From the center of Prague to Letná, as the crow flies! On foot. World-famous rope walker Tatiana-Mosio Bongonga certainly does not suffer from dizziness. At a height of thirty-five meters, she moved with confidence above the heads of thousands of people, walking a 350-meter-long rope. Her stroll in the clouds started near the Faculty of Law and ended in Letná Park. Tatiana walked the entire route without any safety measures, accompanied only by live music. Looking up to the sky at the fragile girl, many spectators felt the need to hold their breath, especially when the rope artist performed acrobatic stunts. This performance opened the 16th annual modern circus festival Letní Letná (Summer Letná), which will run in Prague until September 1.
Tatiana, a member of the French ensemble Cie Basinga, has been a rope-walker for twenty-five years. This year's stunt wasn't the first time that she showed her talent to spectators in Prague; she'd climbed to the top of the marquee in the Czech capital already six years ago. This time, however, she aimed much higher.
Open in gallery (1)
Tatiana se prošla po laně od právnické fakulty do Letenských sadů. Source: František Ortmann
"We needed to find a stable solution for anchoring the rope in the Prague installation. So we teamed up with another French company, Gracio, which helped us with the special anchoring of the rope,"
Dům na prodej 7kk - Praha 6, 232m2, Praha 6
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said Jan Naets, who co-founded the Cie Basinga ensemble with Tatiana and is in charge of the technical background. Tatiana checked the rope personally before the ascent. Next to the protection and safety of the acrobat, more things had to be taken into account, such as the safety of swans, which could be exposed to risk of colliding with the rope.
“When I received the invitation and offer to cross the Vltava, I did not hesitate for a moment and said YES. It is a great honor to be here again, Prague is a very beautiful city,”
told us the acrobat. Before the performance, she had been practising on a training rope at a height of four meters in the Letná park. When the time came to take it to the next level, she stepped on a 16-millimeter rope with nothing but a 4-meter long balancing bar weighing 12 kilograms in total. So far, this was the longest route the acrobat has ever walked. Thousands of people watched Tatiana not only walk, but literally dance on th rope.
“It doesn't matter to me how long or high the rope is, I always take my performance as a new opportunity and chance. Being in a beautiful environment and looking at a new landscape and spectators always makes me happy,”
said Tatiana.
Vivat Circus!
Those who missed Tatiana need not despair. The visitors of this year's modern circus festival will be able to admire the best international ensembles, unique projects and a number of open air performances. There is also a rich support program for children.
