Juggling Skit

[tim]

Originally Posted by OkiDoki

- In the beginning with one ball you can also do an imitating act with a few volunteers (older kids). You can do things like throwing under the leg, behing your back, bounces on your knees, elbows, headrolls, armrolls etc. etc. use your imagination.

You know, kids really like to try to learn how to juggle. If you don't have too many kids, give each (or all) of them something to try some simple juggling with. They'll really enjoy it!

[OkiDoki]

Like the "pick up and drop". I do a similar kind of thing with the "put on the foot". At the moment the ball is finally on the foot the volunteer is still in bending position this gives me the oportunity to throw a ball away and do a kickup with the ball on the foot ending up with a 3 ball cascade again instaid of a four ball fountain. The volunteer thinks he's done until he sees the cascade. Big fun, but be sure a volunteer can handle such a joke. Your "pick up drop it" is a really nice alternative/addition. I'm going to try this one next gig!

Makes me think right now about another skit like these. When you build up the amount of balls and you go from 2 to 3 balls you could not understand how to do 3 balls with two hands. A solution could be to lent a hand from a volunteer. But understanding it totally? Not yet and do a "pick and drop".

Yep I like doing a mix of performance and workshop at for example birthday partys.
On stage it has to stay entertaining for the audience so I mostly keep it simple and depending on the audience how far to go with it.
Me passing 3 balls, or even better scarves standing side by side or face to face, for with a volunteer is for example sometimes possible on stage. This child will have the moment of his live!

Anyone familiar with juggling on the ground? Great to do on stage. In the beginning when you do it very slow your participants can folow it. And then when it goes quicker one after the other gets lost. Sertainly when you pick them up to the cascade. You could even make it into a little competition on stage. Who will be abble to follow me the longest?

At schools for example it is also nice to bring up teachers on stage to teach them to juggle. Hilarity amongst the children watching their teachers struggle to juggle.

Does any of you also using other juggling equipment like spinning plates, diabolo, balancing, unicycling?

[tim]

Originally Posted by OkiDoki

Does any of you also using other juggling equipment like spinning plates, diabolo, balancing, unicycling?

I use plates. I think it is the favorite item of most kids. I do some balancing. Mostly broom or cane. Still working on hat balancing and club balancing effectively. I can balance a baseball cap on my hand, at least. I also do standard hat tricks. I want to get started at diobolo, but have only dabbled with ones that others have let me use as of yet.

[BennyO]

Oe thing I always love to do is start with 2 balls in the hand and one on the ground. Read down to pick one up a d fr0op another in the process. Sooner or latter some one will come and give you a hand ie Koo hoo ka choo's idea. To get into a cascade I lean over stare at the ball on the ground then my 2 hands. look really puzled then throw the 2 in my hands in the air, lean over pick up the ball and the catch the others to finally start jugglig. I then panic and ask if any one knows how to stop. hehe..

An idea for the book skit is when the clown finally starts juggling he does not know how to stop. The clown holding the book could either closes the book and walk away or gets disstracted. This might force the juggling clown to juggle three in one hand to turn the page. or could try and turn the page with their feet. etc.. onlu to find out they just need to frop the the balls. It could even be a runnign gag where everytime the clown comes out the are juggling. Still doing other stuff ie. brushing teeth, gong to bed...

[tim]

Originally Posted by BennyO

Oe thing I always love to do is start with 2 balls in the hand and one on the ground. Read down to pick one up a d fr0op another in the process. Sooner or latter some one will come and give you a hand ie Koo hoo ka choo's idea. To get into a cascade I lean over stare at the ball on the ground then my 2 hands. look really puzled then throw the 2 in my hands in the air, lean over pick up the ball and the catch the others to finally start jugglig. I then panic and ask if any one knows how to stop. hehe..

I really like that. I think I'm going to steal it from ya!

[Jolly Well]

Unicycle and Diabolo are in my repertoire; I'm going to eventually start some plate spinning - maybe. I don't see where my character has room for it; and my other skills can fill up time well enough.

