maybe I will just find something somewhere that will be more important in my life. If I find it or just when I don’t feel the excitement of sewing a feather or I think going Brussels or Zurich is the same, I know it will be time for new projects…It will be time to say: “Hasta la vista, awei a maison (let’s go home)”.

Clinical Challenges at Cirque (The following is an excerpt from an article written by Ian and Martha for the Sport Physiotherapy Journal. The focus of this issue is on physiotherapy in extreme sports.)

The biggest challenge for us on Alegria, as with many other Cirque shows, is treating and effectively managing repetitive strain and overuse injuries, muscle imbalances, and clinical instabilities. A typical tour plan for a touring show consists of 6-8 weeks in each city, performing 9-10 shows per week with only one day of rest. This can be a grueling schedule, with an average of 350 shows per year.

There is no pre-season training and no post-season recovery period. Cirque is in “high season” all year round, with great expectations from every performance. Many of these artists come from an athletic background in which their training and performance or competition contained variety. Prior to Cirque, their training schedule had built in rest periods and was designed around peaking for competitions. Given the volume and repetitive nature of the loads on the artist’s bodies, it is not surprising that the majority of injuries that we see are related to overuse and instability.

At Cirque, many artists are trained and hired to do one act wherein the movement patterns and loads are repeated many times every week in training and during the shows. Often times part of their exercise program will involve training opposite movement patterns, or exercises designed to unload the overworked tissue.

Anyone who has ever seen a Cirque show will remember the contortionists. The sometimes shocking image of a young girl bending herself in half will stick in your mind long after the show ends. This is an interesting and at first, intimidating, patient population to work with. In many ways their physical limits would normally be considered pathological but, in terms of their work, this is highly functional.

Injury prevention in the hypermobile population must focus on training control of movement throughout range, with specific emphasis on end range joint stabililty. The normal passive stabilizing system you would expect to limit this end range may have lost its ability to protect the joint after many years of prolonged, aggressive stretching. By focusing on training the deep stabilizing system in end range positions, the repeated stress on the osseous and ligamentous structures will be reduced.

School Page

Eco kids club news by Pratricia

Our EcoKids club wants to send out a big thank you to everyone on site who answered our water survey or who gave us their old plastic bottles. With all your help, we finished 4th and received an honorable mention in the

national EcoKids challenge (an eco-friendly competition open to any Canadian school). You can check out the web site at: “http://www.ecokids.ca/pub/ek_club/club/challenge/winners.cfm” . I want to congratulate Anastasia,

Ikaika, Nikita, Oyuna and Ulzii for their excellent work during our water saving project!

Dear Audience Members! By: Natalia Plotnikova

If you decide to take pictures or film the show “Alegria” please don’t. Your pictures with flashes can distract the artists on the stage, so they can miss the bar, the handle or a flying object. If they are flying in the air while you take the pictures, they could fall and get injured or something worse could happen. If you sell the pictures or videos you took, then people won’t see Alegria because they will already know all about it, and if those people won’t see the show, there will be no profits for our circus. So please think about other people who might lose their jobs.

You can also distract other audience members by taking pictures from different points of view. Imagine trying to watch the show and someone around you starts to disturb you by the clicking sounds of their camera, the bright flashes, and movements of the photographer. So when you take pictures it might also cause other problems. I’m hoping that my explanations can make some positive changes to the picture taking in the audience! Thank you for reading.

SONNET Written by Ilona Krasnova Saturday, May 27, 2006 Laughter From sedate giggles to boisterous guffaws, How do you know when a person’s laughing? Laughter’s the best medicine, just because. There are chortling, giggling, chuckling, guffawing… Laughter’s not only unplanned sounds from a person’s throat, But movements of faces and body while smiling. There are so many that I could have wrote, But I would’ve had to put them into filing. When you laugh so hard and long, till tears burst, The stomach muscles ache with that bizarre behaviour, Funny grimaces where face sweats and reddens are the worst, They’re all the best main traits of good humour. This next fact’s beyond all that you have wondered... Laugh often and you’ll live until a hundred!

