The Nevada Occupational Safety and Health Administration said Cirque du Soleil performer Sarah Guillot-Guyard also was somewhat responsible for the accident that claimed her life, saying her “rapid ascent” in the show’s high-energy climax played a role in the equipment failure June 29.
Guillot-Guyard, 31, died when the wire rope from which she was suspended broke, causing her to fall 94 feet. She landed below the stage floor, out of the view of the audience.
14 comments:
I happened to be in Vegas several weeks after the accident happened. The week i was there at a workshop was the first week Ka was running again after its 3 week break. I had seen the show a year before hand when the vertical battle scene was still in the show, as had several of the other people there who saw it again with the number cut. They said that the performance was still as moving as before. The group that i was with had several months before actually taught a workshop on rigging that used that very same fly rig as a teaching aid.
Cirque du soleil has been around for many years now, but this is the second occurrence of a tragic event that has happened this year. Cirque continues to expand and reach many corners of America, but with all this growth it must be hard to maintain a level of safety and organization. Cirque is very detailed orienented and they take pride in their safety. I watched a short film two days ago on the training that goes into Cirque and it was incredible how cautious they are when it comes to people's safety. Tricks are performed numerous times before the performers can do stunts without wires. With a stunt as large as this one I think additional security must have been taken to ensure safety for everyone involved.
I have never actually seen a Cirque show before, but even so, I can't imagine that their safety would be anything less than par. I have looked at some of the stuff they do on youtube, and it looks really dangerous. I'm surprised that there wasn't like a net or a trampoline or something underneath of the performers for that exact reason: equipment failure. Even if it was below stage level, where Sarah had fallen to, it might have lessened the impact on her body and allowed a greater chance of survival. All other acrobatic shows have nets and things to catch the acrobats if there is even the slightest chance of someone falling off, even if they are professionals.
It's really cool that she had been performing for so long even with the dangers that could possibly happen. That is real dedication to her art.
It is very tragic to hear this incident. I am always enthusiastic and thrilled to see Cirque du soleli's circus. I watched some of its shows such as O and Le Reve so far and every time I watched the show, I felt how arduous and detail-oriented the show is. However, the more the show thrills me with its daring and creative performance, the more I get staggering about performer's safety. Like how Kristen mentioned, I was also surprised not to see any net or trampoline underneath the acting area. I understand that if the safety net can be seen by the audience, it can distract the show from being seen realistic, but I still think there should be some kind of protection underneath the scene where the audience can not see. I remember one time when I was taking class with Kenny, he mentioned how if an actor in the Cirque du soleil fails and falls to the ground, the show still goes on and the actor is immediately replaced to another actor to finish the performance. That really frightened and scared me and I guess that was what happened for this accident. I understand that Cirque du soleil always puts actor's safety as one of its priority, but I hope it spends more time checking the wires and giving enough education on safety, so that this kind of tragic incident does not happen again.
I'm less interested in the safety record of Circque and how this tragedy occurred, and more interested in how OSHA dealt with the situation. Theaters and OSHA seem to always have a particularly tricky relationship, although less so at the level of commercial shows, such as Cirque. The basis of the citations given to the producing companies seemed very vague, such as deficiencies in hazard assessments. What hazards? Not given. One of the citations against Cirque was in regard to not providing protection against potential collision with an overhead grid. That had nothing to do with the accident, and is something that could be controlled by the performer who was potentially in danger. OSHA has worker's best safety at heart, yet they are rather thickheaded and archaic at many times.
Of course this kind of accident is always tragic. However, it does sound like Cirque has kept a pretty clean record and are going beyond OSHA's suggestions to make sure this doesn't happen again. I find it very peculiar that the accident was caused by the ascent of the performer. Those performers have an exact routine that they follow down to the last detailed second. I find it hard to believe that the performer played a part in the cable coming apart, though I suppose anything could happen. I also wonder why OSHA didn't catch these citations earlier. It seems a routine check up would be needed for a show like Cirque.
