A behind-the-scenes look at Cirque du Soleil's Quidam

Spending 46 weeks a year on the road working 12-hour days away from friends and loved ones may not sound too appealing to most.

However, Adam Kendrick, stage manager for Cirque du Soleil's Quidam (pronounced "key dam"), told SooToday.com that such a life has lead him to adopt a new family - his Cirque family.

"We eat together, we work together, we hang out together, we travel together. It really is one big happy Cirque du Soleil family," he said. "It's a really great company to work for. They take very good care of us all."

The 25-year-old from Hopewell, Virginia began travelling throughout South and North America with Quidam in August of 2010 after working on Cirque shows in Las Vegas.

His degree in stage management from Virginia Tech has afforded him the ability to ensure that everything goes off without a hitch, the safety of the artists being paramount.

Thankfully, there's more than one of him as endless checklists guide Kendrick and another stage manager through the process while the general stage manager oversees the production and its execution.

His job can be exhausting.

"The hardest part is knowing everything about the show and everyone involved, and there's 102 of us," he told us. "I also have to know those involved locally. [For example], if an artist doesn't have hot water in their dressing room, I need to know who to see about that."

But the tasking job of stage managing a production of this size and caliber is also educational and extremely exciting.

Kendrick said he enjoys being in a different city every week where he can meet new people, see the sights, and soak up the local culture.

Working with Cirque artists from across the globe, learning their languages, and forming life-long friendships also make the 10-week stints away from home worth while.

Plus, he gets to see an astounding Cirque du Soleil show every night, something Kendrick says he'll never grow tired of.

He's especially fond of the routines that close Acts 1 and 2 of Quidam.

Without giving too much away, he told us those portions demonstrate amazing skill, agility and teamwork.

"They really are quite jaw-dropping."

The show portrays the story of a young girl, alone and ignored, who slips into a dream reality where she learns to free herself from anonymity.

"In a sense, it's very much like Alice in Wonderland," Kendrick said.

Quidam comes to Sault Ste. Marie for seven performances at the Essar Centre from May 10 through 13.

For show times and ticket information, please click here.

"We're very excited to come to Sault Ste. Marie because Cirque du Soleil has never been there before," Kendrick concluded. "We hope Sault Ste. Marie is excited to have us."