36-4,p12

Texas comedian followed career curves to end up as the juggling janitor

By Bob Bau, Pearland, Texas

THE BEGINNING IS USUALLY A good place to start. Mario Lorenz was born the last day of 1946 in the land where the Mississippi begins - the state of Minnesota, of course!

But between the beginning and the present, how did this stage director, actor, school teacher, musician and college graduate set himself free and enter the real world of juggling... and for goodness sakes, why?!

I've seen it happen before. A person is academically trained, has earned one or more degrees and possesses the aptitude to pursue the mundane, but instead opts to permit the animated spirit of the juggler to emerge. In fact, I've had the accusing finger of guilt pointed at me as aiding and abetting a couple of cases. I think, however, that brains and the art of juggling are quite compatible!

Mario Lorenz generally explains it by saying "good things take time." But not always! He quickly points out one exception to the rule - the baby Giselle, a product of wife Valli and himself, which required only seven months to produce!

But I'm getting ahead of my story. I am sure that there are many ways that jugglers evolve into performers and entertainers. In the case of Lorenz, his experience in many fields of show biz certainly helped him eventually to project his act over the footlights.

He started with stage acting in 1965 and stage directing in 1969 in Minnesota, Iowa, and Texas (comedy and drama). He also produced yariety shows in St. Paul, Minnesota, and Austin, Texas. Then there were some TV jobs in 1982 and 1983 with his janitor act, and Iocal TV commercials in Austin.

Mario is a "Merry Andrew" when he does his juggling, but he must have been slower as a substitute teacher, grades K-12 in St. Paul and Austin. His teaching experience also includes community juggling and pantomime workshops in Minnesota and Texas, and full-time teaching speech and theatre in Iowa.

He holds a bachelor's degree in music and speech, and did graduate studies in the humanities at Concordia College in St. Paul.

Now for a run-down on what happened when this actor/teacher/musician set himself free and entered the real world of juggling. About four years ago, Mario and Valli left their happy home in Minneapolis and an entertainment company called "SideShow Productions," which he had helped form.

They bought a travel trailer and set their sights on San Diego, California. When they got as far as St. Petersburg, Florida, they were broke and decided to stay for a while. A newspaper ad led him to Sea World's Florida Festival in Orlando. After an audition in which he showed them, "Crogman Man, World's First Juggler," he had his first juggling job.

This lasted five months, until a call came to "head for the hills." In this case it was the Ozarks, where they wanted him at Silver Dollar City in Branson, Missouri. Shortly after that, a school tour took him to Texas. After seeing Austin, he and Valli knew they wanted to be there for more than a visit. They bought some land and began establishing roots.

With his reputation established and family settled, he's now one of the brightest twinklers in the Lone Star state. His 1984 plans include adding more comedy club work and co-founding the "Rising Star Entertainment Agency" in Austin. He is also looking forward to attending the IJA convention in Las Vegas.

Here's a synopsis of his show, "Lambert the Janitor," or "Being in Balance. "

IT IS BASED ON THE OLD Vaudeville theme of a character who finds many amazing things in a trunk. The central object on the stage is the trunk, and two cases placed in the middle of the performing area.

These are covered with a large cloth. A sign propped up nearby reads, "Speaking Today, Prof. Orlando P. Farquhar, on The Importance of Being in Balance." To the right, the professor's hat rests on a bench.

The act opens when Lambert the janitor, the kind of handyman that every building has, enters sweeping the floor preparing for the lecture. His silence is incredible.

Then he is distracted by the props on the stage. He removes the cloth and one-byone explores the items in the trunk.

He then launches in on his own lecture without speaking. He balances brooms, mops, and ladders on his chin and forehead, plays a bit of music on a trumpet and does some magic with a myriad of objects.

From time to time he is dashing from hither to yon, including up and down the aisles inviting the audience to try some of the stunts. He is continuously mugging and chattering, supporting his nickname, "The Madman."

Mario closes this first half of the show with devil sticks and a cigar box routine, including stacking the boxes.

Fire opens the second half of his show. He juggles it, does impressions, and then juggles three different objects - a fire torch, a scarf, and a ball. Because of the time delay for the scarf to fall, he get in some funny antics.

One of his funniest routines, scarf juggling is next. He follows this with a smooth ball routine, culminating in the flourish of an overhand claw - out of which a ball lands on the brim of his hat. The sudden stop brings good applause. The balls are then all thrown to the hat in pyramid fashion. Now a bow and exit. Finis.