I didn't see the safety divers on standby to give a breath of air underwater. I didn't see the crew watching over the high divers from 110 feet. Even in the good seats that I somehow snagged up front, none of the hard work behind the show was visible. I remember watching 'O' many years ago on my first trip to Vegas. It's certainly a long way from the lighting booth at your local amateur rep.īut we'd expect nothing less from one of the biggest touring production companies in the world. The moving stage and set, the lighting cues, the rotating mechanical carousel that supports the aerial performers high above the stage and the piano that sinks below the water at the end of the show - all these elements are viewed on a series of screens in the lighting booth.Ĭombined with cameras that give the crew multiple views of the backstage areas, the whole setup is kind of like a high-tech Bond lair, rather than a theatre. The entire show is run through two automation consoles in the lighting booth that control virtually every element of the production apart from the performers themselves. Inside the lighting control booth, where the crew controls every element of the show. The music from the show's live 10-piece band plays through underwater speakers so performers can keep time underwater, while two of the divers also wear full face masks so they can maintain constant communication with the lighting booth at the very top of the theatre.Īs a result, the performers above and below the water are in perfect unison, while the divers can talk from inside the pool with the techies sitting in the rafters. So the divers are on hand in the pool with a massive labyrinth of air hoses and regulators for each performer, keeping them breathing safely underwater and maintaining the illusion on the surface.

These swimmers spend roughly 90 seconds underwater, but even the Olympic swimmers in the cast can't stay under for that long.

If you've seen 'O,' you'll remember the bevy of synchronised swimmers who open the show, performing an intricate and perfectly timed routine using nothing but their feet to dip in and out of the water. Performers wait for their cue, breathing using underwater regulators.įourteen of the divers stay in the water during the entire show, doing normal backstage duties like moving props and keeping performers alive.

Cirque du soleil las vegas o