tara yack is a structural engineer from denver, colorado. tara, do you do most of your work in an office at a drawing board, or do you get out in the field a lot? most of it is in a cubicle behind a computer. however, i do get to go out into the field and work on existing sites and greenfield sites. so every once in a while i get to go out. good for you. terrific. luke devlin, from bronxville, new york. yes. i want to hear about a teacher you had in high school. we had our teachers tournament recently. yeah. and that's our annual tribute to teachers. sure. but you had a different kind of teacher. he was a liar. well, he was a wonderful teacher. he was a liar.

and he will dispute this when he sees it, but he would tell these amazing old stories growing up in brooklyn, and he was the track coach as well. and i had him for three years taking latin. and we, at the end, when he retired, my friends and i compiled a full list of all the lies he had told for the three years that we had him. and presented it to him much to his chagrin as he said, "they're all true." he contested the lie. [ laughter ] interesting story. yes. josh hill, you're a soccer fan. english premier league soccer fan. which team? tottenham hotspur football club. now the past year was a good one for manchester city. for years and years and years, you know, manchester united was top of the line. and now all of a sudden, manchester city. what about the hotspurs? how are they doing? well, we have a new coach that came in about five years ago and has really turned the team around. we went from being, you know, mid-table, europa league. we've been champions league two years in a row. we're going to the knockout stage and, you know, we're just moving forward. building a new stadium.

new stadium will open next fall. okay, all right. good for you. let's get back to this. luke got himself out of the hole. he's on the plus side with $400. make a selection. serve you well for $600. luke. -what is "the tempest"? -that's it. $800, serve you well. tara. what is "the jewel of the nile?" no, sorry. josh. what is "the pink panther"? no. [ beep ] oh, what is one of my favorites when i was a kid, "the moonstone." exciting. luke, back to you. serve you well for $1,000. [ beep ] that would be "the admirable crichton." luke, we're back to you. you'll understand better -- $600.

answer there -- daily double. [ applause ] true daily double. all right, for the lead... what is love conquers all? you got it, and we have less than a minute to go now. [ applause ] pick again. better for $800. josh. -what is cordon bleu? -correct. in general, $800. if you're the kind of person who just doesn't get it, you're this, also a geometric term for this angle. -luke. -what is obtuse? -right. -in general, $1,000. tara. what is bp? good, you're on the plus side again. trust us! for $800.

luke. -what is "assassin's creed"? -yes. you'll understand it better, $1,000. luke. -what is basta? -right. trust us! -- $1,000. -luke. -who is robin williams? he's the one. [ beep beep beep ] and with that, you add to your lead. you're at $5,600. tara going first to start us off in double jeopardy! after this break. [ applause ] >> make-up done in the dark. >> let's ♪ from the start, the c-class was ahead of its time. [ indistinct radio chatter ]

still, we never stopped making it stronger. faster. smarter. because to be the best, is to never ever stop making it better. introducing the new c-class. visit your local mercedes-benz dealer for exclusive offers. ♪

♪ connecting people... ...uniting the world. ♪♪ closed captioning sponsored in part by... for some reason, a slow start for our players today on "jeopardy!" but, tara, you get to go first and select from these categories. ooh... but be nice.

...comes next, followed by... and finally, we want you to... each correct response will begin with a "p" or a "q," but not necessarily in that order. -off you go. -"p"s & "q"s, $400. josh. what is a quill? what is a quill or a pen? all right, we'll accept it. remember, there are two. two things coming up in each correct response. -go again. -band math, $400. luke. what is 38? that's it. 40 minus 2. band math, $800. josh. what is 30? 30, 9 and 21. dimes, $400. here's jimmy to start off the category... the arrows around 1853 on the dime on the right

show it contained less of this element, which was reduced that year due to a rise in its price. -luke. -what is silver? yes. band math, $1,200. answer -- daily double. and you have a $3,000 lead at the moment. [ applause ] $3,000. okay, here is the clue in band math... what is 16? 16, 4 times 4. [ applause ] you're off to a great start. go again. band math, $1,600. [ beep ] 5 times 5 is 25. luke. math, $2,000. josh. what is 205? yes, 41 times 5. historical fiction, $400.

