foto van viktorkee.com
Viktor Kee
About Cirque du Soleil and his non-realized dreams...
Interviewed by Daan Yperman, 30-04-2004
- Did you ever go to a circus school? If yes, what circus school?
- Yes I went to professional Circus school in Kiev for 4 years.
- Do/did you usually go to circus conventions? If yes, what conventions?
- I went to several, first was in Hagen in 94, the Portland in 2002 then recently went to IJA in Reno.
- Where did you gain experience before you was performing for Cirque du Soleil?
- I was performing in quite a few places like Moulin Rouge de paris, Friedrichstadt Palast in Berlin, Pomp Duck&Circumstance in new York, Mirage and MGM in Las Vegas, Lido de Paris.
- For many jugglers, a dream is to perform in a Cirque du Soleil show. How are you succeed in it?
- I think I did it well, at least I tryed and looks like it is going well. I think it is the audience that can decide if I succeed or not.
- How do you make a show for Cirque du Soleil? You have to say at that self much? What is the role of the stage-manager in that? Were there a lot of people working at your show?
- I signed a guest contract, which means that I do my act the way I arrange it and the way I choreographed it, so nobody has right to change it without my agreement, but if there are great suggestions and I am comfortable with it, then it is possible that we make some modifications (like we did with costume and makeup for example). But so far the rest of the act I perform stays the way I design it in first place for Cirque Du Soleil`s show Dralion.
- How difficult is it to combine your perfect skills with a perfect choreography?
- I think is is extrimely difficult, at least for me it was. Maybe some talented jugglers will find it easy one day, but I spend quite an effort to develope it.
- How do you prepare yourself before a show?
- I practise for 2-3 hours and stretch a bit. Go thrue some routings etc. half an hour before the show I put up my makeup, then warm up and in a few minutes after that I am on stage - where I have nothing to do more then concentrate and try to do my best.
- Are there a lot of nerves backstage?
- I am pretty nervous before the show like some of my coleges, but many are not. The way I think is that been nervous is representing the fact that a performer cares about what he does on stage. My very first teacher told me once: One day if you realize that you are not nervouse at all before going into the stage - give up... ! I respect that and totaly agree.
- I never saw something going wrong in a Cirque du Soleil show. Does it happens sometimes? What do you have to do when that's happening?
- Yes it does. This is a live shows and no one is perfect to do it like a mashine. So even with cirque du Soleil`s perfection things happened. From my side I have nothing to do, if something happened during my act then maybe, but besides that nothing I can do. The technical cru will take care of it.
- How's the relation with the other artists in Cirque du Soleil? Did you learn to know lots of people while working for Cirque du Soleil?
- Deffenitely - and also very diverse nationalities too, which makes it more fun. My address book grow from 400 friends before cirque to 1600 for now. I guess that will explain
- To who do you look up in Cirque du Soleil? To who outside Cirque du Soleil? Why?
- I would look with respect to many of artists withing cirque, but besides cirque Francis Brunn is my long time Idol and a respecful friend.
- Did you see all Cirque du Soleil shows? What do you find the best one?
- Yes I had been seen all of the, My favourite one is la Nouba and Quidam.
- Are you practicing other circus skills?
- No
- These days, many jugglers discuss the purpose of several organisations, like IJA, EJA, JIS and JISCON. What is your opinion about it?
- As far as they do one thing - Promote Juggling art - I am happy that they do exist.
- Who do you think is the best 'upcoming' juggler? Why?
- Vladik is one of very good jugglers I know, and I have one student here at dralion that have a promising posibilities of become a good juggler.
- Do You read rec.juggling?
- No
- Some time ago there was a discussion about Jason Garfield on rec.juggling. What's your opinion about him? What about Anthonny Gatto?
- Jason is a good technical juggler, I met him at IJA in Reno and spent some time practising together, but speaking about technical scills - Anthony, in our juggling world, is # 1 without any comments.
- This question is one we've already asked to several jugglers. Is 2 ball 'throwing, catching and tricks' juggling? Is flashing juggling? What about poi?
- For me juggling is keeping in the air more objects then hands, means starting with 3, but less then that will became a manipulation, but is it a very controvercial subject and I cannot say that I am right. flashing is not a juggling - juglling`s nature idea is to Keep objects in the Air and not just throw them there. I think this is very clear. But I agree with the difficulty of flashing a lot of objects, like 11 balls for example. Poi - I am not concidering as a juggling what-so-ever. It is a swinging art... beutiful, but not a juggling.
- What are your aims? Is Cirque du Soleil your future?
- Not at all, cirque is one of the goals that I go thrue and next are a head of me. I want to do a juggling video for a professional jugglers, concentrate on Estetics of juggling and nature of act development. Something that I wanted to do always - to promote juggling Art. And some other teaching programs that I am developing. And, of course, along with that I am working on what I do - perform - and working on some new stuff too.
- Do you want to say something to all starting jugglers?
- Be serious about anything that you choosed to do. Start your great journey with learing a history of who you choosed to be, have an oppinion about it. For techincal things take advices seriously, but for general artistic stuff "no mater what they say" - Do it Your Way!
- Do you have to say something else to jugglers in general?
- Remember it is not "How many" that impress audience" it is "How" what does.
Some questions from our forum-members :
- When did you start juggling?
- 11
- How many hours a week do you practice?
- when I was a student around 50, now around 15 plus 10 shows a week.
- Who are your favourite jugglers?
- Francis Brunn, Anthony Gatto, Michael Menes, Michael Moschen, Oliver Groszer...
- What are your favourite tricks?
- Mills mess with 5.
- With how many balls, clubs and rings can you juggle?
- I juggle 9 balls and do not juggle anything else the way it could impress you, so rest never mind.
Interessante links
- http://www.viktorkee.com/
- Viktors schitterende site.
- http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/
- Cirque du Soleil.
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