The News From L.A.

By Geno, IJA Vice-President, Los Angeles. CA

This month's column proved harder to organize than learning to juggle five balls! There are numerous unrelated bits of information I wanted to include, and am afraid I've done so at the price of sacrificing literary style.

On the Los Angeles scene, juggler-comedian Sean Morey won a local talent contest that eamed him a spot on the Johnny Carson Show... Weekly gatherings for jugglers convene on Wednesday and Thursday evenings. These groups are off­shoots of the Jugglers Forum, which is no longer in operation... Hilda Mullin reports using juggling with dance therapy to aid the handicapped. I personally used some juggling techniques with senior citizens to ease pain in arthritic hands.

The hot spots for street juggling continue to be Westwood on weekend evenings and the Venice Beach on weekend afternoons. The Renaissance Pleasure Faire, run by Theme Events Ltd., has just begun its summer season. The Faire features jugglers and other novelty acts in an authentic Elizabethan England atmosphere. No modern looking props allowed!

Casting magazines are starting to advertise for jugglers. Even though most of the opportunities are showcases, it is an encouraging sign. Rumor has it that a feature film about a juggler will be produced this year.

Peter Frankl, a mathematician and juggler from Paris who has traveled extensively, informed me that there is a high school in the Soviet Union that specializes in teaching juggling. Students must audition to gain admission.

A provocative rumor has been circulating around this area that Jacques Cousteau and his crew aboard the Calypso juggle to relax while out at sea. This aroused my curiosity, so I checked it out with the Cousteau Society in New York and was disappointed when they officially killed the rumor.

An investigation has begun towards getting tax-exempt status for the IJA so that contributions and memberships can be tax deductible.

At this point I would like to respectfully mourn the demise of International Mimes and Pantomimists, an organization quite similar to the IJA in its service to mimes of the world. Due to financial difficulties, the IMP had to cease operations. Their publication of human resources not only listed mime artists, but also listed tour information and performance descriptions - something that I hope the IJA can someday do for jugglers.

These unrelated bits of information do not lead to an editorial summation , but they do point to the diversity of areas that juggling can relate to and indicate that the arts in its various forms are capable of contributing to society in ways that extend beyond the entertaining edge of the stage.

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