PIAF 2015 The Giants

   The Perth International Arts Festival always likes to start off with a bang. You know, get that party started right with fireworks or a water show or confetti falling on the main drag.  But this year PIAF set their guns to 'stun' and indeed we were.
    The Incredible and Phenomenal Journey of The Giants , created by the French company
Royal de Luxe, was a spectacular  public art  exhibition that walked around the Central Business District for three days. Giant marionettes, Young Girl  and  Diver, were escorted through streets (aided by 70 handlers dressed in red velvet called Lilliputians) loosely enacting  a story that incorporated the Aboriginal peoples of Australia and the World War I ANZACS.  A rather long bow had to be drawn to connect the two but most onlookers weren't bothered by the stretch. They were enchanted by the duo.

Giant Young Girl.       courtesy T.Debski

Giant Diver.        courtesy The West Australian

        Young Girl, at six meters tall, had everyone wrapped around her little finger.  She bathed and dressed in the mornings. She would walk or ride her scooter or don a raincoat and go on a boat ride.  At rest, she would read a giant book made by local elementary schools  or snore while napping in a huge lawn chair.  At one point during her walk, unable to find a restroom, Young Girl crouched down, pulled her dress out a bit and peed on the road. The school kids must have howled with laughter.
  
   The Diver, at 11 meters tall, was far less active but no less captivating. He stretched out  to sleep just outside the train station downtown.  Not your average rummy or vagrant lying about, Diver gained rock star status with commuters in no time who held off their morning trot to the office long enough to get a really cool selfie with the big guy.  Diver's handlers had to be highly athletic as their swinging weight from ropes helped propel him along. I have to wonder  if physiotherapists weren't on hand to help those folks out during the breaks.  Click HERE to see some video that really brings the Giants to life.

Repelling down Diver

   Where was I? At a disadvantage for the big picture but a front row seat for the inner workings of working massive marionettes.  The Diver had a mobility issue his very first time out on the second day.  There is an elevated crosswalk at the train station that the Diver had to be craned over.  He landed right in front of me. Careless craning would have shortened my height considerably.  Once in position, the Lilliputians worked quickly to the Mission Impossible opening march (played by an accompanying live band) to reconnect the ropes, guy wires and hydraulics. They had to repel down, climb up and swing over to get this done and get him on his way.

Connecting the hydraulics.

Feet bigger than mine!

          
    Despite the fact that even Ebenezer Scrooge himself softened up to the Giants, they almost didn't happen.  The price tag  to bring this "free"  exhibition in totaled over $5 million. Corporate sponsors contributed the biggest part of that but the State contributed $2 million of taxpayers money to make it happen. Oh, the roar, the stink, the outrage and the chin-wagging that followed this announcement.  Was this how the state mishandled our tax dollars!!!?? was the hue and cry.  The verbiage changed as skeptics and the curious fell beneath the Giants spell. It has been estimated that 1.4 million people saw the Giants. This does include multiple visits as there are less than 2.5 million people in the whole state.  Someone did the math and determined that each taxpayer contributed 80 cents (or 27 cents per day) to the magic. Such a paltry sum people tutted.

    And the conquering of Perth by two giants was complete.