School Page

How the Cat got Water

By: Anastasia Novozhilova

Characters Cat: A helpful cat (she); Dave: A soldier for the

water master; Batter: The water master

Once there was a cat,

Wearing boots and a hat. She was very thirsty and

wanted to drink some water, Everyone had no water except for a man named

Batter.

For Batter it didn’t matter, If the people had no water. So one day the young cat

Wanted to drink very badly.

But everyone knew, And she knew too, That the water,

Was only for Batter.

If they wanted to drink, They had to think, A way for Batter

To give them some water.

The cat didn’t care So she went to the fair

Then she saw Dave Standing beside a cave.

She asked Dave, To open the cave, He opened the cave

Cat said thanks to Dave.

Cat went in, Batter jumped out of a bin,

That bin wasn’t plain, If you sell it, you’ll fame.

You know why?

Yes, you guessed it! Batter hat it all,

Water was inside, that’s all!

On the top it had a sign, “Caution, Caution don’t drink

it, its wine!” She didn’t believe it because

everyone knew, Water was the only thing Batter could drink, that’s

true!

“I have to think of a way, So Batter could do it my

way, Spill the water outside,

Or I’ll take it and carry it by my side.”

Cat sat down,

She looked around, Then she had a plan,

A very good plan indeed.

Cat looked out the window, She saw that the cave

Was on the top of a hill,

She was happy because her plan would succeed.

“You are very weak, You are very weak,

If you’re not, Prove it to me!

Open the lid

And let it roll, Let it roll, Let it roll.

Till the ocean gets filled, All the birds can sing,

Till the people can drink Let it go, let it spill.”

Batter did as cat said, He let it go as cat said. Cat went out in case,

So Batter couldn’t figure out the case.

In a half an hour,

He knew it right away, He got tricked,

All because of her smartness.

Now at the city,

Everyone was happy, Water at last,

FOR EVERYBODY!

THE END

Happy Easter !

Alegría Who’s Who

GENEVIÈVE DESLANDES: Public

services director What does she do more

exactly? • She is responsible for the

box office, food and beverages, merchandise,

ushers and VIP. (Pretty much everything that brings money!) • She is also involved in the site inspections, in

marketing initiatives… Where can you find her on site? In the office or the concession tent. If you can’t find her, she’s maybe smoking behind a trailer to hide When is she on site? Most of the time from 11 am to 11 pm What does she prefer about her job? The action The best way to approach her? Give her some chocolate or a shot of vodka What you shouldn’t tell her... “You look tired” NICHOLAS MORALES: Rigger What does he do more exactly?

He provides, installs and maintains the equipment used by acrobatic artists (pretty much what’s in the air) Where can we find him on

site? The big top, the 54 trailer and the

artistic tent

When is he on site? Usually from 6 pm to 12 pm What does he prefer about his job? He loves to be around people who are passionate about rigging like him The best way to approach him? Bring him some candies Something he doesn’t like to hear That it’s impossible KAREN SALLIE: Teacher

More details.... She mainly teaches English, history and geography Where are her “

headquarters” on site? Pretty much the school When can you find her on

site? During the school hours, and at least till the show starts . (The school is 5 ½ hours a day and finishes at show call)

What does he prefer about her job? Her fantastic students…they’re so cool! The best way to approach her? Just with a smile Something you shouldn’t tell her Anything that evolves her waking up in the morning or that the coffee machine is broken

SERGEI KRITSYN: Artist

More details... He does Aerial high bars, and also the angels runs Where are his “headquarters”

on site? The big top and the artistic tent

When can you find him on site? From 12h to 24h What does he prefer about his job? The job itself, and to get the opportunity to travel The best way to approach him... “Hi, how are you”, with a smile MARC RESTHER: Head of tent

operations

What does he do more exactly?

• The maintenance of every tent • Scheduling or teardown and

setup • Management of the tent crew

for teardown and setup Where is he on site most of

the time? He’s often in the shop, but can be

anywhere on site. If you can’t find him use the radio! When can we find him on site? From 8h to 20h What does he prefer about that job?

