Feb 9, 2016
Cavalia Odysseo has arrived in Irvine, California. We missed the Cavalia performance when it was in Southern California 9 years ago so when the publicist for Cavalia Odysseo invited us to media day and a preview of the show, Ranae and I jumped at the chance. The 125' Big Top was set up in an open field in Irvine in Orange County. The show had taken this open field and transformed it into a state-of-the-art facility. Stables for 65 horses plus all the feed, pellets and bedding, a kitchen that prepares 600 meals a day, plus the gift shop, food concessions, and stage which includes a 3 story "hill" the horses make their grand entrance.
We got to check out the grounds and meet the horses and trainers and grooms. Everyone at Cavalia Odysseo is proud of the work they do and very welcoming to guests. The patiently answered all our questions and showed us where the horses warm up and how some of the backstage mechanisms operated.
Four or five days later the place was ready for a performance. We got front seats in a truncated but very exciting show. There were gymnasts, urban stilts, and horses, lots of horses. An amazing performance of liberty using nine horses. Yes NINE horses. No whips or crops or anything other than hand signals and voice commands. This was the highlight of the show until, near the end of the performance, the flood the stage and create a lake. For the next 10 minutes we watch a high level dressage performance. Horse and rider were one. There were even flying lead changes through the water.
If you live in the Southern California area, you won't want to miss Cavalia Odysseo. Tickets are affordable and the show is so fabulous you will be talking about it for months. You can find out more at the Cavalia Odysseo website.
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Welcome to the Whoa Podcast about Horses and Horsemanship. I am your host John Harrer. Along with my wife, Ranae, each week on the show we talk about some aspect of owning a horse. It could be feeding or supplementation. It could be bits and bridles, tack, or cowboy boots. We cover training problems, or competing in shows. We talk to farriers and horse chiropractors. We talk about movies, books and magazine articles. And, we travel to places we think you would like to take your horse. That’s what the Whoa Podcast is all about.
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