Olympic gymnast Olivia Vivian is swapping one leotard for another after being selected for the internationally acclaimed Cirque Du Soleil.
The Beijing Olympic Games and Glasgow Commonwealth Games gymnast has been selected for a new act that is still a work in progress.
A dangerous work in progress: it's already claimed the front tooth of one of her fellow artists – twice – in a workshop earlier this year.
Ms Vivian, 27, said she could not reveal the specifics of the performance, but said it was along the lines of a trapeze.
“They threw a bunch of trapeze artists and artistic gymnasts in as lab rats to figure out this event,” she said.
“No-one had ever coached it before, no-one had really seen it before, it was exciting and very dangerous.”
Ms Vivian, who officially retired from elite gymnastics on Saturday, said she had dreamed of joining Cirque du Soleil when she was a child gymnast and went backstage at a Perth performance.
“I remember one of the artists in the show said, ‘hey, look maybe one day you want to do something like this’ so it’s always been in the back of my mind but it’s such a creative and ambitious and just amazing world that I never thought that it would really be a reality.”
Olympic gymnast Olivia Vivian might have retired from competing, but not from performing. Source: SBS/Ryan Emery
But years later in 2012 she was approached by a talent scout at the National Championships after winning the uneven bars title for the seventh time in her career.
“I felt really honoured,” Ms Vivian said.
“This door sort of flipped open with this light and this possibility of potentially entering the circus world one day.”
But the timing was not right with the Commonwealth Games in 2014 to prepare for and the death of her father from cancer in 2013.
This year, the stars aligned and she successfully auditioned in Melbourne at the Victorian Institute of Sport in a gruelling process to join the Cirque du Soleil artist database.
“It was a full day of all sorts of stuff you could not make up, they wanted to see me on the bars, flexibility, dancing, acting, improv, and throughout the day people were getting cut,” Ms Vivian said.
Now officially retired, Ms Vivian will head off to Montreal, Canada where she will stay at Cirque “HQ” which is a complex of buildings that houses the artists as well as two towers of costumes.
“Levels upon levels, it’s just amazing,” Ms Vivian said.
Australia's oldest female senior international gymnast has retired and is off to Cirque du Soleil.
Olympic gymnast Olivia Vivian is swapping one leotard for another after being selected for the internationally acclaimed Cirque Du Soleil.
The Beijing Olympic Games and Glasgow Commonwealth Games gymnast has been selected for a new act that is still a work in progress.
A dangerous work in progress: it's already claimed the front tooth of one of her fellow artists – twice – in a workshop earlier this year.
Ms Vivian, 27, said she could not reveal the specifics of the performance, but said it was along the lines of a trapeze.
“They threw a bunch of trapeze artists and artistic gymnasts in as lab rats to figure out this event,” she said.
“No-one had ever coached it before, no-one had really seen it before, it was exciting and very dangerous.”
Ms Vivian, who officially retired from elite gymnastics on Saturday, said she had dreamed of joining Cirque du Soleil when she was a child gymnast and went backstage at a Perth performance.
“I remember one of the artists in the show said, ‘hey, look maybe one day you want to do something like this’ so it’s always been in the back of my mind but it’s such a creative and ambitious and just amazing world that I never thought that it would really be a reality.”
But years later in 2012 she was approached by a talent scout at the National Championships after winning the uneven bars title for the seventh time in her career.
“I felt really honoured,” Ms Vivian said.
“This door sort of flipped open with this light and this possibility of potentially entering the circus world one day.”
But the timing was not right with the Commonwealth Games in 2014 to prepare for and the death of her father from cancer in 2013.
This year, the stars aligned and she successfully auditioned in Melbourne at the Victorian Institute of Sport in a gruelling process to join the Cirque du Soleil artist database.
“It was a full day of all sorts of stuff you could not make up, they wanted to see me on the bars, flexibility, dancing, acting, improv, and throughout the day people were getting cut,” Ms Vivian said.
Now officially retired, Ms Vivian will head off to Montreal, Canada where she will stay at Cirque “HQ” which is a complex of buildings that houses the artists as well as two towers of costumes.
“Levels upon levels, it’s just amazing,” Ms Vivian said.
