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Posts Tagged ‘Beluga Stadium’

Beluga Stadium Gets a Face Lift


December 28, 2009 by ChuckCureau • 8 Comments » Posted in Around the Park
VIVA refresh 2

Okay, so I'm not really doing the actual painting... but it shows how huge the pool is!

I’ve been in this pool a million times before, but this time, it’s different.  Maybe it’s because nearly one million gallons of water are missing!  In my 21 years at the stadium only a handful of times has it been empty of water.  Seems at lot bigger from this vantage point.

In preparation for a spectacular new show in 2010, Beluga Stadium is getting an overhaul.   We are applying a refresh coat of paint and making some minor repairs.  In addition to the paint job we have refreshed the back wall and will install new scenery.   After all, it’s been 10 years since the premiere of VIVA! and it’s about time for a face lift.  And we have a good one planned for our guests!

Aside from the physical changes to the stadium, we are currently in the creative stage of producing a new show.  It has been fun listening to newly composed music and brainstorming the choreography of the beluga whales and Pacific white-sided dolphins.  There’s a lot to think about.  Behaviors are timed down to the second with the music.  Logistics of animals and people must be thought out so that the show flows.  The bulk of the work has yet to be done.  Once the pool is again full of water, we can start rehearsing.  We plan to use the month of January to concentrate on rehearsing with the animals and then in February our human acrobats (including the return of the ever-popular “Chad, the funny guy”) will be added to the rehearsals.  I’m looking forward to seeing what evolves.

ViVA refresh 1

No VIVA! shows this holiday but be sure to check out the holiday themed shows "Shamu's Christmas Miracles" and "Deck the Halls with Clyde and Seamore."

Be sure to stop by and see the new show in 2010.  It’s gonna be great!

Continued success and blessings,

Chuck Cureau


 

Moving Time: SeaWorld Trainer Moves to New Waters


November 10, 2009 by TriciaDees • 7 Comments » Posted in Around the Park, animals

To be a great trainer, I need to be able to train a variety of animals through a variety of techniques.  A perfect trainer at SeaWorld can work both pinnipeds (seals, sea lions, and walruses) and cetaceans (whales and dolphins.)

To this example, I have been moved around a bit in my animal training career at SeaWorld San Antonio.  I started as an apprentice at Shamu Theater, then worked at Beluga Stadium seven years ago.  After one year working in the Interaction Programs, I have been at the Sea Lion Stadium for the last five years.

I recently found out that I’m moving back to Beluga Stadium.  I look forward to starting anew and getting to know all of the new animals I will be working with.  I will miss the animals at Sea Lion Stadium, and I will always remember driving the sea lions around on the cart, teaching some of them to paint and of course, the animal I have worked with the longest, Spanky, the sea lion.

These animals are more than co-workers sometimes and I hope the bond we have with them is conveyed when guests see the shows.  I attached one of my favorite pictures of my times at Sea Lion Stadium, and look forward to capturing memories with my new co-workers.

One of my favorite moments at Sea Lion Stadium

One of my favorite moments at Sea Lion Stadium

Let me know if there are any interesting things you would like to know about my new venture at Beluga Stadium.

Tricia