Nath at the Cirque Du Soleil - Dralion

Now that the Cirque Du Soleil has ended their series of shows in Lebanon, Beirut, with their phenomenal act Dralion, I thought it was time to let go of the photos and tell a bit of how I managed to go there, watch the whole show, free of charge.

It wasn't until a couple night earlier that I got that message asking me if I would be interested to shoot the show at the Forum De Beirut, on the opening night, October 10th 2013, for it was the only night photographers were allowed. With no hesitation whatsoever, and after checking my schedule, there I was, booked for the show on a Thursday night. It was then when I met Rana, the curator of the agency I'm cooperating with, the Lebanon EGuide travel and tourism agency, who therefore led me inside the premises of the Forum.

I was surprised yet relieved of the amount of measures taken against photographers and videographers, a signof unmatched professionalism I must say. I had to sign a paper stating (generally) that I won't be using the photos for personal purposes, and never use this year's footage for any event next year. I wish I had the time to read the whole thing that I had signed upon, it was already too late to be doing that.

Having been escorted to the media corner, I was greeted by the European supervisor over there. I remember her name was Gretta, her whole job was to monitor our screens and make sure we abide by the rules, rules such as not recording any of those parts where clowns involve the audience withing their show, and prohibiting any kind of footage recording upon the end of the first three shows. Additionally, I was shocked to know we were to shoot only from the same spot! That was my first time ever to be faced with such a challenge, I kept thinking of how all my shots would look alike, all taken from the same angle, something to be really worried about when thinking of media and covering a show.

Eventually, I took decent pictures, not many, but decent they were indeed. I kept looking around at Stavro and the other guys with their super fancy 400+mm lenses worth alone more than double of all my equipment, yet I was able to snatch some beautiful shots with the help of my secret weapon, as cliche as this may sound.

With all three mishaps that happened during the show, I still can't seem to forget the fantastic show the crew have put together. From that flying couple performing that remarkable love story, to the glorious music accompanying all of the shows, to the winning performance of the clowns and their supporting actor in normal clothes. I'm not so good in words, it was purely glamorous to the point that first thing I said after leaving was "I wanna watch that AGAIN".

Shukran Cirque Du Soleil.

Another set of pics can be found on the Lebanon E-Guide site.
Full album can be found on my Facebook Profile.
Another copy of the blogpost was published on the Lebanon E-Guide website.