Aerial Silks Lessons with Cirque du Soleil: KOOZA Performer

What's up, guys? Leslie Robbins here. Young Hollywood is back under the big top with Cirque du Soleil, this time with some incredible artists from Kooza.

So, everybody has a different time slot for training on stage. Yes. We have we have a schedule that we have to follow.

She's going to go here and we're going to go this way. Oh, she's going that way. Okay.

Yes. As you see the tissue out now is going up. So, this was like a office. This is like a with the schedule and everything and we have everything here, so.

It is like an office. This is your office.

This is your office and our place. Please take a place. So, now please enjoy the show. Woo!

So you are an aerialist. You do the aerial silks in the show, but this is how you train behind the scenes. Exactly. So, walk me through what this is. It looks like, you know, some basic straps. Yeah. This looks like a belt.

So, it called Ariel's strap.

Now, what's funny about the aerial stunt business, gyms are popping up everywhere. Is it that easy or are there tricks to the trade?

I think it's from the beginner until professional. It can be like anything. It can be really easy yoga until professional crazy stunts. So, they got a lot of possibilities.

Okay. Show me some possibilities. Now, what can you teach me basic? Not what we saw out there because that was unfreakin' believable.

That was that was a really difficult one. But what I do in here was the basic really like warming up until good, like professional skills. But I was looking at you in the high wire. You got good skills, like you have good tip, body. Abilities. So, I will you to try some a little middle-level stuff.

I'll take it. I'll take it. Okay, what do we got? Let's see.

Okay. The first I'm going to do easy stuff. Okay. So, just try to see how you feel. It's just like really easy hanging. It's just super basic for now. Yeah. And see if you like spinning or not. You look really pretty doing that. So basic. Here. Yeah. Try. Do you feel okay?

Yeah.

Okay, cool. And then you pat your leg. Maybe here. Yeah, exactly. And lock it? Yep. And then, oh yeah. You're fine. You're like easy. Try it.

No, it feels a little tight.

Tight? Like it's it hurts. But it's okay. You can grab like this or this like anything. Like any anything you're comfortable. So, basically, what you want to do is you let it go your left hand and grab your and then try to stretch. Stretch. And it's super easy, like simple. And then you make a turn. And split. It's very simple and I think you can do it. Here it's just relax like this. It doesn't go. It's just really, yeah, the gravity will push you down. So, you have to be a little set and try to, yeah. Try to have a long neck. And then also the armpit. You push it down and then keep it tight. And then it will be easy.

She said the word easy. Okay. Yeah. Twist it. Twist, twist, twist, twist. Yeah, that's it. And a little bit more twist. I did it! How did you do that?

But also, what you did just now is pretty like you are Okay. You can just, yeah. Okay. I'm going to try the twist. Okay, grab the heel. Yeah. Right? Grab the heel. And then try to stretch. Yeah. Oh! Yeah, like that. Okay, that's also a pretty position. Oh! So, basically, what I was doing was this and then grab the legs. The legs. I grab the leg and then split. That was what I was doing.

Well, I got the leg. Oh, that's cool.

Yes. That's the core. That's also the core. But it's all All right. You can come back. Oh my God! You're flying. Yeah, it's a flexibility and a core exercise at the same time. Wow.

I'm not going on tonight. She is Oh, that's amazing. I'm falling right now. So, tell me about your journey with Kooza.

So, Kooza, I joined Kooza about two years ago and actually, this was my first contract that every day performing. So, I have done like either like rehearsals and a break and a one show. But I've never done like nine shows a week. So, this was my biggest contract in my life.

And what a great feat that you actually landed the contract. Can you talk about the audition process a little bit behind Cirque du Soleil?

Yes. In my case was, I've been working with Cirque du Soleil events experience. So, it's not the nine shows, it's more like event shows. So, I was doing that and after COVID, they called me for Kooza. So, I didn't have an audition. They just called me. But normally, we do audition in the beginning.

So, how did you get into this sport of aerial stunts, gymnastics, all of that?

So, I saw the circus anime in Japan when I was little and she was doing circus and, yeah, main character, Adame, was circus artist. Who has a pink hair and I just like really admire her. So, I said I'm going to be a gymnast. Like I want to go to Olympics game as a gymnast, but I didn't have any talent for gymnast. Also, I'm really un-flexible. Like I couldn't even pass my toe.

You weren't flexible? Not at all. Wow. So, how did you get flexible?

I trained a lot. I really trained and I did rhythmic gymnastics a little bit. But in the end, my mom found the aerial studio and somehow I thought it was a trapeze studio and I opened the door, that was a fabric hanging in. So, I decided to be really good at fabric and decided to go to circus school. That was the tool to get into Cirque du Soleil for me. But now, this is my specialty, my favorite stuff and it's my life now.

Wow. And it's the life of so many performers, everyone stretching behind us, getting ready for the show. Talk about how special Kooza is. It's actually different than so many other Cirque shows even though it has lots of stunts and beautiful costumes, it's special, it's unique.

They have a lot of original characters and they grew up with circus. They are the circus artists since when they're like six or seven year old. And those people's mentality is just so different and I've done a lot of different shows and different circus companies. But this show is just really circus traditional circus vibes are here and they're really proud of what they do.

So, here we are in 2024 and Cirque du Soleil is celebrating 40 years. How does Cirque keep going year after year, reinventing itself? The audiences are still coming after all of this time.

Mhm. They are always looking for new artists and new acts that have like beautiful, like new ideas. They're bringing new dynamic to Cirque du Soleil.

And you're probably inspiring lots of young girls and boys and maybe become the next Cirque du Soleil performer.