FESTIVALS

Woods Hole Festival

The Second Quasi-Annual Woods Hole Juggling Festival brought about three dozen jugglers to Cape Cod, Massachusetts, on August 3. The sea nearby combined with beautiful weather provided a fine site for the day's activities.

 

"Everyone was doing something interesting," reported co-organizer AI Moniz, a Falmouth house painter and member of the performing troupe "Suspenders." Kalonymous Briskin, a Boston performer, showed hat tricks and work on a slack rope. Another festival organizer, Tom Sgouros, was passing clubs from atop stilts, Claude Goldstein was practicing five clubs and a Cape Cod assistant district attorney did five balls.

 

The nearby town of Hyannis held a festival the same weekend that attracted many performers, including jugglers Cyrus P. Koski, Tom Murphy and Suspenders.

Moniz and his Suspenders partners, Bob Pettingill and Jeoff Way, have created a series of skits for performance. The "Policeman" routine begins with two jugglers passing clubs as a Keystone Cops­type policeman, oblivious to their presence, walks into the picture carrying a "No Juggling Zone" sign.

 

"Kids in the audience are screaming to him about the jugglers, but, of course, he's

the last to see them," Moniz explained. When he does realize the infraction, he walks over to tap one of them on the shoulder and ends up catching a club. In the ensuing chase scene, the policeman gets caught in the middle of a passing pattern and sees his nightstick become another juggling object.

 

The policeman is slowly drawn into the activity to the point of a three person, six club pattern. "The kids in the audience about this time start yelling that he's breaking the rules as he's having the time of his life, "Moniz said. "Finally he hears them, remembers his job, and chases us off."

 

Moniz says skit ideas are their strong­point. "We're not the best jugglers, but we're getting to be good entertainers!"

Milwaukee Jugglefest

by Duane and Mary Pickering

 

Milwaukee Jugglefest, held June 23, has gained a. rnodicum of fame for its ability to assemble jugglers from the Midwest with a variety of talents. Besides the usual objects, some rather unusual objects were manipulated this year, including station wagons, refrigerators and open-air shopping centers!

 

More than 50 jugglers, their families, friends and spectators gathered along the shores of Lake Michigan to witness the proceedings. The third annual picnic included a joggling race, unicycle race and door prizes donated by six prop makers, as well as the usual juggling jam sessions.

 

Jugglefest was also a part of the Milwaukee City of Festivals Parade, which was held the day before the picnic. To help celebrate the opening of the Milwaukee festival season, 15 jugglers joined others in the mile-and-a-half route through downtown Milwaukee . More than 400,000 spectators and a live television audience watched.

 

Milwaukee jugglers look forward to seeing everyone next year at the place the Indians called, "The Gathering Place by the Waters."

 

Philadelphia picnic

The Philadelphia Jugglers Club and the City of Philadelphia Fairmount Park Commission sponsored the third annual summer picnic in late June. More than 100 jugglers enjoyed Al Feldman's grab-bag of mystery juggling baIls and a royal spread of food provided by club member Faye Miller. One thing missing from the menu, though, was club sandwiches.

 

Sharing good times with each other, the Philadelphia jugglers once again showed that its members are more than partners; they are friends.

Jan. 26-Feb. 2, 1986 - Kalani Honua Cultural Center, Hawaii

The second annual Hawaiian Juggling Convention will be held on the grounds of the Kalani Honua retreat center next to the ocean on the big island of Hawaii . Accommodations are limited, so reserve your place early. Contact Graham Ellis, Pahoa , Hawaii.

 

April 18-20 - Fort Wayne , Indiana

St. Fred's Day Festival. Contact Jugglers Anonymous, c/o Charlie Willer, Fort Wayne , Indiana.