OH! Magazine - Australian Version December 2013 (Australian Version) | страница 7

[email protected] ALISHA SMITH Photos: Mark Turner with travelling circus called Empire by Spiegelworld. Yet, calling Empire a circus is on par with describing Carbines as ‘a bit flexible’. This is a circus on steroids. It’s an hilarious, spectacular, mesmerising and down-right cheeky series of circus acts, each as brilliant as the last. There’s acrobatics, balancing, live music, rollerskating and a banana act as spellbinding as it is grotesque! There are displays of phenomenal strength, flexibility and talent, oh, and what circus would be complete without a bit of good oldfashioned nudity (leave the kiddies at home, folks). Life in a bubble isn’t all accolades and adoration, however. ‘The first week of training in the bubble was really tough,’ says Lucia, as we sit down for a postshow chat. ‘It was so foreign, so heavy and stiff. If you accidentally let it slip, it slams down on your body. And if you don’t spin it right, it rocks, which can make you really dizzy and unwell.’ ‘I don’t find contortion painful or anything, but if I’m having a stiff day or I’ve trained for too long, then my spine bends so much that it cuts off the spinal fluid for a period of seconds, so when I come up, the spinal fluid releases, causing me a headache.’ The physical toll of eight shows a week, for weeks at a time can be high so Lucia, who grew up on a gluten, wheat, sugar, dairy, yeast and starch-free diet ensures that she takes good care of herself. http://youtu.be/MM9ENfnEkY4 ‘My dad has a condition called ankylosing spondylitis (an inflammatory arthritis condition that causes pain and stiffness in the spine and other joints), so he’s on that diet because it helps to minimise inflammation. My sister and I have the gene marker for the condition, and even though there’s only an eight per cent chance that we’ll develop it, our whole family has always eaten like that.’ Surely after such a nutritionally strict childhood, eating whatever she wants on tour must feel like such a treat? Not so, says Carbines. ‘When I first went on tour, I thought “Great! I don’t have to eat like that anymore!” and I just went crazy. I bought all this wheat, sugar and dairy, and I just felt terrible. That only lasted for a week and then I went back to eating how I always have.’ To keep her muscles and joints in top condition, the aerialist and self-taught contortionist also takes magnesium, glucosamine, chondroiton and glutamine supplements, and has plenty of active pursuits to keep her in bubble-worthy shape. ‘I don’t train that much during the show, but once a week I’ll go and find an aerial gym and do three hours of training. I love rock climbing, too, so I’ll climb once or twice a week, and then when I’m around the ocean, I’ll surf regularly, too.’ And when the time comes for Lucia to hang up her unitard and look beyond performing, it’s easy to see that she’s more than just a pretty face on a bendy body. ‘I’ve done my dual Diploma in Sports and Remedial Massage, and when I’m not on tour, I actually teach (aerial classes) about 20 hours a week, so I think a mix of teaching and massage will be the most natural progression for me.’ Tickets are selling fast for the critically-acclaimed, Empire. For more information, including show dates, head to www.empireaustralia.com ( OH! MAGAZINE ) ISSUE 5 7