Who would have thought that we’d have giants roaming the streets of the city of Perth?!  Just two weeks ago from 13 – 15 February, Perth’s city streets came to a standstill when a 6 metre giant girl and an 11 metre giant diver walked through Perth’s city streets, astounding thousands of onlookers.  The event was part of the annual Perth International Arts Festival, and was presented by the Royal de Luxe street theatre company who travelled to us all the way from France.  The giants (or marionettes) spent three days sleeping, walking, showering, dancing and hugging, controlled expertly by the marionette team, along with a commentary (in French) about their “story” which linked to Perth’s Noongar heritage and the Gallipoli landings.   We were the only city in Australia to get this and that makes it even more special as Perth often misses out on special events.  Thank you, City of Perth, for letting us have this opportunity!

I went to see the Giants on the second day and whilst the crowd was huge, it was fantastic to see so many people take the time to go to this event.  There were thousands of excited faces, especially when the giants turned the corner and appeared before our eyes between the city buildings!  And although the commentary was in French, it didn’t matter.  In fact it made it even more “artistic and ethereal” in a strange sort of way.  I had to look over a sea of heads to get my glimpses of the giants but the marionette team used cranes to lift them high so everyone could see.  The highlights for me were the little girl dancing, the girl and the diver meeting up and hugging, and the girl on the diver’s lap falling asleep.  It was certainly an experience I won’t forget.

You can read more about the giants’ story on the Perth International Arts Festival website – Giants here for the City of Perth International Arts Festival.