I'm a little confused by how Cirque is being held accountable for this- the citations that were mentioned were only for not properly assessing the workplace for hazards and for not preventing performers from striking an overhead grid. Neither of these have much, if anything, to do with the accident- no one struck the grid, and the problem seemed to be an equipment/rigging failure, not a workplace-hazard issue. The only citation that was actually related to the accident was for not providing proper training, and it says that OSHA admitted it was partially the performers fault. This could be the explanation for what seems to me to be a minimal fine. I'm surprised OSHA didn't fine them for not putting a safety on to prevent too rapid ascent. I'd be curious to know about the actual set-up of the pulley and what prevented more safety mechanisms- I know that Cirque has a great record of safety for their performers, so perhaps this was an extraordinary situation. I'd like more information on why there were so few citations and whether there will be any permanent changes resulting from this tragic accident.
I wish that the article had explained the citations that were given to Cirque de Solei and the MGM resort received more thoroughly. It is awful that such an incident occurred and it makes me squeamish thinking about a person falling from that height. It is interesting to see OSHA's involvement in the entertainment industry, a connection that may not typically be apparent or thought of. It is a reminder how dangerous entertainment can reach and how careful and thorough those working in hazardous situations must be.
I have always heard that Cirque has crazy tight safety regulations so it surprises me that OSHA found problems with the show, and very vague ones at that. It would have been nice to get more detailed descriptions of the citations but I agree with everyone else that they don't sound like they actually had anything to do with the accident. They are still important regardless but it seems like the accident was the a mix of operator (the performer) error and equipment failure, hardly the fault of the organization as a whole. Now if the citations had been for using improper equipment it would be a different story, but this seems like it was just a tragic accident and nothing more.
Cirque du Soleil has a lot of risky performances. They are beautiful, no doubt, but extremely dangerous. When the performers audition, they know that every performance is putting their life on the line. You never want something so tragic to happen, but it's inevitable. Two in one year, however, is not right. There should never be an accident, but Cirque should consider what they are doing is two accidents happen in one year. These people push themselves to the max to be a part of this, they work their butts off to inspire and astound others, but is risking people's lives worth it? I don't know, maybe it is. Ugh, the debate that goes on in my mind. It's weird because Cirque is known for having extraordinary safety precautions and they haven't had many tragic accidents at all. These things do happen, it's just really unfortunate.
Cirque du Soleil is a company that i normally do not expect this kind of thing from. They are a company that knows the risks they are taking and generally will do everything they can to make sure that it does not happen. This is why Im shocked to hear about the recent accidents related to Cirque. Reading this article makes me think that this was more of an accident, yes cirque maybe could've looked out or maybe inspected the rope first, which i thought they had to do each night. Do a nightly check of how all of the safety equipment. As far as the other osha accounts im not sure about how serious or how true the accounts are.
I must say I am a little surprised that incidents like this are happening when the show is something that happens so often. It also seems unfair that part of the blame is put on the performer for the incident when the materials they were using for the stunt should have been better tested and been able to handle the force at which she was descending. After they have had time to recover from the incident I hope something like this will not be able to happen again.
It is incredibly sad that this happened, even though Cirque has been around for many years now and several accidents have taken place in that time, it is still devastating to think that something as horrific as this could happen. Safety measures are put into place for a reason, to keep individuals from harm, and it is tragic to hear that the first fatality in 29 years happened because of equipment failure. It makes one think about everything that they do in the theatre, taking extra precautions in their work, and ensuring that what they do is as safe as can be.
After all this horrible story, I can't believe that it ends with a 7,000 and a 25,000 dollar fine for MGM and Cirque du Soleil.
Now that I'm learning rigging, I actually want to know what exactly happened there. I feel like it could be important for the details of this accident to be publicized so that other people who are working as riggers can learn from it.
I really hope that no more of these accidents happen.
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