[ beep ] that would be john brown. josh, back to you. give us the bird, $400. tara. -what is an ostrich? -yes. give us the bird, $800. -tara. -what are pigeons? -right. -give us the bird, $1,200. ...these. josh. -what are flamingos? -no. -tara. -what are egrets? yes, they send their egrets. -[ chuckles ] -give us the bird, $1,600. tara. -what is a cuckoo? -good. give us the bird for $2,000.

josh. -what is throater? -no. luke or tara? [ beep ] what is sapsucker? tara, back to you. um, planet of the capes, $400. josh. what is the kennedy space center? -yes. -planet of the capes, $800. mexico's resort region of cabo san lucas is found at the southern tip of this peninsula. -josh. -what is baja california? -you are right. -capes, $1,200. luke. -what is grey nose? -yes. historical fiction, $800. -josh. -what is the civil war?

no. luke or tara? [ beep ] -luke. -what is world war ii? fiction, $1,200. josh. -who is lindberg? -correct. dimes, $800. tara. -what are flags? -no. -luke. -what are stars? -yeah. -planet of the capes, $1,600. the gaelic songs and poems of malcolm gillis praised the landscape of cape breton in this canadian province. -josh. -what is nova scotia? -that's it. -capes, $2,000. josh. -what is dakar? -yeah. "p"s & "q"s, $800.

tara. -what is a pop quiz? -right. "p"s & "q"s, $1,200. different designs on various pieces of cloth all sewn together give this warmer its name. -tara. -what is a patchwork quilt? yeah. "p"s & "q"s, $1,600. josh. -what is a printing queue? -yes. "p"s & "q"s, $2,000. luke. -what is quantum physics? -yes. dimes, $1,200. liberty on the 1796-1807 draped bust dime was based on a sketch by this george washington portraitist. -josh. -who is stuart? gilbert stuart, correct. dimes, $1,600. less than a minute to go now, and you found the other daily double. [ applause ] you have been trailing throughout the match. $4,800.

okay. here is the clue... who is franklin delano roosevelt? who's on the dime, yes. [ applause ] pick again. fiction, $1,600. [ beep ] that would be king john. josh, two clues left. fiction, $2,000. josh. what is spain? right, now the last clue. the 1916-1945 dime known as this actually showed lady liberty with wings symbolizing freedom of thought.

[ beep ] and that is known as the mercury dime. all right, josh in the lead. final jeopardy! coming up with this category for you -- greek mythology. think about it. clue in a moment. moderate-to-severe eczema, or atopic dermatitis, you never know how your skin will look. and it can feel like no matter what you do, you're itching all the time. but even though you see and feel your eczema on the surface of your skin, an overly sensitive immune system deep within your skin might actually be causing your eczema. so help heal your skin from within. with dupixent. dupixent is not a steroid, and it continuously treats your eczema even when you can't see it. at 16 weeks, more than 1 in 3 patients saw clear or almost clear skin, and patients saw significant reduction in itch. do not use if you are allergic to dupixent. serious allergic reactions can occur. tell your doctor if you have new or worsening eye problems, including eye pain or changes in vision.

if you have asthma, and are taking asthma medicines do not change or stop your asthma medicine without talking to your doctor. help heal your skin from within. ask your eczema specialist about dupixent. help heal your skin from within. ♪ she's doing it again no cover up spray here... it's the irresistibly fresh scent of febreze air effects. cheaper aerosols can cover up odors, burying the smell in a flowery fog. switch to febreze air effects! febreze eliminates even the toughest odors from the air. and it uses an all-natural propellant to leave behind a pleasant scent you'll love. use anywhere odors can spread. freshen up, don't cover up. febreze air effects.

welcome to emirates mr. jones. just sit back, relax and let us entertain you... ...with over 3,500 channels of entertainment, including the latest movies and box sets from around the world. ( ♪ ) we even have live sports and news channels. ( ♪ ) and your free wi-fi will start shortly. enjoy your flight mr. jones. world's best inflight entertainment.