I'm going to pick up a slack rope this spring/summer (when it gets warm). It'd be nice for outdoor events, and the nature of slackrope just seems to fit into clowning; with the extreme body movements that come with it...

[tim]

Originally Posted by Jolly Well

Unicycle and Diabolo are in my repertoire; I'm going to eventually start some plate spinning - maybe. I don't see where my character has room for it; and my other skills can fill up time well enough.

Could you tell us something of how you routine diabolo, please? It's something I'm intending to start working on adding to my juggling repertoire.

[Jolly Well]

Could you tell us something of how you routine diabolo, please? It's something I'm intending to start working on adding to my juggling repertoire.

Sure thing. I don't know how familiar you are with the terminology or workings of a diabolo; but I'll try to explain well enough to where it doesn't matter. Actual routines will be difficult to post; as it will ultimately come down to your preferences of tricks and such, but here is a basic set-up I use to grab attention at fairs or festivals...

I'll begin with the diabolo. It's great for attracting attention. I'll begin with some basic tosses - not too high; not too low. When people start to gather round, I go on to tell them a bit about what the diabolo is (sometimes it's true, sometimes it's a magical tale); and that the louder they yell, the higher the diabolo will go. I toss higher the more involved they get.

Once they see the basics of it, I start doing some tricks with it. Cradles, or catches, etc (you can find examples here) You can do some whips that look like you are out of control and that the diabolo is going to fly into someone's head at 100 mph. People duck, scream, laugh... Make sure you know how to actually control the diabolo before you do this or you will win the bout by knockout!

After that bit of nonsense I add a second diabolo. I personally like using two different sized diabolos. Around the arm/leg/head/etc looks pretty nice using 2 diabolos; and not as difficult as it seems.
When I'm ready to move on to the more difficult tricks I toss the unwanted diabolo off.

I wrap up the show in a number of different ways. Sometimes simple tricks like putting a ping pong ball in the bell for it to spin; or I'll do a series of my more visually fantastic tricks. A good way to end with the diabolo is to whip catch. As simple as it is - people think it's more difficult than it really is.

Diabolo juggling is easy to do, but great to watch if you know of one or two others that know diabolo. I'd suggest finding a dozen or so tricks that you really enjoy doing and work them into a combo - it'll be easier than it sounds once you start spinning. Once you have a set of tricks, the patter really does come easy for them - it's like a story unfolds for you...

I have a DvD laying around here somewhere that has the basics of beginning Diabolo, that you'd be more than welcome to if you send me an address to ship it to. I can send it to someone at the forum like the prop swap if there'd be someone willing and if you're not comfortable giving out random clowns your address

Just let me know in my clown mail if you're interested...

[OkiDoki]

The basics of diabolo's is far easier to learn then juggling balls. The possibilitys to develope and challenge yourself are enormous. I've seen the developing of new tricks and possibilitys in the diaboloscene going unbelievable fast. Things been seen imposible 10 years ago are normal nowadays like 3-low including tricks, 3 or 4 high with sideswaps, excalibur (working with the diabolo in a horizontal plane), infinite suicides etc,etc.

Anyway here what I do in my diabolo routine:

I like to start with loop-diaboloen, and or using diabolosticks with elastic band instead of rope. (Luke Burrage does a act in which one of the knots of the rope to a sticks gets loose and he continus with only one stick, very funny)

I like to start my diaboloact acting as if I don't have the diabolo in control. You can use great combo's of suns and body moves with an occasional suicide. This works great to perform a total and scary out of control.

Then I do the throwing high and the louder the audience counts to 3 the higher the diabolo will go.

I often continu with a skit in which I take the diabolo to a playground. I let the children tell in what the diabolo will go. I then perform a trick that can be very well associated with the swing,slide,seesaw etc. even a rollercoaster is in my repertoire for the real die-hards. I mostly end up with the merry-go-round with two diabolo's. The small merry-go round around the arms. The fast merry-go-round which is a sprinkler (when you do a stop over with two they will spinn very fast around each other). And where are mum and dad? Sitting on a bench and I do a stall. Brave of you using two different sized diabolos for this Jolly Well. I think it is much easier using same sized ones.