Adapting to the waves

Expected to debut this November, the third season of Symphony of the Sea will arrive at Sunset Town in Phú Quốc. To prepare, H2O Events and Sun Group have spent months refining every sequence, position and acrobatic cue. Long after visitors have gone to bed, the performers quietly begin rehearsing, perfecting even the smallest details.

“Champion” athlete Kristina Isaeva interacts with the audience at Kiss Bridge.

These insights come from Kristina Isaeva, the Russian athlete who now manages H2O Events’ flyboard team. Having entered professional flyboarding in 2015, finished runner-up in the Pro division at Fly Fest 2019 and joined H2O Events in 2024, Isaeva acknowledges that Phú Quốc’s open waters present an entirely different challenge.

“Most jet ski and flyboard performers train in freshwater or sheltered reservoirs. In Phú Quốc, we face waves, salt water and strong winds. Those variables make every evening’s performance different,” Isaeva said.

Behind the scenes, performers undergo intensive preparations for the third season of Symphony of the Sea.

To meet these challenges, the team checks weather forecasts daily and schedules rehearsals at different times, exposing performers to a range of demanding conditions to sharpen their responses. Equipment positions are continually adjusted, and performers learn to move with the waves rather than spend their energy fighting them.

This approach turns the conventional logic of stage production on its head. In planning sessions, performers work toward absolute precision in every coordinated movement. Out on the water, however, a plan developed over four months serves only as a starting point. Rehearsals are not about memorizing a single ideal route; they prepare performers to adapt to changing conditions, from wind direction to the timing of an entrance.

A bigger stage and more advanced production

Each athlete’s individual effort reaches its full potential only within an ensemble of matching scale. According to H2O Events Director Dominique Ellison, both the team and its specialized equipment fleet have been expanded across the board for Season 3, with the number of jet skis rising from six to 12 and flyboards from six to eight.

The jet ski fleet for Symphony of the Sea’s third season will double in size from last season.

Nearly 40 H2O Events team members will support the production, with about 26 performing each night. The larger fleet allows the team to make full use of the ocean performance area, so audiences can enjoy spectacular performances from every angle, whether at Sun Bavaria GastroPub or on the beach.

“We bring 110 percent energy and dedication to every performance. Everyone is giving their all to make Symphony of the Sea Season 3 the most extraordinary stage our H2O Events performers have ever been part of,” Ellison said.

The new season of Symphony of the Sea will feature three times as many fireworks as Season 2.

Beyond the speed and acrobatics of jet skis and flyboards, the third season also marks a significant expansion in both performance space and production technology. The water stage will stretch to 200m, nearly three times its previous length, while the floating fireworks platforms will grow from 840sq.m to 3,000sq.m.

The expanded infrastructure will accommodate three times as many fireworks as Season 2. The displays will be designed by China’s renowned Jiangxi Yangfeng Art Display, champion of the 2025 Đà Nẵng International Fireworks Festival (DIFF) and runner-up at DIFF 2026.

Symphony of the Sea’s third season is more than a new edition of the high-adrenaline show that has become a familiar part of a visit to Phú Quốc. It reflects a determination to master new challenges and raise the art of ocean performance, where every wave is studied, every second is carefully measured, and each evening becomes a singular work of art written across the southern island’s sky.