Saturday Morning Magic: Raising the Grand Chapiteau

It's Saturday morning, and while most people are settling into a leisurely breakfast and weekend relaxation, I find myself on the road, heading toward something extraordinary. As I drive, I'm struck by a strong sense of gratitude—not just for this moment, but for the incredible journey that brought me here.

When I was five of six years old, I would spend hours at my great aunt's house and garden orchestrating elaborate imaginary weddings in her garden. Invisible guests would gather as invisible brides and grooms walked down makeshift aisles, while I banged enthusiastically on a cookie jar that served as my drum, providing the soundtrack for these grand celebrations. The pageantry, the ceremony, the pure joy of creating something magical from nothing—it's one of my most vivid childhood memories, and perhaps my very first.

Now, decades later, I get to work on what is one of the biggest entertainment brands in the world: Cirque du Soleil. And somehow, the miraculous has almost become routine.

That's the strange paradox of living your childhood dreams. After all these years of working with Cirque du Soleil, there are moments when the extraordinary almost feels ordinary, when you risk taking for granted the very thing you once could only imagine. Today, as I drive through the morning light, I'm making a conscious effort to remember just how lucky I am to be doing exactly what that five-year-old dreamed of.

Today, we raise the Grand Chapiteau in Knokke-Heist. In just ten days, on the 30th, we'll have our premiere, and I can already feel the electricity building. I can picture the faces of people as they catch their first glimpse of the Grand Chapiteau—in all its glory, housing a beloved show presented in an entirely new light. There's something beautiful about witnessing that moment when wonder takes hold, when adults become children again in the presence of magic.

"Oh my god, that was incredible,!" I can already hear them saying. And they're right to be excited. What we do is create more than entertainment—we create moments of pure awe, where the impossible becomes possible, even if just for a few hours.

As I continue down this road, I want to pause and say thank you. Thank you to the universe for allowing me to live this dream. Thank you to everyone that is helping me live it, you know who you are! Thank you for the privilege of being part of something that brings joy to so many people. And thank you for reminding me, on this quiet Saturday morning, never to lose sight of the magic in what we do.

The Grand Chapiteau awaits, and with it, another opportunity to create wonder.

Want to know more? Visit stagemagic.be!