The Sultan's Elephant

Take one part Jules Verne, add a dash of Steampunk, mix in a little Cirque du Soleil and you've got the Royal de Luxe, a French street theater company that has staged magnificent performances in London, Antwerp, Calais, and Santiago.

The sultan's time-traveling elephant, weighing 42 tons, moves through the streets, walking, bellowing, and spraying water.

But the elephant is just part of a carefully planned series of events that unfolds in each of the lucky cities who host the show. There is also the giant girl, one of the dreams of the sultan. She interacts with the elephant, licks a lollypop, and lets a few children from the audience ride on her arms.

The giantess is about 20 feet tall and weighs 1800 pounds. She is operated like a giant marionette, with the assistance of hydraulics and motors, though her arms and legs require individual operators to pull on ropes.


While parts of the show travel to various cities, a permanent exhibition of the giant puppets can be seen in Nantes France at the Galerie des machines.

YouTube video of the elephant in action: Link
YouTube video of the little girl giant: Link.
Website for Les Machines de l'Île à Nantes http://www.lesmachines-nantes.fr/machines.html
Wikipedia entry "The Sultan's Elephant" Link.

Tomorrow: Serial Painting