Might I just say how much I despise watching myself perform.  I see the video and all I see is error, error, error, sloppy, sloppy, *vomit*.  However, I received a lot of compliments on my performance, so I figured there must be something redeemable in there.

After seeing it a few times, I attribute my disapproval with the knowledge of my actual choreography.  I know exactly what I want myself to look like, but what I see in my head doesn’t match the video.  So, naturally, the video looks awful to me.

However, I imagine it doesn’t look all that bad to you all.  :P

I’ll let you be the judge.  Here’s the video.

Romance Staff Act – Street Saint

Feel free to leave your comments in the box bellow.  After all, I am my own worst critic, so anything you say can’t be as bad as what I already think!  lol!

Both of which will be the firsts of my career!

I’ve done little performances before, but never in an actual “circus show.”  Never one where I would be working with other, skilled circus performers.  Never one where we have lighting, and posters, and set design, and costumes.

It’s all a bit overwhelming.  But extremely exciting!

It’s been a long time coming, but I’ve finally pieced together a partner acrobatics act with my good friend Alix.  We needed a lot of help and guidance, but we’re really happy with the way it’s turned out.

I’m also working on an act with my staff, which will (quite possibly) involve fire.  We’re still working on the details of how we’re going to set up the stage in preparation for that, but it’s looking like that will come together as well.  In any case, I have a whole non-fire routine worked out, which is exciting in itself.

We’re still rushing to get all of the final show details hammered out (as is normal for any stage show), and we’re all pretty exhausted/stressed.  But I know I’m pumped to perform!

Hope you can make it!

Great news!  My staff has finally come in the mail and I couldn’t be happier with it!

I decided to go with aluminum like my last staff, chameleon, but I wanted a smaller size.  That’s actually the main reason I decided to get it.  Chameleon measures in at 5 feet.  The new staff I had custom cut down to 55 inches (approx. 4.6 feet).

I already decorated the new staff and named it Lil’ Saint after me.

I know, isn’t it cute?

Here are some before and after pictures.

Before:

After:

I’m happy with the way the design came out, although I did mess up a few times in the process.  I tried to get a nice even layer of tape down, but it ended up getting bumpy at certain points.  For the most part, it’s just fine.  And it spins great!

I was actually surprised by how short Lil’ Saint is in comparison to Chameleon.  The extra five inches Chameleon has actually makes a big difference.

It doesn’t seem like all that much in the pictures, but up close, Chameleon seems to dwarf poor Lil’ Saint.  And even working with one and then the other, I notice the vast differences.  Chameleon has better momentum and can pick up more speed since it is larger.  And even though Lil’ Saint’s mid section is marked to be almost exactly the same length as Chameleon’s, the difference in size makes it harder to find the center point on Saint mid-spin.

However, despite this, Lil’ Saint is much easier to maneuver and I can do tricks with zer (yes, Lil’ Saint is gender queer) that I can’t with Chameleon.

Chameleon Update

So here’s what I haven’t told you yet!

As I mentioned in the last post about Chameleon, I had originally decided to deem him (yes, Chameleon is a boy) my practice staff.  However, upon further thought, I decided that this was a terrible idea.

Not that Chameleon isn’t up for the job, but because he’s a bit too… shall we say… rough.  Chameleon, like Lil’ Saint, is made of aluminum, which provides a great, solid feel.  It is also just heavy enough to allow for some great speed.

However, aluminum is also rather hard.  And if you happen to accidentally hit yourself in the leg, arm, head, etc., it hurts quite a bit!  And yes, it does happen occasionally, especially when learning new skills.

A practice staff is, by definition, one that should be one you don’t have to worry about dropping, throwing, or hitting yourself with.  It’s the staff that you can try out all your new tricks with without causing yourself lasting injury.  Aluminum, as you might have guessed, is not the best material for this.

PVC, however, is great for this!  PVC can hurt if you hit yourself hard enough with it, but it won’t cause too much pain.  It is also quite durable.  Perfect for practice.

And so, I decided to promote Chameleon back to the status of performer.  Now I have two differently sized staffs to use, which can add some dynamic effects!  Additionally, I got yet another staff!

