34-2,p18

ENRICO RASTELLI

Reviewed at the Palace Theater, New York City Year Unknown

In a neat suit of yellow satin, Enrico opens his act with juggling sticks and ball. He ballances a ball on his head and juggles six plates the meanwhile. He makes one stick revolve laterally while balanced at the end of another held in his mouth. He balances a ball at the end of a stick held in his mouth and makes it spin in the air through revolutions imparted by movements of his head.

At the end of the series of feats Rastelli smiles as if pleased and his good humor and personality are infectious. His little trick dance step and pose would sell the feat even if less adroitly performed.

Balancing a ball at the nape of his neck, Rastelli propels it in the air, turns a complete somersault and recatches it in the same locality. He bounces two balls on his head one after the other, juggles four sticks, two and two; showers eight plates and does a variety of other remarkable feats with unerring rapidity.

Following he did a one hand stand on a large piece of nickeled apparatus that resembled a large coffee urn atop a table and at the same time caused a pole to revolve.

For a concluding feat a large globe of blue and silver was brought forward. This was illuminated from within by electric lights and decorated without by colored illuminated electric lamps and further ornamented with a couple of small American flags. Lying on a place provided, Rastelli spun a large five pointed nickeled piece of aparatus in the shape of a star on one foot, caused a white hoop to revolve on the other foot, held a spinning smaller star on a rod in his mouth and juggled three sticks at the same time with his hands...

Robert York trying for ten

"Hello fellow delusionists! My name is Robert York and I'm out in the sticks on tour with the National School Assembly's Programs. The tour has taken me through Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, and now I'm on my way to California.

"I've been able to talk with some jugglers in these areas and everyone has been very nice. It's a lot of fun being on tour, but it's hard work, too. The tour is 20 weeks long. The shows are often back to back and at times a long distance apart. But I'm not complaining, nobody said it would be easy!"

Out of the sticks and into the bustle of Adebert Gym at the Cleveland convention, Robert York spent a lot of time holding five worn bean bags in each hand and gazing skyward. When the feeling was right, he'd let them fly and try to catch all ten.

Even though he never got more than nine, he never stopped trying.

York juggles seven, and has flashed eight and nine. But he wants ten. He wants a claim on the world record.

"My Bicentennial project was learning how to juggle," he said after an exhaustive practice session. "I taught myself four within a year, and then knew that five was just like three only higher and faster. Once I learned five, I wanted to do 400!!"

He now practices numbers juggling daily, in addition to his balancing, ring routines and other 16 acts in his 45 minute road show. Last year he traveled 16,000 miles, did 450 shows and entertained 120,000 school children. He spices the act liberally with comedy, claiming to have "a Doctorate degree in dexterity and a Masters in manipulation," among other things. But his passion is numbers. "I have a deep-seated belief in big numbers, " he said. "It begins with believing you can do it. The only limit is the one you set on yourself, and I set no limits. "

He quickly found out that large numbers of objects require hard work. It includes warmup of both hands independently. "I start with three in each hand, then work on switching them from hand to hand. That's good practice for seven," he explained. "You can practice large numbers with smaller numbers. The key to larger numbers is timing. I do a lot of flash and clap sequences to try to work on that:"

He does seven and eight balls in the show, giving himself three chances to succeed at each. He claims that less than half a dozen IJA members can juggle eight. "Seven is the vogue now, that was proven by the 17 people who entered the seven object competition," he said. "But with more people doing it, the level is bound to improve. "

At home in Tulsa, OK, a plaque on the wall in the comer of a local gym bearing his name stakes York's claim to that practice spot. "If at first you don't succeed, try harder," he proclaims, and picks up nine of his 4-ounce Juggle Bug bean bags.

"Maybe I can bring a ten ball flash to next year's convention, " he mused. But he's on the road until then, performing in schools across middle America. He enjoys the life of a professional juggler, but craves fame as the first living person to do ten balls.

"Ten is like Pluto," he said. "That's when Johnny Carson calls you. I have to practice other props and tricks for my show, but my thing is numbers. I eat, love, live and breathe it. "