TORUK-The First Flight is soaring into the United Center this August for Chicago audiences.
This Cirque du Soleil show is inspired by James Cameron's movie Avatar but is set thousands of years prior. The word "toruk" refers to a predator called a leonopteryx that rules the Pandoran sky. In the storyline, a Na'vi is about to ride it for the first time.
Stacey Magiera is a gymnast in the show from the Chicago area. She went to Barrington High School while winning state titles and breaking records. She earned a gymnastic scholarship at UIC. After graduating she joined the cast of Cirque de la Mer and Viva Elvis in Las Vegas. After three years in that show, she transferred to KA at the MGM Grand. She now takes TORUK on the road and sat down to talk to Windy City Times about it.
Windy City Times: Hi, so you are an Illinois girl…
Stacey Magiera: Yes, I grew up in Jefferson Park until I was 7; then we moved to Barrington. I went to American Academy of Gymnastics in Wheeling, Illinois then I did two years of gymnastics at Barrington High School. I went to UIC and did four years of collegiate gymnastics there.
I really wanted to figure out how I could make gymnastics work for me after that as a career. I worked for a show called Cirque de la Mer in San Diego. After I auditioned they taught me how to do Chinese poles and flying trapeze into the water. I also did high dives and tumbling there. That is how I transitioned into circus arts. I made a demo video from that show with my gymnastics background and sent that into Cirque du Soleil. Then I was hired.
WCT: That must have been great to incorporate gymnastics and Cirque together.
SM: In gymnastics, you have the four apparatuses where you are doing it your whole life—but with Cirque there are so many different apparatuses to learn.
WCT: I saw Viva Elvis in Vegas years ago.
SM: I was in it for the entire run, so you saw me. I was in the high-bar act. It went through a couple of different versions. I was in the acrobatic pole act, and I did bungee.
WCT: Were you ever tired of Elvis songs?
SM: Actually, no.
I was a little bit skeptical moving to Vegas but, once I got there, my life was off the strip. The strip is for tourists. Vegas is such a fun place to live. I'm an outdoor enthusiast so I found good hiking and camping. There is a ski resort 40 minutes outside of Vegas so there was plenty to do.
WCT: Do you enjoy traveling on the tours?
SM: I love traveling. It is cool to be on a show that travels every single week. The first couple of days in the city we have off, so we have time to explore.
WCT: TORUK is Avatar-inspired?
SM: Yes. The show is story-based. It is told through acrobatics, projections and life-sized puppets. The projections, in particular, bring the world to life. You will feel like you are on Pandora.
WCT: Do you wear a lot of blue paint?
SM: Yes. My face is all blue and I do my own makeup. It takes about an hour to do. The rest of the costume is a head to toe blue body suit. It has UV reflective dots everywhere so it looks like we are glowing like in the movie Avatar.
There are different clans we play so depending on which clan we have different accessories that are added to the body suit.
WCT: What is your part?
SM: There are five clans and I am in three of them.
I am the chief of the Anurai clan. It is a balancing act on a spinning skeleton. It is a one of a kind apparatus that they created for the show. It was cool to be part of the creative process for that.
I am part of the Tipani clan, which comes from the forest. We do Chinese poles/articulated pole act. It is a super intense act where we are climbing up and down poles and spinning around while fighting off viperwolves.
I am also part of the Omaticaya clan, which is from the movie Avatar. I do an arial rope act in that clan.
WCT: How is the Tree of Souls involved in the show?
SM: Part of the plot is that two young Na'vi boys go on a quest to save the Tree of Souls.
WCT: How much rehearsal was involved with all of this?
SM: Before the show opened we trained for about four months to create the show and come up with all of the tricks. Our soft opening was this past November and we have been touring ever since.
WCT: Are there any LGBT cast members?
SM: There are a lot.
WCT: What is the music like?
SM: It is a beautiful score. Most Cirque shows have a live band but we are traveling every single week we have a track they play. We do have a live singer and she has a gorgeous voice.
WCT: Are cast members hurt in the show ever?
SM: We have been very lucky with injuries. Everyone takes care of their bodies and does their best to prevent injuries by doing exercises to stay in shape.
WCT: How is it maintaining your physique?
SM: In gymnastics I had to do the same thing. I grew up like that so it comes naturally.
WCT: Do you have to watch your diet?
SM: I train a lot so I burn so many calories a day. It doesn't really matter but whatever food you put in your body is the energy you get out so I try to eat healthy. We have a catering team that travels with us so they cook all of our meals.
WCT: Hopefully, you have some Chicago pizza while in town.
SM: Lou Malnati's Pizza is my favorite!
TORUK-The First Flight flies Aug. 3-7 at the United Center, 1901 W. Madison St. Tickets can be purchased at www.cirquedusoleil.com/toruk or www.unitedcenter.com .
