A LAMINATED SIGN ON a yellow trailer behind the striped tent at Cyberport is the only indication of the off-stage lives of Cirque du Soleil's two young Quidam stars.
For eight shows a week, Letitia Forbes, 15, and Camille-Helene Poliquin, 13, alternate the character of Zoe, a 12-year-old girl trapped in a numbing world that had lost its meaning and magic. In one of the opening scenes, Zoe shatters this reality with a song and stumbles into the mysterious world Quidam.
Zoe's melodies weave together the acrobatics, dance, music and pantomime of Cirque du Soleil's exploration into 'somebody, the one unknown', an interpretation of the show's Latin title.
Contrary to Quidam's surreal setting, each morning Letitia and Camille-Helene go to another place that would be all too familiar to Hong Kong youth: school. The yellow trailer is a portable classroom. Cramped and narrow, there is a map on the wall, a small whiteboard, some board games, textbooks and papers, a weighing scale, a plastic human torso and a cabinet holding various paraphernalia for science experiments.
Two desks face each other with photographs of family and friends serving as reminder of their distant homes. Letitia, who has toured with Quidam since mid-2003, is from Wellington, New Zealand. Camille-Helene from Montreal, Canada, joined 15 months ago.
Another classroom in a neighbouring trailer is for Pollyanna Zaitzeva, eight, whose Russian parents also perform in the show. Born on tour, Pollyanna spends just one month a year in a traditional classroom.