Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- "Twas the Night Before... by Cirque du Soleil" opened Dec. 4 in Salt Lake.
- Featuring acrobatic feats, the show includes hoop stunts, roller skating and hair suspension.
- The performance runs through Dec. 14 at the George S. and Dolores Dore Eccles Theatre.
SALT LAKE CITY — "Twas the Night Before Christmas" remains one of the season's most popular stories. Over more than a century, it has taken many forms, and now a new version has come to Salt Lake City.
You may have seen the ads from the renowned acrobats of Cirque du Soleil. These performers simply defy gravity. "Twas the Night Before... by Cirque du Soleil" hopes to bring the magic but also take your breath away.
In this story, a young girl named Isabella is no longer excited about the magic of Christmas until she is transported into the famous poem. That's the magical part. It takes 800 man-hours to load in 100 tons of equipment. There are 5 miles of cables.
KSL-TV had exclusive access to the hoops rehearsal. No ramps or springboards propelled these acrobats. Then, they increased the degree of difficulty by adding another hoop. They were stacked four high. The acrobats easily flipped through them. The highest hoop was set at 10 feet, and the smallest hoop was 18 inches in diameter.
However, the hoops stunts aren't the only ones in the show. In the roller skating number, they spin at 30 mph. Another act featuring the strap duo takes place 20 feet in the air. The artist who does the hair suspension act performs approximately 100 turns at top speed, that's seven turns per second.
We spoke with Kiara Fina and Jerould Jorge, who are professional dancers. That is a big part of this show, as well.
I asked about their preparations.
"Those are very, very long days," Fina said. "We are told to get our stamina up, so it's a lot of work, but it's all worth it to perform."
They said they are always amazed at their fellow performers, coming to rehearsals and simply watching them.
"There's these acrobatics, there's these disco skaters (and) there's hair hanging everywhere, a lot of stuff going on, and it's just crazy that we're in the circus now," Jorge said.
A lot of the sparkle comes from the costumes, and we stepped backstage for a look.
Marianne Theriault is head of wardrobe and described the overall look.
"Modern day-to-day wear with a little more, a little extra, whimsical," she said.
She took a tracksuit, added gold and then showed us the back of each.
"We have Dancer, Dasher (and) Vixen, you recognize those names," she said.
Even the shoes were covered with glitter.
Then she showed me a bright pink and gold costume.
"This is a dress," I said, "This is a dress?"
I touched it. It was so stiff.
Theriault said, "When you squeeze it, it's made out of paper, it doesn't stretch at all, but she's doing contortions in the air with this."
Then I looked over at an enormous, clear plastic bow, which she said went with the dress.
"Oh," I exclaimed. "It's a statement piece."
Theriault agreed. "It's a statement piece, exactly," she said.
Cast and crew said come with family and friends, people you love, and make new memories.
"It's really to open your heart and get the joy of Christmas," Theriault said.
"Twas the Night Before... by Cirque du Soleil" opened Dec. 4 at the George S. and Dolores Dore Eccles Theatre in downtown Salt Lake City and runs through Dec. 14. Tickets can be purchased here.
