​Cirque Du Soleil Performer Dies In Aerial Stunt During Show

A Cirque du Soleil performer has died after falling during a live show in Tampa, Florida, on Saturday night.

Yann Arnaud, who was an aerialist for Cirque du Soleil, fell 'a dozen or so feet' after losing control of his grip on a strap during the performance of Volta, the Tampa Bay Times reports.

He died from his injuries, a Tampa General spokeswoman confirmed to the newspaper.

"The entire Cirque du Soleil family is in shock and devastated by this tragedy. Yann had been with us for over 15 years and was loved by all who had the chance to know him," Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group president and CEO Daniel Lamarre said.

"Over the coming days and weeks, our focus will be on supporting Yann's family and our employees, especially the VOLTA team, as we go through these difficult times together."

Cirque du Soleil also shared the sad news in a statement posted to its social media channels, and announced that the rest of its Tampa weekend performances had been cancelled.

Instagram/Cirque du Soleil

According to information on Arnaud's Facebook profile, he had worked for Cirque du Soilel since 2016. He was originally from Champigny-sur-Marne in France.

Tributes have been flooding in for the performer, commending Arnaud on his time with Cirque du Soleil.

"Thoughts go to the entire production team working on #Volta and the wider @Cirque family. This is the level of commitment to entertain thousands of people with their talent and dedication," one person wrote.

"My condolences. When an artist passes it's a huge loss for the world. Rest In Peace," another said.

Yann Arnaud/Instagram

One tweeted: "My condolences. I have admired Cirque performers since I was very small. Knowing the attitude of those who commit their lives to Cirque, he truly did die doing what he loved, but it was too soon and he will be missed."

Another tweeter said that a similar incident happened when they saw the show in Portland, adding: "Luckily the person survived that time, but I figured it would happen again someday. So sad."

But Arnaud's death wasn't the first time that a cast member of Cirque du Soleil actually tragically died while on tour.

Back in 2016, the co-founder's son, Olivier Rochette - who was also a technician - was preparing the set in San Francisco for a performance of a show called Luzia, when he was hit by a lift. He later died.

Rest in peace.

Topics: World News, News, Florida, US News

Jess Hardiman

Jess is a journalist at LADbible who graduated from Manchester University with a degree in Film Studies, English Language and Linguistics - indecisiveness at its finest, right there. She also works for FOODbible and its sister page Seitanists, which are both a safe haven for her to channel a love for homemade pasta, fennel and everything else in between. You can contact Jess at [email protected].

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