MM: I think it's a matter of choice. If you're going to do work that's more creative there are costs to that. Whatever people focus on is what grows. Not many people choose self-exploration because, at a juggling convention, people get so fascinated with the stuff they see that they de­cide to do that. It becomes about learning these things that everyone else does instead of self-exploration.

 

There's a strong attraction to take the shortcut, to say, "That's pretty and interesting and I'm going to work on that because I already know it works." But what you're doing is climbing a mountain by putting all your hardware into bolts that someone else set. You're not climbing the mountain in a way that says anything about you. There aren't many people who can do like Neil Stammer and decide that they have to stop hanging out with jugglers if they're going to be any good. Neil just went away for a long time.

 

JW: Did you see that happening and decide you weren't going to do it?

MM: I tried to. You have to fight the tendency to take shortcuts and not learn something you already know works. You have to take risks if you're going to do something you can ultimately feel really good about. I think everyone feels the urge to take the easy way, but the easy way isn't always ultimately the best way to go. The longer the path, the more interesting the work is to watch when it's finally in front of people.

 

JW: What do you get out of IJA festivals then?

MM: It's weird. There's so much politics going on, but ultimately that gets put aside and it's about juggling being part of a larger framework. In Fargo the high point for me was watching the public show. The acts made it clear that it was about more than juggling, that juggling was just the tip of the iceberg. It was such a great show, and then Airjazz wrapped it all up with pole piece. I enjoy being around the field and staying in touch with people I've met over the years. It really is a place where creative people meet and show good work.

 

JW: How did it all get started for you? Do you remember learning to juggle three balls?

MM: I remember practicing over my bed as a freshman in high school in Mendham, N.J. I was into lacrosse balls and didn't know why anyone wanted to juggle those big clubs. I also did a lot of work with theatre, and studied dance the couple of years later when I was at the University of Utah. I then transferred to New York University and saw the Foolsfire Show with Bob Berkey, Fred Garbo and Michael Moschen. I told myself then and there I wanted to take a workshop with those guys. I got my chance at their Antic Arts Academy at SUNY-Purchase when the IJA festival was there in 1983. It was a heck of a way to start! I remember doing my three ball routine at that workshop, and I worked with another performer do­ing experimental stuff in Toronto in mixed media, slides and electronic music. I did that for a couple of years.

 

JW: Before you moved to Maine, didn't you produce some shows in New Jersey?

MM: It was the New Vaudeville Cabaret in Watchung, N.J., an hour outside of Manhattan. That ran a little over two years as a monthly variety show. I was the emcee, executive producer and driving force behind the whole thing. The idea was an experiment to try to develop work and tJ;1en develop it into a bigger show. I learned a great deal from it, and worked with a lot of people. Some of them were great and some were hard to work with, so I got to see what things were like from a producer's point of view. I got to see why some people succeeded, and why others weren't ever going to go anywhere. During that time I was supported by two State of New Jersey Fellowship Grants.