fly emirates. fly better. world's best inflight entertainment. greek mythology is the subject, players. here's your clue...

you have 30 seconds. good luck. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ tara, we come to you first. you had $5,400, and let's see what you came up with for your final. ooh. [ laughter ] ohh, you are so close. so close. but we just can't give it to you. so let's see what it costs you. nothing. all right, good for you. now we come to luke devlin, had $13,400. he came up -- "who are casper the friendly ghost and pollux?" nope, that won't do it. ooh, it cost you a lot of money.

you're down to $100. now we come to josh hill. this was a tough one, but he came up with phobos, phobos -- the greek word for "fear, phobia." and deimos is right. yes. hey, you're gonna add money -- $9,801. that takes you up to $26,801. your average has gone up again. you're at... ...for just six days. we're going. see you tomorrow. ♪

♪ ♪ connecting people... ...uniting the world. ♪♪

>> as soon as i get out onstage, i'm free, i'm happy, i'm dancing. i'm doing the one thing in the world that i've always wanted to do, and that i hope to continue to do for the rest of my life. >> being in the air, i feel like i'm free. that's what tramp wall is all about to me. it's just finding my freedom. >> just being able to, like, do music for a living is my freedom, you know what i mean? yeah. super cool. >> it's just "finding your free," being free, being who you are. >> i think, for me, it's to let go of all masks and ways of hiding yourself and accept it's just me, and that i'm showing myself as i am in front of 3,000 people. i think, for me, that's "finding my free." >> ♪ something has changed within me ♪ ♪ ♪ nothing will ever be the sa-a-me ♪ ♪ and i'm sending you a sign

♪ ohh >> ♪ ahh >> ♪ whoa-a >> abc7 presents "finding your free"... volta, by cirque du soleil. >> the crux of volta is to find self-acceptance, to believe who you are, and be brave enough to say to the world, "this is who i am." i think we all should celebrate who you are and be proud of who you are. every time we create a new show, the starting point is, "what have we not done before?" and volta came out of the idea of, "we've never done something with street sports," parkour, bmx, disciplines that have come out of urban life that didn't exist before. they've always existed, but we've never tried to put them on a stage. that was the idea of the

acrobatic content, but on every cirque show, you have a human, universal message that parallels the acrobatics. so what is it that these guys that do the bmx, the parkour, and all these kind of disciplines, what is it that makes them very special, very different? so it was that idea. "okay, these people all have a certain sense of freedom. so what is it that brings that?" and that's how we came to have the central character as somebody who is looking for self-realization and accepting himself. because the common thread for all these athletes that we had at the beginning when we first started this was they just love life, and they love finding anything that expresses who they are. >> volta is the show that is taking cirque du soleil into a brand-new direction. we have incorporated action sports and a super-theatrical element to the show that follows

the story line of my character, waz. >> the character starts off in a tv reality show, and he's extremely talented. but he has spent his whole life hiding his blue hair. he has blue feathers for hair. >> and that, in our show, is a metaphor for the thing that is different and the thing that we don't fully accept about ourselves. it's about self-acceptance and self-love for the things that make you different. so waz goes on this journey to find himself, and in finding himself, he meets the free spirits, and the free spirits are the people of the world. we know them, and we see these people who are kind of careless when it comes to trying to conform to society's wants and needs. they are the comfortable people in the world who are okay with being themselves, and love themselves for being the different person that they are. and they teach waz to do the same thing for himself, and, you know, it's a story of "finding your free."

