| |
| Hungarian
Gymnast
Zoltán
Supola |
|
JOINS
CIRQUE DU SOLEIL SHOW
"O"
Top-ranking
Hungarian gymnast ZOLTÀN SUPOLA left his career in sports after
competing in his third Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, in
September 2000. Zoltán
started gymnastics in 1976. |
|
|
During
his career
as a gymnast, Zoltán won many honours:
At
the 1992 European Championships in Hungary,
he won a gold (parallel bars), a silver (all-around),
and a bronze (vault).
He
also took two World Championships medals:
A bronze (high bar) in Birmingham in 1993 and a silver
(high bar) in Brisbane in 1994.
Declared
Hungarian champion many times, he took a second place
(high bar) at the 1998 World Cup in Japan, a second (pommel
horse) at the World Cup in Glasgow in 1999, and a third
(high bar) at the 2000 World Cup.
>>
German version
|
|
Zoltán’s
Cirque du Soleil adventure
began after he competed in the Sydney Olympics.
He was invited to the acrobatic auditions
held in Berlin in December 2000, where the Casting team had a chance
to discover his full potential. The
audition assessed Zoltán’s physical and technical abilities, and also
his open-mindedness as an artist. After
the audition, Zoltán was chosen to take part in Cirque du
Soleil’s general training program.
These two
pictures were taken during
Zoltan's training this week in Las Vegas, USA |
|
 |
The
four-month training program is given each year at the Cirque du Soleil
training studios in Montreal. It
is designed to prepare acrobats who have the potential to replace
members of the house troupes performing in Cirque du Soleil shows.
Training takes place in a learning environment that encourages
participants to welcome the unknown, transcend their limits by taking
risks, and willingly embark on a voyage of artistic discovery.
|
A
few weeks after the general training program ended in August,
there was an opening in the Las Vegas production, "O",
that fit Zoltán’s profile.
So
Zoltán’s Cirque du Soleil adventure continues.
He
has just arrived at the site and begun rehearsals in preparation
for his integration into the show.
He will be performing in the “Bateau” voltige act,
which combines parallel bar movements and aerial cradle work in
a structure reminiscent of a boat.
Zoltán
will be performing five days out of seven, in ten shows a week.
He will be one of a troupe of 82 artists from various
disciplines, hailing from some twenty different countries.
Zoltán
describes his adventure with Cirque du Soleil as a new source of
personal motivation, a brand-new challenge. |
BATEAU
Credit:
photo: Véronique Vial / costume: Dominique Lemieux
©Cirque du Soleil
Inc.
|
Zoltan
says, this experience is totally unlike anything he encountered in
his career as a gymnast: it’s a new world!
|
|
For
those who want to try their luck, Cirque du Soleil will be
holding auditions in
|
|
For
more information, consult the audition schedule at the following
address: www.cirquedusoleil.com
|
(Information:
Thanks to Katrin Hauschild,
Cirque du Soleil, Montreal, Canada)
German version
|