PURE ART, WITH HORSES
Odysseo’s six-week Montreal run starts July 25
“I’m trying to bring beauty to this planet,” explained Normand Latourelle.
After 15 years at the helm of Cavalia, the Montreal-based company’s artistic director and founder can recall all the times he’s had to unfold his vision to the doubters who think of it as just a show with horses.
“You have to explain everything, and at the end of the day you have to say: ‘It’s a show that involves a lot of horses, yes, but it’s a really artistic show,’ ” Latourelle said. “It’s pure performing arts with a mix of the most ancient technology, which is horses and people, and the most modern technology.”
Cavalia’s second show, Odysseo, will end its tour with a six-week Montreal run, with performances starting Wednesday. The 70 horses had some downtime in Sutton following a successful run in Winnipeg, and arrived at the show’s downtown site Thursday.
Latourelle has a knack for explaining high-end concepts to the skeptical. He recalls his time with Cirque du Soleil, when it was a nascent performance company. He went to Los Angeles in 1987 for the troupe’s first American conquest, trying to promote a non-traditional show, from a company with a fancy French name to boot.
“I sat down and said, ‘I have a great circus without animals!’ And they looked at me, saying, ‘ What is that?’ Because at that time in the ‘80s, there was not such a thing. Circuses all had animals.”
Latourelle can chuckle about it now. “I had to convince them that it was so original that it would be a big success.”
That gift of persuasion would come in handy more than a decade later when Latourelle started to drum up investment for a new show — this time with animals.
“Every body was skeptical about Cavalia,” he said. “Especially with the investment being pretty big at this point. It’s hard to describe something that doesn’t exist.”
Happily, Latourelle found the necessary funds, and Cavalia’s selftitled inaugural production has now been seen by more than five million people worldwide, over the course of nearly 3,000 performances. Odysseo — conceived as an odyssey through various landscapes — has been performed more than 1,500 times to more than three million spectators across North America since premièring in 2011 in Laval.
The company makes five stops a year, schlepping along the world’s largest touring tent, the Big White Top, which was set up for the Montreal run in late June. It clocks in at 38 metres in height, with three supporting arches. The stage is 1,626 square metres and is made up of 10,000 tons of sand, dirt and stone, with a specialized basin that is filled with 150,000 litres of recycled water for the show’s splashy finale.
The horses represent 13 breeds, including the Warl ander and Appaloosa, and come from Europe and North America. There is also a new, tiny addition to the team: a miniature horse who makes a comical arrival during a jumping scene.
Alongside the horses are 50 performers on two feet, including riders, acrobats, dancers and musicians.
One of the riders is Chelsea Jordan, who grew up around horses and participated in community theatre in Washington state. After college and a stint working for the U.S. Peace Corps in Botswana, she auditioned for Odysseo in 2016. During the audition, Jordan was asked to try Roman riding — in which the rider is atop two horses, with one foot on each horse—for the first time.
“It’s like skiing on horses,” said Jordan. She got lucky and didn’t fall. Now, Roman riding is her specialty, which she performs in the first big number of the show.
“Horses are individuals just like us. They’re creative and they have their own unique personalities,” said Jordan. They are the stars of the show, and are treated as such.
Each horse performs for only about 10 minutes each show, with six or seven shows a week. In addition to performing, riders like Jordan spend the day taking care of their horses and building their relationships. Jordan’s favourite is Utah, a dark brown mix with white splotches who whinnies when he hears his musical cue.
“When the horses come on stage, it’s a playground for them,” said Latourelle.
Latourelle promises tweaks that will surprise audience members who have seen Odysseo before. “It’s the same basic show, but with a lot of change.” He reviews performance reports after every show, and incremental changes are made as horses are rotated in and out.
“I’ m not shy to say Odysseo is considered, if not the best, one of the best touring shows in the world. Even if you’re not a horse person, you will just be blown away by what’s going on onstage,” said Latourelle. “It’s like watching a Disney movie when you were a kid. You just go into another world.”