[ electronic music plays, vocalizing ] i'm really proud to be the character in this show that helps tell the story of self-acceptance and self-love because i'm still going through that myself, and i think every artist is always going through that. hell, any human is going through that. we all have those things that we have. we all have our metaphorical blue feathers that we need to get over and to accept so that we can fully be ourselves and be happy with that. >> ♪ to fight the dream ♪ we stand >> [ vocalizing ] [ cheers and applause ] ♪ >> the role of the artistic director, it's unique in this industry, because i've been in this industry for many, many years, making sure that we tell the story so the audience understand it and we get the

right reaction, managing the workload of the artist. because artists certainly are not like a lot of normal people. they're all overachievers, so you have to hold them back a little bit to make sure that they can manage 8, 9, 10 shows a week. and i think the most rewarding part is the psychological support that they need. they're doing incredibly difficult and dangerous things on the stage, so, you know, there's days when we all feel fragile, we all feel human, we never feel at our best, we're never ready for anything, and so helping people get to that point where they feel that, to deliver the performance that we need them to deliver, is also part of it. ♪ i think it's a feel-good show. we have, you know, certain shows in our repertoire -- darker, more dramatic, more theatrical. this is just feel-good. the bmx act, it's just extraordinary. you cannot -- [laughs] you

cannot sit quietly in your seat. and it comes just after the central character has just danced his...off and put it all out there for the whole world to see. and then he goes into this celebration of life. it's energizing. even if i've been working on the show for two years now, at the end of the evening, when i watch the show, i'm still energized. i still go home on a high because i think it still delivers. >> oh, the company manager on any of our shows is like a band leader. so you have to orchestrate to making sure that everything happens at the right time, at the same time, and it happens properly -- supporting the artistic team or the technical team to achieve trainings on the show, planning mid- to long-term about where we're gonna go and how we're gonna transport all the equipment to another city, supporting the day-to-day onsite with all the staff, but also all the guests that come to see us

night after night. so it's a little bit of a juggling act between all those aspects. we have 2,000 tons of equipments that we transport from any cities. it takes roughly two days to pack this equipment in 70 trucks. so once we arrive in the other city, it takes five days to rebuild this little village. with volta, we are 125 touring members, roughly 40% artists, 60% technicians and support staff. we're coming from 25 different countries around the world. but, also, there's family members that follow the tours, and there's roughly 20 family members that follow their partners on tour. i've been with the company for i started as a salesperson in the merchandising counters, and also had the chance to work a couple of years at head office as an executive of the company, following the activities of touring shows. the company has more than 4,000

employees and artists now these days, but when you come to the site, it's just a small village. so it's a big family. we live very closely to each other. it's a beautiful lifestyle to discover new cities, new countries, to discover how people live. it's one of the things that i love the most when i go to a city, is to get to know people and to know who they are and what they loves and what's the characteristic of each cities and the people that are living there. ♪ ♪ >> well, marie-lee and i are acrobatic partners. hand on the unicycle." i lift her, i throw her, i catch her while i'm on a unicycle. >> we mix two discipline, which is unicycle and hand-to-hand,

and then we mix them together. so not many do it, just us. ♪ >> we've been working together for eight years now, and we've been doing a lot of production with the company over the past six years. >> yeah, and we always work together, so we always have this act that we adapt to a show, and we -- >> she's stuck with me. >> yeah. [ laughs ] basically. ♪ >> ♪ happens to be, and it let's me go-o ♪ >> i have to trust him 'cause he carry me, sometimes he throw me and hopefully catch me. i don't think you can perform every night and do this without >> if she doesn't trust on me, she's not gonna do her movement so efficient and, like, yeah, in a perfect way, and it's gonna be harder for me, so it's just a way to like -- we just need to let it go and do our part as good as we can and just trust

the other one is gonna do his part as good as he can, and it usually works. >> [ singing indistinctly ] ♪ >> our act is the first image of "find your free," the first free spirit act. >> it's like a very playful act, so we can play for real, and we can talk to the public. we can play with them and have an interaction. so this is like, if one day i want to do this interaction, i can do it, and i can change it the next day, and it's gonna be totally different, which is very interesting for us. ♪ >> ♪ ohhhhhhh >> so, we both like to push our limits, and this is... i think that's why we like to work with each other, because we are like, "my god, we want to do this, this, this, this," and nobody's gonna, like, put each other down. >> yeah. >> so that's why our chemistry works very well, because we want to do more all the time. because when we were little, we were like, "oh, we want to do this, this, this!" and we never gave up. i really love to be onstage, and

