How One Dancer Found Her Way to Performing with Cirque du Soleil and What Life is Like in the Water
Cirque du Soleil aquatic dancer Fernanda Morales.
Credit: Katarina Batuta Visekruna and Uros Visekruna (left), Josiah Gordon (right)
NEARLY A DECADE IN THE WATER: FERNANDA MORALES RETURNS TO STAGE
Fernanda Morales is making a significant shift in her performance career, now starring as an aquatic performer in Cirque du Soleil’s latest show, LUDÕ, based in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico. After a decade-long hiatus from dancing due to a knee injury, Morales has embraced a new medium that brings her back to her roots.
Morales reflects on her journey, stating, “It brought me back this spark and joy and creativity of being in a new medium, still doing what I loved.” While she had dedicated most of her life to dance, a knee surgery forced her to explore different avenues. Following her recovery, she discovered yoga and eventually found her passion for free diving after relocating to Tulum.
“I fell in love with being in the water. It was just like an insane new world that I hadn’t explored,” she shares. Her commitment to the ocean deepened as she trained and became a certified free diving instructor.
With a lifelong love for dance, Morales found this new skill advantageous in the aquatic environment. “Since I always had the heart of a dancer, it helped me move in the water and dance in the water in ways that I was not able to do as much on land,” she explains.
Earlier this year, a friend alerted her to an audition for aquatic roles at Cirque du Soleil. “I did the audition, and I had to send like nine videos, underwater, above water, in between acting, not acting, dancing, creating a character,” Morales recounts. Shortly after, she was cast and began intensive training.
The training process involved mastering breath control and understanding buoyancy, crucial for moving gracefully in water. “Buoyancy is key to being able to move comfortably in the water because you don’t wanna be floating or sinking,” she notes, emphasizing its importance in her performances.
Cirque du Soleil aquatic dancer Fernanda Morales.
Courtesy of Sarah Teng
Her rigorous rehearsal schedule often keeps her in the water for up to 12 hours a day, practicing her skills across multiple aquatic sets, including several large aquariums integrated into the performance space. “I started training free diving, and I went all in. Water became my life,” she shares.
The adaptation to prolonged submersion has affected her hair, prompting her to use swimming caps and numerous hair care products to manage the damage. She prepares for performances with rituals that include strong ginger tea to warm up and an hour and 15 minutes dedicated to makeup application, which fosters camaraderie among the performers. “We do our own makeup. It’s really nice, and it’s calming,” she reveals.
Morales appreciates the collaborative nature of the show’s creative process, saying the choreographers welcome input from the performers. “It is very interesting because you get to put a little bit of yourself in the show,” she notes, taking pride in contributing to something that reflects her culture and heritage.
“Most of the inspiration comes from Mexico. I feel so proud and blessed that I get to experience my own culture through the show,” she adds, highlighting the importance of representation in her work.
Cirque du Soleil LUDÕ is now open at VidantaWorld, featuring an innovative blend of water-based performance art and cultural homage.
Cirque du Soleil aquatic dancer Fernanda Morales.
Courtesy of Adrian van Hal
