ContactJuggling.org

End of year talent show whatsit. From what I can see, it's going to be a 2:30 long thing, I don't think I could go for extended periods of times without constantly repeating moves.

Right now I've got it so it's kind of like the 1st 1/3 or so is all isolations, and then the bass kicks in / a musical turn happens and then I start body rolls mixed with some isolations.

I'm worried though, about visibility on a stage in a fairly large gym (don't know how many are going to be there), with a clear ball. Won't it be difficult especially for those in the back to discern what the hell I am doing?

Also, any tips regarding nerves and the worst-case scenario that is the dropped ball? I think I'll just have an extra ball on the stage behind me. But man, if it drops it's going to make such a gigantic noise.

p.s. this will be the first time I've ever really performed.

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Congratulations! I'd say "don't be nervous," but nobody really knows how nervous they'll be before they actually get on stage. I know people who thought they had nerves of steal who got on for their first several shows and their knees were shaking (me included). Others think they'll be nervous, but wind up getting up on stage and being absolutely chill.

Just be sure to keep your cool, and realize that as nervous as you feel, that's not what the audience sees. You might think your fumbling, but an audience who is unfamiliar with contact juggling tends to be *very* forgiving of mistakes, because unless you actually drop, it's not terribly clear that a mistake was made. Breathe. Try to keep from cringing or making funny faces when you make mistakes, because that's the biggest tip to the crowd that you've made one. If you drop, don't look upset, just get your backup and keep on chugging. Breathe.

Don't worry about visuals: acrylics are pretty visible from a distance. Once you get some more experience under your belt, and a wider selection of spheres, you can choose the ball for the venue. At this point, just concentrate on what you're most comfortable with and entertain as much of the crowd as you can.

Remember to build suspense, don't play all your cards right away. Breathe. 2:30 is a good time for a first show, but you're still going to feel like you're running out of tricks fast if you don't plan ahead. If you slow down and exaggerate your movements, you won't feel like you need to fill quite so much time. Breathe.

Did I mention breathe?

You'll do great =]

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-Lirnyk/Scott

"Don't believe anything you read on the net. Except this. Well, including this, I suppose." - Douglas Adams

Practise slow. And I mean as slow as physically possible. When you get on stage you will speed up like hell, from a combination of nerves, tunnel vision, and some other stuff. If you practise very very slow, then not only will your skill increase, but when you speed up on stage, you should be around normal pace, as opposed to Senor Gonzalez.

Structuring your preformance is a good idea, but keeping the quality high and concentrated will yield a better reaction. Avoid trying to 'meat out' your performance. 2:30 is a nice enough time...so you should be grand, but just be conscious of how many times you repeat a movement, and that includes how long you Isolate the ball. A lot of contact juggling videos, and contact jugglers in general, repeat things too much, and hold things for too long, and your interest wains.

Personally, if you're interested in performing, I'd say go for it. An opportunity landed on your lap, and your choice is to grab it by the horns, or let it go.

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Just buy a 125mm Jea9 ball in orange/red. It's bigger so the body rolls will be more controlled, and it should be visible all the way to the back of an auditorium for a stage performance... amd it won't make a big noise (or get damaged) if you drop.
http://www.neonhusky.com/JShop/product.php/583/113

As others have said, go for it. It's scary and exhilarating, but I promise you'll never forget it!

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"Oh, the places you'll go! There is fun to be done! There is mischief to have. There are games to be won.
And the magical things you can do with that ball will make you the winning-est winner of all."

Go as slowly as you can with the biggest ball you can find. The nuances of CJ tend to get lost past the first 200 people in the crowd; any stage routine for a large audience should focus more on bodyrolls.

Three minutes is a perfectly acceptable time for stage. It'll feel like forever when you're choreographing, but that's really a pretty short routine and it'll go by in a flash.

Don't drop.

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http://www.gravitydefiance.net

Do it you can't beat the adrenaline rush and don't forget what we might consider simple moves the non juggler public will be amazed by.

Have you done this yet? How did it go?
If you haven’t there is some great advice here.
The only thing I might add is ignore the crowd, perform for yourself do what you enjoy doing.
When you get use to performing in public, you can start to gage there reactions. Until then what do they know anyway?



TTFN

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"Like I told your Captain, that orphange attacked me. It was self-defense."