Odysseo Fun Facts

Cavalia’s latest production Odysseo is in town and Mark bought tickets for a Christmas gift and then I got to check out the special media preview event! A proper review will appear here shortly, but in the meantime, just in time for Valentine’s Day here are 14 fun facts about Odysseo. Spread the #horselove!

1. The name Odysseo stands for an Odyssey–adventure on horseback and beyond–and the “o” at the ends stands for the French word for water “eau.”
   

   I had never before seen dressage in a lake.

2. During the second half of the show the arena (stage) is flooded with 40,000 gallons of water (which is recycled) and a gorgeous dressage freestyle-esque act occurs through the lake.
3. Elise Verdoncq who shines brightly during the liberty scene with the small herd of gray Arabians and later riding advanced dressage movements on a Lusitano stallion, was in France studying for the bar exam and decided to audition for Cavalia. She thought it would be fun to try for a year and she could learn English. Six years later she is still performing.
   

   Elise switched plans while studying for the French version of the bar exam–she auditioned for Cavalia and the rest is history.

4. The average age of an Odysseo horse is 10.
5. There are no mares in the show–only geldings and stallions.
6. There is a troupe of acrobats that flip and jump and fly over Grand Prix size “jumps.” (The jumps are actually long poles held by people at each end.) Mark commented that the acrobats should join the NFL and they could fly over the opposition and somersault into the end zone to score.
7. Odysseo’s White Big Top is the size of an NFL football field, the stage larger than a hockey rink, and the on-stage hill is 3-stories high.
8. Rebecca Ratte a three-day eventer, who traveled to the Bejing Olympics and Rio Pan American Games as a groom joined Cavalia where she began trick riding and also became an aerialist. What a resume!
   

   Can these Arabian geldings get any cuter?

9. Eleven horse breeds are represented in the show: Arabian, Andalusian, Quarter Horse, Lusitano, Spanish Purebred, Paint, Mustang, Selle Francais, Lippizan, Holsteiner, Warmblood (Canada).
10. Annually 73,000 bags of wood shavings are used for stall bedding to keep the 65 horses comfy and cozy. Their bedding is changed out daily.
11. The trick riding act will make you feel like you don’t know how to ride at all. I’m happy to sit the trot gracefully on my bouncy Thoroughbred. These riders are galloping in a circle and flip to the side of the horse and then fly back on going backwards. One performer did a draped backbend over the side of the horse and didn’t hold on!
    

    Trick photography enabled Mark and me to ride along with the cast.

12. More trick riding. One guy flipped underneath his galloping horse and landed back in the saddle.
13. There’s a fun greenscreen photo station where you can get inserted into a major scene.
14. You can buy original artwork in the gift shop such as this stunning piece.