NOTES

Charlie Frye and his wife Sherry are providing variety entertainment in the "Follies Bergere" show at Las Vegas's Tropicana Hotel. After meeting at Ringling Brothers, Charlie and Sherry have been delighting audiences worldwide for the past dozen years with their silent comedy, slapstick, magic, juggling and acrobatics. They

.Steve Black and Nathan Zahorchak have been performing at the Inatori Hotel Ginsuiso in Japan recently. Black does mime, stilt walking and juggling. Zahorchak performed several illusions along with a six-minute juggling spot involving three, four and five glow balls, and three and four clubs and torches.

 

Steve Healy takes credit for discovering a new version of volley club. Try "Frisbee Club," he says. While tossing a disk with two friends, Healy picked up two clubs. He found that, with a little practice, he could catch the disk in a juggle and toss it back out again. "The idea caught on immediately. and pretty soon we all had two clubs, plus two frisbees going around between the three of us," he said.

 

Joggler Albert Lucas enjoys the distinction of setting the first world record ever recorded on the new Walt Disney Wide World of Sports Complex track in Orlando, Fla. On April 5 Lucas joggled 18.58 seconds for the 110 meter hurdles, beating the former Guinness record of 18.9. Lucas was invited to joggle as a demonstration event kicking of the first collegiate track and field meet at the track, and his time was electronically recorded and certified by the USA Track and Field association. He was paced on the run by training partner and Olympic silver medallist Tony Dees. Dees said, "I've seen Albert run the hurdles faster, but this was the biggest race of his career. For him to set the record in a headwind and under the pressure of the stadium crowd, a national TV audience and executives from USA Track & Field was a blast!" It is believed this was the first time a joggling event was officially scheduled as part of a national track and field meet, and the first joggling world record electronically timed by the USA Track & Field association.

 

Eric Cumberland enjoyed his first sky diving experience last spring through a benefit fundraiser for the state of Washington's Learning Disabilities Association. Cumberland juggled for about 50 first-time skydivers who had gathered pledges for "Leap for Learning," before he joined them in the jump plane. The event raised more than $34,000 for the association, including pledges to Cumberland of $700. Once he was sailing in space, Cumberland traced an infinity sign with his canopy to display his allegiance to juggling. Those interested in supporting him for the 1998 Leap for Learning should contact him at Everson WA.

 

Jugglers everywhere are saying "Rock on, Dave!" when they see the Wendy's restaurant commercial in which CEO Dave Thomas does a four ball fountain. Dave introduces the special effect by saying, "Here's something you don't see every day," and then juggles four for a respectable length of time.

 

Susan Kirby and Joe Murray launched their own one hour magic and variety show in February at The Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island, Bahamas. Joe opens the show with 40 minutes of madcap magic and stand-up comedy. Joe and Susan then establish their onstage relationship in a follow-the-leader cigar box routine. Susan does a three ball routine to music she co-created, and next is team hat manipulation. They follow this by cajoling a volunteer to climb on board "Juggling Airlines," where Joe and Susan demonstrate a pass-around routine that involves big clubs, two fedoras and a couple of smokes. The big finale is a scarf ballet, highlighted by Joe's "graceful" leaps and bounds. At one of their early shows, the audience included David Copperfield and Claudia Schiffer, who posed for a photo with the honored jugglers.

 

The entertainment Mecca of Branson, Missouri, has hosted several jugglers recently. Pat Davison and his wife, Marites, passed through town recently to visit with friends T.J. and Nancy Howell, who are in their second season at the Osmond Family Theatre. Pat reports that T.J. juggles on ice in the first half of the show, and the couple does its unicycle act in the last half. He also said David Hirschi appears as the juggler "Slim Chance" in the "Country Tonite!" musical revue, and that Albert Lucas has been appearing at the Remington Theater's "Branson City Lites" show doing plate spinning and juggling on ice.

 

Circomedia, a circus arts training school in Bristol, England, is offering a course this fall on "Developing and Perfecting an Act." The course offers participants the chance to develop existing equilibristic and manipulation skills into a finished act suitable for professional performances, and offers current practitioners the chance to technically evaluate and improve an already existing routine. Instructors include Bim Mason for performance, Helen Crocker for movement/ choreography, and Rod Laver for equilibristics and manipulation technique. For information on future courses, contact: Admissions, Circomedia; Kingswood Foundation; Britannia Road; Kingswood, Bristol, or call Kim Lawrence or Andrew Spackman.

 

Mark Faje appeared in late August on the "Late Show with David Letterman" in the "Stupid Human Tricks segment." Faje performed the same trick he showed on the Pittsburgh festival's Renegade stage ­throwing a cigarette behind his back to catch it in his mouth, then throwing a lit match behind his back and catching it in his mouth, too. He then lit the cigarette with the match.