KEY POINTS:
Wriggling and writhing in a vast white net, suspended in mid-air, aspiring circus performer Jared Turner flounders as he tries to flip himself forward.
The small audience of technicians and journalists gasp as Turner suddenly plunges towards the ground, catching himself just inches from the stage floor with
Mission Impossible-like precision. Funny, it looked easy when Mark did it.
Mark is Hungarian acrobat Mark Halasi, star of Cirque du Soleil's Varekai show and for today only, circus tutor.
Standing in the Grand Chapiteau, Mark twirls and tumbles with ease as he demonstrates various elements of his aerial routine.
Turner is joined by Jenny Ritchie and Pascal Ackerman, the trio of students each a representative from New Zealand's three circus schools, who study the lithe and limber performer vigilantly before trying to emulate his moves.
Nervous laughter fills the tent as the students climb the giant net, swing by their ankles, dangle upside down and finally, fly around the stage, sailing over the empty stands.
All without a safety net or crash mat in sight.
Despite instructions from Varekai head coach Johanne Gelinas to keep it "slow and low", the performers are soon swinging around at speed.
Others drift in to watch the session and cheeky trapeze performer Susie decides she wants a go as well.
As she flies into the air, holding on to the giant net swing, she cries out in wide-eyed delight, flailing her legs around inelegantly.
When she comes in for a crash landing it seems our local reps aren't doing too badly after all.
Artistic co-ordinator Marc Anthony Thomas, who has also come to have a look, certainly thinks so.
The aerial net is very unusual and particularly tricky, he says, so the students are doing well.
Today's training session is a first for all parties involved and is a slightly improvised affair.
The idea came about last year, when Cirque representatives discovered we had lots of circus training facilities.
Auckland Performing Arts School runs a part-time circus school, while Wellington has the Wellington Circus Trust. Christchurch's CircoArts programme is the country's longest-running circus training facility, established in 1996. CircoArts offers a two-year diploma in circus performance, drawing students from New Zealand, Australia, America and Europe.
Representing the Auckland Performing Arts School, Turner is thrilled to learn from the masters.
Shaking out his arms after the exhausting tutorial, he says: "It was awesome. We only touched on the most basic things out there and even those were really hard.
"It's not only a physical thing, it's also a mental thing. You've got to trust yourself that you're going to stay in that position or hold that position and not fall. Particularly when you're thrown up into the heights."
So is it a life of acrobats and carnivals for him?
"It would be a dream come true if I was a part of this. These guys have been training their whole lives and are solely focused on what they do. They're geniuses.
"But this isn't the place to dabble, and I'm a dabbler. I like to try all different things," he says.
One thing the day has impressed on Turner is how much effort and how many people are involved in creating the Cirque du Soleil experience.
"The main thing I've taken away from this is how hard these guys work and how much goes into it. Not just the performance, but the training and all the people working together on the one thing.
"You've got to invest a lot of faith in other people. The respect has always been there but it's definitely become bigger today."
Performance
What: Cirque du Soleil's Varekai
Where: ASB Showgrounds, Greenlane
When: Tuesday to Sunday until February 18
