Ben Apfelbaum

RAISING OF CIRQUE DU SOLEIL’S BIG TOP

Despite its many appearances in Sydney, on this occasion media was invited to the raising of Cirque du Soleil’s Big Top. 

The amazing thing is that despite all the mechanisation and engineering advances, the Big Top had to be raised manually.

Accordingly, 60 technicians raised more than 100 metal poles in stages to complete the final step of building the roof of the grand chapiteau. In addition to the locally sourced labour, more than 30 Cirque Du Soleil specialists from Montreal will arrive to finalise any problems prior to the grand opening night.

Even after the raising of the Big Top there are another eight days of intensive labour before the public can be admitted. 

In order to move from city to city the Cirque Du Soleil crew utilises 85 to 90 shipping containers prior to setting up in a new city.

The Big  Top stands about 25 metres (56feet) high and is 51 metres (164 feet) in diameter. It is supported by four steel masts that each stand at 24 metres (79 feet) high . More than 550 pegs are required to anchor the Big Top which can accommodate an audience of more than 2,400 people 

In addition to the Big Top there are other tents which involve installation of the entrance, hospitality and rehearsal tents, administrative offices, workshops and kitchen. 

iIn my awe at witnessing the raising of the Big Top I almost forgot to mention the show which is playing within it. It is Kurios-Cabinet of Curiosities which plays at the Showring Entertainment Quarter, 122 Lang Road, Moore Park. 

The circus premieres on the 2nd October and is playing for an extended period through till the 24th November, 2019. Written and directed by Michel Laprise, Kurios-Cabinet has a cast of 47 artists from 17 countries.

Kurios-Cabinet is a tale in which time stops in the latter half of the 19th century inside a fantasy world where everything is possible. Reality is relative and audience perception  will be transformed. 

You can go to  U Tube to watch 13 episodes of Kurios-Cabinet on tour and for more go to Cirque Du Soleil’s U Tube channel or follow it on Facebook. 

For further details visit http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/kurios/

© Pics by Ben Apfebaum

 

Published by Ben Apfelbaum

My photography began when my father handed me the proverbial brownie box camera as a child. As cameras developed I went through Fujica and Olympus range finders graduating to my first single lens reflex camera, the Minolta SRT101, the latter being the greatest facilitator to my growth as a photographer. Digital photography has only added to this. I was a regular contributor to Camera Craft magazine (Australian Camera ) for over three years. During Australia’s Bicentennial year (1988) I made it a personal project to document the celebrations. This culminated in the creation of a book of my photos which was published in 1989. The book was called CELEBRATING AUSTRALIA and came with an accompanying calendar. My works have appeared in a number of publications including the coffee book entitled MY AUSTRALIA (1989), publisher Robertsbridge Severn. This book had a preface by the then Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke. I was a co-photographer on a book entitled SYDNEY- DISCOVER THE CITY with text written by Robert Treborland. Major Mitchell Press was the publisher. Also for two years I was the photographer for calendars celebrating Sydney’s multicultural communities. The two calendars were entitled MULTICULTURAL SYDNEY. My work appeared in a group exhibition held at Sydney’s Town Hall pertaining to the diversity of life in South America to raise money for orphanages there. I have over one hundred photos stored in the New South Wales State Library archive. I had a solo exhibition held in 2007 entitled Ben’s Lens at the Sydney Jewish Museum which celebrated the vibrancy of the Sydney Jewish community. Some of these photos are on the Museum’s permanent display. I have exhibited internationally firstly at the Spruill Gallery in Atlanta Georgia, united states, and in an exhibition entitled Kosher and Co at the Jewish Museum in Berlin. Currently I am a regular contributor to J-Wire and this esteemed publication.