As a side note, the materials I am getting are all quite cheap.  Five feet of aluminum, depending on where you get it, can be as cheap as $5-$10.  PVC, on the other hand, is no more than $2 or $3.

Ta-Da!  I present to you, Zebra, the newest addition to the Street Saint family!

Zebra is a 5 foot PVC staff.  He (yes, he) is flexible, durable, and even a little bouncy.  And he doesn’t hurt when you hit him up against yourself (which is a huge plus)!

Since Zebra is strictly a practice staff, I decided not to decorate him too ornately.  I just threw on some random black designs (thus the name).  He’s not one I expect to take out into public very often (if at all).  Poor little guy…

In any case, that’s it for now.  I won’t be getting any more staffs for a while (at least, probably not).  However, next on my list of staffs are ones that can glow in the dark.  In other words, I’m looking to invest in a glow/LED staff and a fire staff!

But that’s for later down the road.  Until then, I’m happy with Chameleon, Lil’ Saint, and Zebra.

I’m excited to say that I have a new staff on it’s way (unintentional rhyme).  And though I love my old staff, I’ve already banged it up pretty good, since it was my first.  I’ve decided to deem it my practice staff so I can abuse it all I want and not feel bad about it.

With the coming of the new staff, I mad a few other purchases as well:

1. Decorative Tape
2. Carrying Case
3. Portable Speakers

The multi-colored vinyl tape is great for sprucing up the staffs so it doesn’t look like I’m twirling around some hardware I stole off a construction worker.  The carrying case is so I can store and transport all of my staffs easily.  And the speakers are so that I can have some music to perform to.

Unfortunately, the staff was on backorder, so it won’t be getting here until next week (hopefully).  I should get the case in the next few days.  And as for the tape, it’s HERE!!

And it’s better than I could have ever imagined!

I only got a few different colors just so I could see how they would look, and now that I’ve seen it, I’m certainly going to invest in more.  Since my new staff isn’t here yet, I’ve just experimented with my practice staff.

It’s just a few crazy colors, but it’s a huge improvement from the dull silver I had before.  These new developments have granted the staff a new name: Chameleon (pronounced: cha-mel-on).

It’s amazing what a little color will do.

Friday

Friday night was the first rehearsal for my Simply Circus showcase performance.  I was assuming that, when I arrived I would immediately be learning what I would be doing for the show.  However, I had forgotten that I would not be the only one there.  There was a number of people whom I have not yet met as well as a bunch that I did recognize.  And since my act had not been settled yet and the people I would be performing with were not present, I ended up helping out with the other acts.

In terms of my own performance, I got no work done at all, although I was not upset about it.  I was happy to be helping others.  At one point, the director came up to me and asked if I would be interested in being a teacher at one of the Simply Circus camps this summer.  How could I turn down such a wonderful offer?

So I still don’t know exactly what my part will be in the circus show, but at least I know what I’ll be doing this summer!

Saturday

Saturday was another great day.  Gumbo Yaya had it’s showcase and silent auction running all day, so that’s where I stayed all day.  It was a bit eerie being in a basement all day, but I did manage to come to the surface a few times.

Overall, the event was quite successful.  We made about $200 from our auction and both shows we received quite well.  I myself felt the performances were the best I had done.  It always helps to have an audience to perform to I think.

But not only did Gumbo Yaya’s performances go over well, I also ran a successful circus performance.  The crowd was small, but I was actually glad since it made the feel of the show more intimate, which is what my performance called for.  And everyone in the audience seemed to love it, which made me feel awesome!

I ended up doing some 3-ball juggling and contact juggling.  I didn’t expect this to gain as enthusiastic a response as it did, which was perfect, since that was the least of my capabilities.  I then moved on to some hand balancing and finally my staff.  I couldn’t have asked for a better result.  The audience was pleased and I was thrilled.

This just served as a reminder to me of why I chose to learn circus performance in the first place.  I love making people smile and I love performing.  I can think of nothing better to do with my life than this.  Well, maybe I could, but that’s not the point…

Sunday: Break Time

Though the weekend has been great, it has also been exhausting.  I look forward to getting some well deserved sleep.  I still have a whole lot to do, but it can wait.  I need some me-time.

Until next time!