• That it is really specialized and unique • That it’s kind of a gypsy lifestyle

The best way to approach him? Straight forwardness What you shouldn’t tell him... As long as you respect him, everything is all right

What is it with our toilets? By Jaime

And I don’t mean the whole room like the british apply it (or whatever else you might call it at home: washroom/ restroom/ lavatory/ lavvy/ john/ urinal/ jacks/ loo/etc.), I mean the actual porcelain bowl where we sit and relax for a minute (or more) and shed a little weight off. I’m guessing most of you have come to realize that there is a nice shelf to it. Now, before I go into the actual experience, let me enlighten you to where these toilets are made and where we will find them in Europe. This type of toilet is actually a German creation, why the land of Vorsprung Durch Technik would create such an abomination is beyond me. In any case prepare yourselves because that is what you will find in many places in Poland, Czech Repulic, Eslovakia, Germany and of course the next stop…the Netherlands, therefore Amsterdam.

Well, it seems it was created in order to detect if there were any worms in them and therefore confirm that you were still healthy. The last time I went at cirque, I tried to find other benefits, why nowadays it would still exist, but the smell seemed to cloud my mind. The only one I could come up with was the fact that it does not splash. Then again if you are lucky you might hear a nice thump or a series of little taps against the shelf. God forbid that someone is slightly sick and finds that it is just not solid enough or liquid enough to just flush off and into that narrow gap in the front. If you are lucky it might just leave nice skid marks, but what if you are not, if it determinately prefers to stay glued to the shelf, if that has been your case, I don’t envy you and I hope it never happens to me.

In any case, if any of you want to share any further anecdotes or can find any more practical uses to this shelf…please feel free to write to euro wings and explain!?!?!?

Ｓ

Job Rotation

GO GO Montse!!

On the NASA

shuttle in space

TOPOS News by Mariko As a result of TOPOS redeployment, we would like you all to extend a warm, sock filled, damp & sweaty welcome to your new Wardrobe team: Head of Wardrobe: Vicotria Assistant Head: Jason Bauer Assistant.: Marie-Eve D'Astous

Martin Bedard has been redeployed to Tokyo, where he will be found making custom corsets to further confuse the gender ambiguousness. Audrey Turcotte will be opening a Guest House and Spa in Thailand, And Mariko de Montalte will be dressing midgets for the next Smash hit EWOKS! Where at last she will feel tall.

Best of Luck to all in their new endeavors

Departures by Charlie

Once again, it’s my duty to bid farewell to a couple of artists who left the tour while we were here in Rome – Marie-Eve Tremblay and Jason Berrent. As a fellow band mate, I would like to acknowledge Marie-Eve first for her beautiful singing and wish her the best with her new husband and soon-to-be bambino. I will always remember when she joined the tour back in Fukuoka because her first sound-check ended with the largest earthquake to hit the area in 100 years! While I was underneath the keyboards hanging on for dear life – I can still see her completely freaked out expression while it was all shaking violently around us… Thankfully, she didn’t pack up and leave then – but instead put in a good year and a half of sweet and solid vocalize… Merci beaucoup Marie et bonne chance! We already miss you…

Next, I must admit that while watching powertrack from the band stage every night over the last 3 years – Jason Berrent was one of the most consistent and graceful acrobats that I can remember. I don’t think that I ever even remember seeing him fall or stumble once! In addition to his strong stage presence, he was also musically talented and helped sing on the choir recording that we did in Japan that is played during the finale each night here at Alegria. I was able to catch Jason on the bus one day before he left and ask him a few questions – and so it goes… CD: How old are you and where are you from? JB: I’m 22 and from Washington D.C. (USA) CD: When did you join Alegria? JB: Portland, Oregon in September 2003 CD: What’s your favorite song in the show? JB: Isabell Corradi singing flyingman. CD: What’s your favorite Cirque show? JB: I’m not sure… either Zumanity or Varekai CD: What was your experience before joining Alegria? JB: I was doing trampoline and tumbling for the US national team. CD: What will you miss the most after leaving? JB: Performing the show – definitely! CD: What would you change if you were the artistic director of Alegria? JB: I would bring back the slack-wire act…

CD: What was your favorite passage in the show?JB: I liked doing the contortion tableau dance the most. CD: What’s this I hear about the ‘blue singer’ character that you have created? JB: Oh, the blue singer sings storm and Russian bars backstage (laughing)… CD: Starbucks or Italian café? JB: Starbucks CD: Walmart or Carefour? JB: Walmart CD: Mac or PC? JB: That’s a stupid question – MAC!!! CD: Happy or gay? – Just kidding….

