Australian Premiere of OVO by Cirque du Soleil

OVO - Cirque du Soleil
OVO – Cirque du Soleil

Brisbane is experiencing a mass migration of very talented insects this month for Cirque du Soleil’s Australian Premiere of OVO, which opens in the blue-and-yellow Grand Chapiteau (Big Top) at Northshore Hamilton this evening.

Attending the “orange carpet” is a star-studded line up of Brisvegas celebrities including Melanie Zanetti, Carol Burns, Dash Kruck, Thomas Larkin, Katie Noonan, Tyrone Noonan, Ian Haug, and of course like a moth to a flame with all that glitter and sparkle, will be the ten of the city’s top Drag Queens!

Many sporting leaders will also attend including Brisbane Lions Michael Voss, Jonathan Brown; Brisbane Roar stars Besart Berisha, Thomas Brioch and team-mates; the captain of the Gold Coast Titans Scott Prince along with team-mates and State of Origin stars Nate Myles and Greg Bird, along with Sam Thiaday, Gorden Tallis, Tim Horan, Trevor Gilmeister, and more.

Since its world-premiere in Montreal in 2009, OVO has entertained over two million spectators in more than fifteen different countries, but getting the show to Australia is one logistical magic trick in itself. The transportation of equipment alone is a two month operation with seventy-eight containers being shipped, with the big top itself taking eight days to set up, including installation of hospitality, ticketing, and rehearsal rooms.

OVO - Cirque du SoleilThe cast features fifty-four performing artists from sixteen countries around the world, with the big top proudly displaying all representing flags. Cirque du Soleil has certainly come a long way from its inception in 1984 with a group of twenty street performers, and has grown to be the leading brand of artistic circus entertainment with twenty-one different shows currently touring the globe.

The Australian premiering of OVO, which means ‘egg’ in Portuguese, will display a micro-system of colourful insects who work, play, fight and even look for love. But this is no flying flea circus. Among the ticks, antics, stunning costumes, and breath taking stunts, OVO follows a love story between a chatty beetle and an attention seeking blue fly who steals her heart.

It’s also nice to note, no animals were harmed during this production!

The Australian premiere season of OVO is playing in Brisbane under the Big Top at Northshore Hamilton until 2 September.

Tickets are available online at cirquedusoleil.com/ovo.

 

Bobbi-Lea Dionysius

Bobbi-Lea is AussieTheatre.com's QLD Co-ordinator, writer, reviewer, and reporter. She is also an actor, presenter, and theatre/film producer for Drama Queen Productions in Brisbane. Bobbi-Lea holds a Degree in Music Theatre as well as a Degree in Film & TV, and is currently doing her Masters in Screen Production.

Bobbi-Lea Dionysius

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