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Cirque dancer from Barrington Hills to perform in Chicago

Movie director James Cameron came backstage to speak to Stacey Magiera and her fellow performers from the new "Avatar"-themed Cirque du Soleil show, "TORUK - The First Flight."

"He said he loved the show and we were able to capture the characters and bring them to life," said Magiera, a Barrington Hills native.

Cameron's visit was one of many "wow" moments Magiera has had since joining Cirque du Soleil six years ago.

A champion, record-setting gymnast since her days at Barrington High School and the American Academy of Gymnastics in Wheeling, Magiera started performing in San Diego with Cirque de la Mer after graduating from the University of Illinois-Chicago. In 2010, she joined Cirque du Soleil's "Viva Elvis" show in Las Vegas, and she's been an acrobat in Cirque shows ever since.

Magiera lives in Las Vegas now, but she's not there much. She spends 40 weeks a year on the road performing around the world.

Next week, she'll head to the United Center. The shows, running Aug. 3-7, will be her first in Chicago. The audience will be filled with friends and family, including her sister, WGN-TV sports anchor Lauren Magiera.

"I love being in Cirque du Soleil," Stacey Magiera said. "I can't believe this is a job."

In "TORUK," inspired by Cameron's 2009 science fiction film, Magiera plays three different roles, all of which involve intense, eye-popping acrobatics, dancing and acting. And she does it all as a "Na'vi," a blue humanoid species with a tail from the fictional moon Pandora.

"I had to get used to dancing with a tail," she said. "For some tricks, you'd accidentally step on it. So I had to figure out how to move the tail while I did my tricks."

While trying to explain in layman's terms what she does on stage, Magiera joked that she does "a balancing act on a spinning skeleton" and a scene of "super high-intensity climbing up and down poles and spinning around."

Sounds exhausting. But the chiseled 33-year-old loves the athletic challenge. She holds Cirque du Soleil's all-time women's pullup record with 35.

To keep in shape, Magiera relies on a healthy diet and intense workouts, with Pilates, rope climbs and leg lifts, among other exercises.

Magiera's never been sidelined with an injury, which is rare in her field. She credits a keen awareness of her body plus the injury prevention exercises Cirque performers do, such as balancing on a board with a tiny ball underneath to strengthen the small ankle muscles.

Magiera said the 41-member "TORUK" cast consists of incredible athletes who are always pushing each other to try new things and make the show better.

"Everyone's always daring each other to do harder tricks. So the show's constantly evolving," she said. "It's so fun doing different shows and playing different characters and performing on different apparatuses. It's always fun to have variety."

Magiera plans to perform with Cirque as long as her body will let her and, after that, hopes to stay in some other capacity.

"I love it," she said. "Really, it's like a dream come true."

- Jamie Sotonoff

Dann Gire and Jamie Sotonoff are always looking for people from the suburbs who are now working in showbiz. If you know of someone who would make an interesting feature, email them at dgire@dailyherald.com and jsotonoff@dailyherald.com.

Stacey Magiera stars in the new “Avatar”-themed Cirque du Soleil show, “TORUK - The First Flight.”
Barrington Hills native Stacey Magiera is an acrobat and dancer with Cirque du Soleil. courtesy of Stacey Magiera
Barrington Hills native Stacey Magiera was a star gymnast since her days at Barrington High School and the American Academy of Gymnastics in Wheeling. courtesy of Stacey Magiera
Barrington Hills native Stacey Magiera plays around on the balance beam years before she joined Cirque du Soleil. courtesy of Stacey Magiera
Barrington Hills native Stacey Magiera was a star gymnast at Barrington High School and the University of Illinois-Chicago. courtesy of Stacey Magiera

Cirque du Soleil's “TORUK – The First Flight”

When: Aug. 3-7

Where: United Center, 1901 W. Madison St., Chicago

Tickets: Start at $38

Info:

cirquedusoleil.com/toruk

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