An excited energy is palpable at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai, as Cirque du Soleil prepares to hit the stage on Thursday.
The Canadian circus troupe are set to perform the family-friendly show Ovo, Portuguese for egg, at the 17,000-capacity venue, with performances until Wednesday next week. The performance, which is a must for little ones, portrays a vibrant imitation of the life of insects: think crickets, butterflies, spiders and ladybugs.
Featuring 100 crew members from 25 countries, the show will be brought to life by 52 performers on stage, as they tumble, jump and perform jaw-dropping acrobatics in surreal costumes.
“The butterflies are aerial strap artists flying above the stage, the crickets are bouncing off the walls via trampolines, the spiders are contortionists or climbs ropes — all the qualities of these insects will be incorporated with acrobatics,” says Janie Mallet, the show's publicist on tour. “And then there's a love story."
Cruising with 27 containers
Performers aside, Ovo features an intricately designed stage and backdrop, with all components flown alongside the team as they tour the world. From the tall poles and technical grids, which some of the lights are attached to, to the panels that make up the structure, everything is mobile.
“Everything you will see here, we travel with around the world. We take 27 containers that we put either ships or trucks, depending on where we go,” Mallet tells The National. “The set is complicated and sophisticated.”
The stage floor is made of 225 panels, and there's a large wall attached to the rear of the stage, where some of the artists perform acrobatics.
Ovo was first staged in 2009 in Montreal. It is one of the best-travelled shows of Cirque du Soleil and has been seen by more than seven million people in 155 cities in 26 countries. Cirque du Soleil has recently finished shows in Riyadh and Kuwait, and will head to Cairo after Dubai.
“The biggest challenge of staging a show like this is adaptation. We travel around the world, and it's always a different environment. We go into different venues every week, so we have to adapt to several technical aspects: what's the ceiling height? Do they have dark curtains?” Mallet explains.
Training and a travelling gym
Physical antics underscore all Cirque du Soleil shows, which require serious training and strict safety measures.
Training involves everything from cardio to strength, which is why the company also brings its own gym, complete with barbells and other fitness equipment, as well as two performance medicine therapists.
Depending on the act, performers follow individual training routines to target specific parts of their bodies. All the artists have a professional training background, with some joining the circus as early as nine years old. The current Ovo cast also has two Olympians.
'There's everything for everyone'
The two-hour show is created for all ages, from the exhilarating jumps and tumbles to the set design and visually stunning costumes.
The music, by award-winning Brazilian composer Berna Ceppas, draws inspiration from bossa nova, samba, funk and electronic music. As a nod to Brazilian culture, there is a lot of percussion in the musical score. Ceppas also incorporates insect sounds to bring the show's theme to life.
The seven-piece band includes a bandleader-drummer, bass and double bass players, a percussionist, violinist, wind instruments player, keyboardist, guitarist and singer.
Ovo opens on Thursday and runs until January 18. Tickets start at Dh116 from dubai.platinumlist.net
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- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
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The biog:
From: Wimbledon, London, UK
Education: Medical doctor
Hobbies: Travelling, meeting new people and cultures
Favourite animals: All of them
The biog
Favourite colour: Brown
Favourite Movie: Resident Evil
Hobbies: Painting, Cooking, Imitating Voices
Favourite food: Pizza
Trivia: Was the voice of three characters in the Emirati animation, Shaabiyat Al Cartoon
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
UAE players with central contracts
Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Rameez Shahzad, Shaiman Anwar, Adnan Mufti, Mohammed Usman, Ghulam Shabbir, Ahmed Raza, Qadeer Ahmed, Amir Hayat, Mohammed Naveed and Imran Haider.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
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Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
The specs: 2018 Jeep Compass
Price, base: Dh100,000 (estimate)
Engine: 2.4L four-cylinder
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Power: 184bhp at 6,400rpm
Torque: 237Nm at 3,900rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 9.4L / 100km
AUSTRALIA SQUAD
Aaron Finch (captain), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Glenn Maxwell, Ben McDermott, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Billy Stanlake, Mitchell Starc, Ashton Turner, Andrew Tye, David Warner, Adam Zampa
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Race 3
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Director: Remo D’Souza
Cast: Salman Khan, Anil Kapoor, Jacqueline Fernandez, Bobby Deol, Daisy Shah, Saqib Salem
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Dolittle
Director: Stephen Gaghan
Stars: Robert Downey Jr, Michael Sheen
One-and-a-half out of five stars
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Children who witnessed blood bath want to help others
Aged just 11, Khulood Al Najjar’s daughter, Nora, bravely attempted to fight off Philip Spence. Her finger was injured when she put her hand in between the claw hammer and her mother’s head.
As a vital witness, she was forced to relive the ordeal by police who needed to identify the attacker and ensure he was found guilty.
Now aged 16, Nora has decided she wants to dedicate her career to helping other victims of crime.
“It was very horrible for her. She saw her mum, dying, just next to her eyes. But now she just wants to go forward,” said Khulood, speaking about how her eldest daughter was dealing with the trauma of the incident five years ago. “She is saying, 'mama, I want to be a lawyer, I want to help people achieve justice'.”
Khulood’s youngest daughter, Fatima, was seven at the time of the attack and attempted to help paramedics responding to the incident.
“Now she wants to be a maxillofacial doctor,” Khulood said. “She said to me ‘it is because a maxillofacial doctor returned your face, mama’. Now she wants to help people see themselves in the mirror again.”
Khulood’s son, Saeed, was nine in 2014 and slept through the attack. While he did not witness the trauma, this made it more difficult for him to understand what had happened. He has ambitions to become an engineer.
Getting there
The flights
Flydubai operates up to seven flights a week to Helsinki. Return fares to Helsinki from Dubai start from Dh1,545 in Economy and Dh7,560 in Business Class.
The stay
Golden Crown Igloos in Levi offer stays from Dh1,215 per person per night for a superior igloo; www.leviniglut.net
Panorama Hotel in Levi is conveniently located at the top of Levi fell, a short walk from the gondola. Stays start from Dh292 per night based on two people sharing; www. golevi.fi/en/accommodation/hotel-levi-panorama
Arctic Treehouse Hotel in Rovaniemi offers stays from Dh1,379 per night based on two people sharing; www.arctictreehousehotel.com
The five pillars of Islam
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
The specs: 2018 Harley-Davidson Fat Boy
Price, base / as tested Dh97,600
Engine 1,745cc Milwaukee-Eight v-twin engine
Transmission Six-speed gearbox
Power 78hp @ 5,250rpm
Torque 145Nm @ 3,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined 5.0L / 100km (estimate)
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Saturday
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Sunday
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Washmen Profile
Date Started: May 2015
Founders: Rami Shaar and Jad Halaoui
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Laundry
Employees: 170
Funding: about $8m
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