cirque just makes it very easy for us, so we don't have to care about traveling, about food, about lodging. so, for me, i really like that. i can just do my job, can just be onstage and enjoy. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ >> the music has an electro-pop feel. it's very modern. it's very contemporary. we're appealing to a younger audience. we're reaching to the new generation so that cirque can continue to thrive in the future. ♪ ♪ >> so, we're here on the band pit. we're on the left band pit. we have two here on volta. we split the musicians. we have five of us. we have myself. we have a drummer who sits here next to me. and then, on the other side, we

have a guitarist, a female singer who plays violin, and a male singer. the music of volta is composed by anthony gonzalez, who's from the band m83 -- french composer. and it's different to other cirque du soleil shows. it's definitely got a greater kind of electronic-commercial-pop vibe, which is the background that he's really coming from, but it's also got a really strong orchestral theme running through it, as well. so it's very grand, very epic, but definitely a very strong electronic element, which is kind of a new thing for cirque du soleil. every show that we play, it's a different show. we modify the music that we play to the act on the night, to the acrobats. obviously, their timing is gonna be slightly different from night to night. they might have different tricks. they might do things in a different order, so it's our job to really follow them, make sure we accent the action, when they do a big trick. >> you know, things are changing all the time, and that's actually really fun for us, considering the fact that we play for like two hours a day. and if you're playing the same thing for two hours a day, every day, that can get a little bit

monotonous, but, for us, it's super cool because things are changing all the time, which is really fun. >> so, we have bass guitar i play in this pit, the saxophones, and three keyboards in addition to my workstation here. so, with the keyboards, obviously playing them during the show. this is a synthesizer -- play a lot of the bass parts. main keyboard -- lot of the piano parts and everything else. and then, on top, we have what i use as a controller keyboard, so i actually use that to cue different scenes. >> i'm the guitarist, but i also play a little bit of secondary keys in the show, yeah. >> i'm playing drums in the show, so i'm using a mixture of acoustic drums and electronic pads. the sound of the show is quite modern, so i'm using a lot of electronic sounds in conjunction with the acoustic sounds to develop a bit of a hybrid. >> it's very high-energy, for sure, but it also has a lot of sort of low-energy parts. like, some parts of the show are

very intimate and kind of soft, you know, like in the flatland bmx and ballet part. the music's very, very intimate and draws you in. [ crowd cheering, soft music plays ] so, we met in montreal, and then we were given, like, samples of music. you know, anthony would have like a demo built up and he'd have an idea about what he wanted, and then we would be left to rehearse the music for awhile and come up with our own stuff, and it was quite collaborative, actually, in terms of fitting in live music into the more, like, synthesis kind of sound which anthony has. [ guitar solo ] so, i'm quite lucky in the sense that my instrument allows me to move around. there's a couple of songs where i'm actually able to go out onstage, which is super cool. it's really fun for me. like, you kind of get the best worlds, of being kind of nice and hidden away and you can kind of work away underneath the stage, and then you also get the chance to kind of be out in front of people, and you see

people's reactions, which is super unique. [ crowd cheering ] ♪ >> it's a lot of fun. i mean, for me, being in a band for cirque du soleil has been a dream since i was about 10 years old. the most exciting thing is, the music is part of something bigger, that you're one element of so many other things that are going on, but you're helping to make this incredible experience for the audience. so everyone in the band is working really hard, everyone onstage is working really hard, everyone behind the scenes is working really hard, and it all comes together to create this unique environment and performance you won't see anywhere else. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ [ ethereal music plays ]

