Aurora spiegeltent rises again for three-week performance in Hobart
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A well-travelled wooden tent is once again being assembled in Hobart as part of Tasmania's Ten Days on the Island festival.
The Aurora spiegeltent spent three months at sea as it travelled from Holland to Australia in September last year.
Since then it has travelled the country in pieces, by boat and rail, to be reassembled at each new destination.
Owner Thijs Vasser said putting the tent together was a complicated process.
"We always have to fly over here, at least two of us, because otherwise it would be impossible for anybody to build it," he said.
"It's experience, there's some skill involved but it's mostly just you've got to do it once or twice, or in our case a lot of times, before you actually get it."
The Aurora was partially built in the 1920s but the original builder ran out of money and the project was abandoned.
The current owners restored the structure by building a modern frame and using the original interiors.
The name spiegeltent is Dutch for "mirror tent" as the venues are traditionally decorated with glass and mirrors.
Mr Vasser said the finished product was well worth the extra effort.
"It is a bit more expensive than renting a normal marquee but we bring along a bit of beauty and joy and happiness," he said.
"It's a lot different from any other tent you've ever set foot in."
Jess Rankin, the event producer of Spiegeltent Hobart, said the three-week program offered a diverse mix of comedy, cabaret and circus from around the globe.
"I think there's something about having a show in a spiegeltent, that you can't get from any other design or venue," she said.
"They feel very magical, they're a beautiful structure."
Topics: arts-and-entertainment, events, hobart-7000, tas
