Horse Power and Poise in All its Glory

STUNNING STALLIONS: Nine highly trained horses have been flown over from Australia for five New Zealand performances, including one show in Hawke's Bay. Photo / Supplied

Flying nine valuable, dancing stallions from Australia to New Zealand to perform five live shows takes a lot of planning, preparation and care.

 

El Caballo Blanco: The Dance of the White Stallions, is performed in Napier at the Pettigrew Green Arena tonight.

 

"It's a large cost and it's a big logistical thing, you have to think about floats and stables - it's a huge deal to fly horses," owner trainer Rene Gasser said. "We transport them in a special aeroplane that looks like the inside of a very nice horse float - they actually cope fantastically."

Gasser is never far from his beloved horses, making sure he is on the plane when they travel any distance.

"I could not sleep if I was not close at hand," he said.

Each horse also has its own individual minder.

But it is not just the horses that organisers need to think about - 20 tonnes of special 5cm shock-absorbent rubber flooring must be transported and laid out at each venue before the horses arrive, to minimise the risk of injury during the performance.

Each of the stallions owned by Gasser has been individually picked to recreate the riding style of the famous dancing horses, previously only seen in Vienna and Spain.

El Caballo Blanco is Gasser's latest production, which features Andalusian, Friesian and Lipizzaner horses.

Along with dancing stallions, the show will recreate a scene from The Mask of Zorro featuring one of Australia's leading stunt doubles.

Spanish flamenco dancers dressed in authentic, vibrant costumes and the mellow notes of a guitar will help set the mood.

As for how the horses are trained, Gasser gives little away, saying only that horses are in his blood.

"I come from a European background that goes back six generations with horses."

El Caballo Blanco performs at the Pettigrew Green Arena, today from 4pm.