♪ ♪ >> the discipline is called "hair hanging," or "hair suspension." the name of my act here is called "mirage," and it's basically the art of hanging by your hair and doing something with it -- because just hanging would be weird, right? -- and transforming it into an act. >> [ singing in foreign language ] >> for a long time, i have friends that learned the discipline around me, and it really didn't interest me, but then, two years ago, i decided to try to make my set of skills a little bit larger in the circus world and also to combine with other disciplines like dance and music. ♪ so, the act was created and choreographed by me. my hair i just have to keep as healthy as i can. [ laughs ] not doing anything crazy with it -- no dyeing, no hair heating, styling tools, or

anything like that. it take about 15 to 20 minutes -- i do it on my own -- and also 10 minutes to undo the whole thing. i do put a little bit of cream on my baby hairs [laughs] so they don't get too crazy. but it's just that, a metal ring, and a string. ♪ i think that's the best part, the connection that we get. even with me in closed eyes at beginning of the act, i can hear everything in the room. it's almost like the air is so dense that we are all connected. it's beautiful. ♪ [ cheers and applause ] >> it's called "shape diving." it's one of the acts in the second part of the show, and it's where waz realizes his free spirit. we have a moment in the beginning where's he's gray and one of the contestants in our show, and then slowly, as the

show unfolds, it's like he's becoming more of a free spirit. the costumes change. they're more colorful, and now he's actually diving through the hoops with us, so it's kind of a big moment. [ cheers and applause ] this act, there's different variations of how hoop diving -- that's the original art form, chinese art form. and i know there's a few other shows that have hoop diving in it, but i've seen them all, and i feel like this one pumps me up the most, and i'm just so glad that i got to be a part of this one. [ rhythmic clapping ] [ cheers and applause ] basically, it's like just tumbling, ground tumbling, but we've managed to put a twistwits are spinning. we start off with like two hoops, and it's not that high off the ground, and then, as the tricks get harder, you add a hoop. and it's like something the audience can really latch on to because it's very basic in terms of, "how high can they jump? how are they gonna be able to get through that hoop and not hit them?" and make the crowd

really riled up so that we can get through, like, the tallest hoop. we usually practice with hula hoops just because you can make lots of mistakes and it doesn't hurt as much, but the hoops that we use onstage, they're like carbon-fiber. they're, like, really strong. every time you hit them, you're possibly gonna get injured, so you have to be very precise. and if you have a new trick in the show, you have to do like 10 out of 10 before you can put it in the show. and we're always kind of trying to encourage one another to put new tricks in. the adrenaline, for me, has always been like a plus when yoe hoops that are very high. you have to be able to jump as high as you can, but, at the same time, when you're doing all of the little intricate movements around the hoops, if you have too much adrenaline, that can, like, mess you up and give you too much power. [ cheers and applause ] you need to be able to give the precise amount of energy with your arms to be able to twist and make it so that you go and stay at the same level.

you have to really control it. you have to control all the tumbling so that you stay in that small target zone. my siblings are also hoop divers. one of my sisters, she was also hoop diving as we were younger, but now she's a physical therapist. but my other two siblings, they were just in the show luzia with cirque du soleil. we just all did it since we were little kids, so we naturally got good at it, and then to be able to perform, it's pretty cool. [ rhythmic clapping ] [ cheers and applause ] ♪ ♪ >> the costumes, everything is made from scratch. every piece of fabric is dyed. it's dyed in montreal at the workshop. you try it, you put it under the lights. [ groans ] doesn't work, start again. it's all that. it's the striving for excellence. nobody gives up till we've done the best we can do. >> on the team, there is my two

assistant and myself that are permanent with the tour, and, each city, i hire four local staff to do the prep, to help do all the repairs for the costume, the steaming, ironing that we need for the night. and then we need two dresser for the show to help with quick-change with the cast and then do the laundry after the show. for the costume, i would say the creating process start about a year before we start having the shows. the designer for this show was zaldy. he worked previously with cirque for michael jackson one and the the michael jackson tour. he also created the costume for lady gaga. all the costumes are built in montreal, and after that, we receive them, but we also need to fit them. if we have artist change, we need to come and fix some costume, change them so they can fit the artist, and then we maintain everything as soon as on the road. like, almost everything get washed every night. >> ♪ mm, mm, mm, mm, mm >> so, they wanted to have a really distinct feature of the character, and they came up with blue-feather wigs. all the feathers are glued one

