The show Cavalia features dozens of horses and riders, and aerialists, acrobats, dancers and musicians.(Photo provided to China Daily)
Normand Latourelle and his Canadian entertainment company, Cirque du Soleil, have toured globally for more than a decade with shows that were watched by millions.
In April, he will debut his multimedia production, Cavalia: A Magical Encounter Between Human and Horse, in Beijing.
Involving more than 40 horses and 40 riders, and aerialists, acrobats, dancers and musicians, the show is a tribute to the bond that exists between the animal and people.
"I was not a horse person. But after years of being with the show, I think the horse is the most beautiful animal in the world. Horses are smart and artistic," says Latourelle, who was in Beijing to promote his show.
Through the show, Latourelle tells the story of the relationship between humans and horses against a constantly changing digital backdrop projected onto a 60-meter-wide screen.
Usually set in outdoor venues, the show uses a white tent, called the "big top", covering more than 2,000 square meters of area and pitched at a height of 35 meters. It allows the horses enough space to run around.
With a capacity of 2,000 seats, one of the world's largest touring tents will come to Beijing's Chaoyang Park when the show opens in the Chinese capital.
With 46 years of experience in creating and staging such live spectacles, Montreal-based Latourelle is considered an expert in his field.
Cavalia was born as an irresistible idea around 15 years ago, he says, after he noticed audience attention completely focused on a single horse on the stage rather than the human performers during a separate show.
"I wondered why (people watched the horse), and the idea went on for several years. I began to fall in love with horses. Because of my experience with Cirque du Soleil, I began to think about incorporating horses, lots of horses, into a show," Latourelle recalls.
When he hired people to train the horses, he says he was surprised to find that the horses understood music and they knew that they were "performing", too.
"With full respect to the horses, we don't force them to do anything. The choreography has been built around the animals, not humans," he says, adding that for half of the show, the horses are seen improvising their moves with trainers.
"On the stage and backstage, we work together. This is where you start to see a real and deep bond between human beings and horses," he says.
Chen Zesheng, CEO of Sinocap, a Chinese investment firm, signed an agreement with Latourelle that gave Chen's company Cavalia's copyright in China.
"Usually a Western show comes to China and leaves after touring the country. But we wanted Cavalia to stay," says Chen. "That's because we see big potential in the show."
Latourelle says he had been approached by some other Chinese companies.
"But I liked Chen's idea because the partnership will enable Cavalia to stay in China," says Latourelle.
During a vacation with his family in Singapore in 2014, Chen, a busy businessman for more than 30 years but with a keen interest in stage performances, watched Cavalia and was fascinated by it.
"Watching Cavalia is like entering into a dream, and at the end of it you don't want to wake up," he says.
"There are a variety of shows in Beijing. But I believe Cavalia will be different. It will give you something powerful, magical and subtle," Chen says.