Well, that’s about it. I heard a rumor that Jason is already back in Montreal training for a possible position on the new 2007 show… Whatever he decides to do I’m sure he will succeed.

Visit by Dralion by ken

It’s always nice to have other members of a Cirque show come visit us! This time it was meeting new people and having a good time with Dralion. About 80 Dralionians flew from Valencia during their double dark to come and see us. Their energy during the show was unbelievable (screaming and shouting and whistling) until the end. I’m sure the others (roman’s spectators) were wondering what was going on and suppressed by their loudness (Tee hii hii… make’s me smile just by thinking about it) . It felt good especially after the low attendance in Rome and all of the Alegrian’s were hyped up for the show. Looking forward to meeting them again!

Once upon a time…

Nobody respects me…sniff!

I get banged around all day and dropped on the floor..

Then I get tied and left on the floor for hours…I did nothing wrong!!

I wonder if somebody hears me and unties me…

HELLOOOO!!!

Italy’s sightseeing! (Under construction!)

To Miss or Not to Miss ….by Keith

To Miss 1. Road trips through Tuscany (if you didn’t get the chance to drive through Tuscan you missed Italy at it’s best) 2. Wine (Cheap or expensive it's all amazing) 3. Cheap and delicious coffee (It maybe

lukewarm, but the flavor is second to none.) 4. Cheap Metro Tickets (after London this was a welcomed delight) 5. The food (the best pizza, pasta and fresh veggies) 6. Duomos/Cathedrals/Churches 7. The Beach (the beach always gets a big thumbs up). 8. Venice, Verona, Florence, Pisa, Siene, Lake Como, Cinque Terra 9. The train system in Milan (cheap, fast and convenient). 10. Ancient Rome (It’s hard not to feel transported back in time).

Not To Miss

1. The Graffiti’d walls of Milan and Rome (with all the taxes that are collected you would think that the walls of the two most important cities would be sparkling). 2. Milan (an ugly overrated city). 3. Dog poop all over the sidewalks (how hard is it to

clean up after your animal?). 4. Tourists (an unfortunate product of being in an amazing city like Rome). 5. Bad customer service (this applies only in Milan & Rome). 6. The food (pizza, pasta, pizza, pasta, pizza, pasta, enough already). 7. Dirty Subways (after Tokyo and London…well you get the picture). 8. Beggers on the streets of Rome (they are everywhere

you go in the world, but in Italy they take it to a new level). 9. Living so far away from Rome central (a 1 hour

commitment on your only day off is hard to wrap your brain around).

10. Did I mention MILAN (worth mentioning one more time).

Total cast change

SODOKU ~ Very Very

Hard

7 1 6 2 8 5 8 4 2 1 1 6 7 1 3 6 9

1 5 6 9 5

Employee of the Month

Man…that was a loooong walk from Laspezia to Pisa …Zzzz

7 8 2 5 4 6 3 9 1

4 6 9 2 1 3 5 8 7

1 3 5 9 8 7 4 2 6

5 2 8 6 3 1 7 4 9

3 7 1 4 2 9 6 5 8

6 9 4 7 5 8 2 1 3

8 5 3 1 6 4 9 7 2

2 1 7 3 9 5 8 6 4

9 4 6 8 7 2 1 3 5

Last Page

Our Contact:[email protected]

Dead line for Amsterdam : August 6th

Rome Man Power Angels Grazie

per tutti!!

Book club.

Starting Amsterdam, Sunday

nights (after the show) Hosted by Martyn - Box office. Are you living your best life?

Interested? Curious? For details see Martyn.

Near Uranus!

Boy I Love my Job!

Euro Wings vol. 9 - Paris

Documents

Transcript of Euro Wings vol. 9 - Paris