by one [chuckles] by someone in montreal, yeah, which make it easy on us to fix them, so we can glue feather back when they're falling or something like that. there's about 1,500 feathers per wig. they're quite resistant. like, we can wash and maintain them quite easily, and it's good. >> every artist that comes into cirque has to do makeup, and they learn how to do their makeup by themselves so that they can do it every day before the show. of course, none of us are makeup artists, so we figure it out as we go along, and in doing so, we figure out new makeup techniques and makeup skills, and our skill of that just gets better because we're doing it every single day. my makeup in this show, it takes about 25 to 30 minutes. the other cirque show that i was in had extensive, crazy makeup, and that, at first, took me about three and a half hours, but that's because i was brand-new to makeup. by the end of the two and a half years that i was on that show, i got it down to about an hour,

hour 10 minutes. and, you know, people think, "oh, my gosh! that's so long to be doing makeup!" you find therapy within it, you know? it's almost like taking an hour out of your day to do an art project. i'd say one of my favorite parts of this makeup are where i cover under my eyes so that my little baggies go away. that's where we fool the audience. we come to my favorite part of he makeup, when my eyebrows turn blue. ♪ all right. time to get "wiggy" with it. ♪ >> ♪ happens to be all the harder next day ♪ >> [ clicks tongue ] all ready. ♪ ♪

♪ >> our act is a mix of trampoline-wall, parkour-style acrobatics, and we're jumping literally from the height of a one-story house onto a trampoline and flipping right back up. it's just an adrenaline-pumped show. kids love it, adults love it. it's just great for all ages. honestly, if you've never seen it before, you're just gonna be wowed. >> our act is one of the cool, unique ones where the set actually goes all the way downstage in front of the audience, and it rotates. it's on casters, so it can do a full 360-degree spin. just a really cool vibe to be able to see everyone's reaction. it's just a lot of high energy, and it's a fun, beautiful thing to watch. [ cheers and applause ] ♪

♪ ♪ we all started creating the act in montreal. took us three weeks to kind of get started, and we were constantly re-creating different sequences to try and one-up each other's level. it's just a fun team-building environment. >> we all started at the very amateur level. learning just how to run up the wall itself is a task and a half, so really lots and lots of training. and then when you get into the sequences with other people, that takes even more just getting used to who you're jumping with. >> when you're at extreme heights on a trampoline, it's all about technique, so when you land on your back, we're wanting to make sure our head touches the same time our back does so, that way, your body's weight and your mass is spread throughout the trampoline a little more evenly. we have to learn to absorb on the walls. soon as we rebound, we're actually pushing ourselves, projecting away from where we want to be, which is close to the wall. so it just -- it takes time and

training and, yeah, lots of hours put in to make sure we're accurate with what we do. >> there's lots of training on the trampoline, acrobatic-wise, as well as off the trampoline, in the gym. just injury prevention, anything you can do helps. lot of teamwork, a lot of trust in each other. like, if i'm scared to do a trick, and i'm a little worried about it, and i look at derrick here, and he's like, "you know what, sam? you got it. like, i wouldn't tell you you got it if you don't." and it's like just that little bit of encouragement really helps. volta is a great show with a great message. i really relate to it because, you know, as i was coming out when i was younger, i mean, i went through that. i was waz, the main character, and seeing that onstage is kind of nice for me, and if i'd seen that when i was younger, maybe it would've helped inspire me to come out a little sooner. >> it's just that sensation of living in the moment. when you're onstage, in those five minutes that i have during that act, time isn't there, really.

you're just kind of showing the audience what you've been training -- for me, my whole life. [ cheers and applause ] >> if you're doing the thing you love, like genuinely love, the thing that you're passionate about, then you're always gonna feel that sense of freedom. >> it's an incredible feeling. when you're in the middle of the show and you see all of the elements coming together and you realize that you're helping to create that, it's an incredibly freeing experience. >> ultimately, an audience coming to a cirque du soleil show, it's about the whole experience. it's about watching the acrobatics, being touched by the emotion, and the audio and the production and the lighting and everything supporting the action. so it all comes down to, how do you balance all those elements? and when you find that balance, you get gold. [ "to the stars" plays ] [ cheers and applause ]

♪ >> ♪ na ♪ na-na, na-na, na ♪ na, na, na, na, na, na ♪ na-na, na-na, na ♪ na, na, na, na, na, na ♪ na-na, na-na, na by living off the grid. completely. or... just set the washing machine to cold. do your thing. with energy upgrade california.

so you need people that it iyou're close to...r footing, to help guide you. i think about how important it was for me to have the role models i've had. oh, look at that! i wasn't able to get there alone. he essentially plucked me out of obscurity. he's the one who said, "hey man, this is your life, this is what you need to do." nobody can do it alone. the more help you can get along the way, the faster you can achieve your goals. i'm in it to fly. ...to help people achieve their dreams. ...to speak for those who can not. whatever you're in it for... ...we're in it together.

>> being on the blockers is something that i don't regret at all. the only downside to it was i didn't have enough growth down below so there wasn't enough tissue to work with when it came to the surgery. it was very challenging to find a doctor, a surgeon be willing to perform the operation on me just because i'm such a difficult case. >> reporter: jazz and her family sought a brand-new ground breaking technique. >> they're using the peritoneum. it's going to be like a patchwork va genuine fla, franken vagina. sploongs it's functional is all that matters. >> reporter: she hopes that if successful, it will pave the way for the next generation of trans girls did seek sag the same procedure. one that would come with complications.

so you need people that it iyou're close to...r footing, to help guide you. i think about how important it was for me to have the role models i've had. oh, look at that! i wasn't able to get there alone. he essentially plucked me out of obscurity. he's the one who said, "hey man, this is your life, this is what you need to do." nobody can do it alone. the more help you can get along the way, the faster you can achieve your goals. i'm in it to fly. ...to help people achieve their dreams. ...to speak for those who can not. whatever you're in it for... ...we're in it together.

♪ ♪ connecting people... ...uniting the world. ♪♪

. "nightline" continues. juju chang reporting. >>. >> it's been a grueling five hours and transadvocate jazz jennings just completed her gender confirmation surgery. >> we have news. >> we have news. >> yes. >> it's a girl. >> it's a girl! >> her parents right thrust anxiously waiting the news. >> i love you so much. >> i woke up the morning of the surgery and i don't think i've ever been that happy in my entire life. it was just like pure positive energy. >> how are you feeling? >> it's been nine weeks since her surgery and we head to florida to visit her at home. >> good. >> while she's now on her way to a full recover recovery, getting there has not been easy. >> there was a complication. i had another procedure but it was all part of the journey.

it was only cosmetic and external. so it wasn't too dramatic. >> your life was never in danger. >> no, my life wasn't in danger. >> through the ups and downs, jazz's parents have been a constant source of support. >> the whole point of pride in your home. >> yes, yes, one of the proudest days ever is when a president tells their 14-year-old they're proud of her. >> the one thing we learned early about jazz is that she was very articulate and determined it was difficult to not share her with the world. >> reporter: in many ways she's still that will girl we first met a decade ago but now at 18, the transchild advocate is transitioning to transadult. tackling the harsh realities in her community, discrimination in the workplace, unemployment, homelessness, even higher rates of murder. >> do you see yourself continuing to you know, carry the banner for transrights? >> more and more i'm thinking about just continuing my advocacy.

my passion is reinvig straighted for equality for everyone. and if we could just embrace the variety of who we are and all of our differences and come together with new ideas and ways of thing ipging, are then i think this world can be a beautiful place. ♪ my own little corner in my own little claire ♪ >> for a girl who sang about cinderella. ♪ whatever i want to be on the wings of my fancy ♪ >> jazz is one step closer to that fairy tale ending. ♪ world will open its arms to me ♪ >> thank you for joining us tonight on this special ve" right here on abc and " online our

sfx: stair creak sfx: clink sfx: deep breath sfx: grunt sfx: tinny headphone music sfx: feet shuffling sfx: slice sfx: gasp sfx: inhale. exhale. sfx: lights scraping on roof sfx: metallic scrape sfx: grunt covered california. it's more than just health care. it's life care.