Workshops

Here is the tentative schedule of workshops.  Still confirming some, and no doubt a few impromptu workshops will arise as the festival progresses. Be sure to check the workshop board at the festival for updates.

Saturday October 6th

We are VERY excited that our special guest this year is Will Murray! Here’s a little more about Will and the workshops he’ll be teaching.

Will Murray
Will Murray grew up on a farm in Virginia with no other kids around, so he learned to juggle instead of playing soccer. Now he lives in California and likes puppies, long soulful walks on the beach, and traveling around juggling. He has performed on five continents, including with the National Circus of Laos. He is a mathematician at Cal State Long Beach (home of the Beach Balls!), but he promises that his workshops won’t be as dry as his calculus lectures.

The workshops Will is planning include:

Three club tricks

This is a two part workshop, and you’re welcome to come to both parts or either one independently.
Part one: Body throws. (Under the leg, chops, backcrosses, reverse backcrosses, alberts, treblas, and more.) How to learn them, how to perfect them, and how to invent new ones.
Part two: Funky tricks. How to combine basic elements into creative and original combinations. How to steal generic tricks and develop them into your own signature style.

Prerequisite: Three club cascade, but some of this works with balls too, so people learning the three ball cascade are welcome too.
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Club multiplexing

Multiplexing means throwing multiple clubs at once from the same hand (or foot), and there are tons of variations. Some are easy enough to learn right after the three club cascade, but cool enough to be a high point in a performance. Others take years of practice.

We’ll learn the two types of multiplex grips and throws, what they’re used for, the secret catching technique to set them up, and patterns for three, four, and five clubs. Possible bonues: How to throw multiplexes in passing, and multiplex kickups!

Prerequisite: Three club cascade, but some of this works with balls too, so people learning the three ball cascade are welcome too.
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Symmetric passing patterns and four-handed siteswap

Symmetric passing patterns use your right and left hands equally. We’ll learn a notation that describes and generates all kinds of them. I’ll show you the theory, and then we’ll practice the patterns together.

Prerequisite: This will be easier if you know basic solo siteswap notation, and if you’ve done a little left-handed passing, like six-club three-count. But don’t worry if those are new to you — we’ll learn everything from scratch.
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Laura Goetz & April Shamel
The hoop isolation workshop will be taught be Laura ‘SpinWheel’ Goetz, and April Shapril of Asheville Hoops Troupe. Both hoopdancers began incorporating isolation moves into their hooping to add variety and depth. Deeply influenced by the duo Poki and Brian, Nicholas Longuechaud, Baxter, and many hoopdancers, April and Laura are excited to share the love of the floating hoop!

Hoop Isolation

The workshop will include an intro to hoop isolation. Big and small! We will be exploring mini (approx. 20in) hoops, and also large (35in and bigger) hoop isolations. Impress your friends and audiences with these techniques that make the hoop to appear to be floating, and sometimes even spinning while floating! Create the illusion of a magical bubble, unaffected by gravity. The time during the workshop will be spent on learning ways to effectively practice isolations, variations on one-handed and two-handed isolations, rolling isolations (cat-eyes and isopops), and multi-hoop isolations and rolling isolations. We will also focus on isolations using larger hoops, such as the barrel rolls, and vertical, around-the-body isolations.
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Dave Winston
Dave became intrigued with the diabolo many years ago after attending a renaissance festival in Annapolis MD. After picking up his first diabolo in 2007 at the Lake Eden Arts Festival in Black Mountain, NC, he spent the countless hours teaching himself the skills and learning everything he can about this fascinating object. He had his first public performance with Asheville Vaudeville in September and is working on a new routine and some new tricks for future shows. He always enjoys teaching anyone who has an interest and a willingness to learn.

Intermediate Diabolo for Beginners

You got spin, you got control, now what? This workshop will help you move into the intermediate level. We’ll work on various skills such as increasing spin speed, performing back wraps, and reliable tosses & catches. We’ll then work on some intermediate level tricks including leg/arm orbits, whip catches, and suicides (classic, infinite, regular/mini genocides, duicides). We’ll also work on skills for developing your 2-diabolo shuffle and beginner 2-diabolo tricks. Please bring your diabolo with you to the workshop, but I will be available throughout the festival for impromptu lessons if you would like to try one of my own diabolos.
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Sneaky McFly
Sneaky McFly began his performance career at age 15 as a bicycle freestyle rider doing shows with the Pedal Power Trick Team. Since that time he has performed in numerous plays, poetry slams, and film. He has played percussion in the bands Green Grass Jubilee, K3 and Bandliter. He got his start with fire while playing drums with Michael Saab. A two-time Teacher of the Year, Sneaky McFly works with special needs middle school students which he describes as a lot like juggling flaming torches. Sneaky McFly’s blend of creativity and originality have helped create a truly unique fire show that has featured him performing as a clown or with one of his original fire toys such as the “Buckets of Death” or the fire mop. Sneaky McFly juggles and fire breathes in addition to using staff, double staff, devil sticks and fire jump rope. In addition to performing with Unifire, he works with a local vaudeville, caberet, burlesque troupe dubbed “The Seduction Sideshow”

Staff Manipulation

Staff and Double Staff for beginners and Intermediates…The art of staff manipulation dates back many centuries and is as popular an art form today as it was 1000 years ago. However, many new discoveries have been made over the years and the well versed staff artist now employs elements of contact juggling, isolations and a little something called the antispin. Depending on the level you begin with, you will learn many basic moves to get you started included the popular toss. Adding elements of fire to your staff will also be discussed. If you have a staff already, please bring it. There will be some provided.
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Fire Safety

Sneaky McFly, a ten year veteran fire performer with Unifire Theatre teaches you everything you need to know about using fire for an audience. The class covers a brief history of fire performance, construction of tools, all aspects of fire safety, the permit process, stage presence with fire and performance tips. A must have course not only for anyone who hopes to perform with fire but for those interested in working as a fire safety.
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Sadye Osterloh & Sparrow
Sadye Osterloh likes cats, ice cream and circus. She studied Trapeze, Chinese Acrobatics and Partner Acrobalance at the Circus Center in San Francisco and came home 7 years ago to co-found The Runaway Circus with some other lovely folks! She also recently co-founded the Toy Boat Community Art Space, and heads up the circus school, both teaching and administrating! You can find her performing with The Runaway Circus performance troupe or with he band, The Sugarfoot Serenaders!

Sparrow is a staple of Asheville performing arts, doing everything from stilt walking and acrobalance, to playing the accordian and tap dancing. She is a member of The Runaway Circus and The Sugarfoot Serenaders and is set to realease her first solo album in a few short months!

Partner Acrobatics

Learn how to balance on your friends! We will focus on basic acrobalance tricks both low to the ground and up high! Balance on your friends’ feet, theighs and shoulders! We’re taking piggie back rides to a new level. It’ll be barrels of fun!
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Forty Fingers & A Missing Tooth
Asheville’s premiere juggling troupe! OK, they’re Asheville’s only juggling troupe, but don’t let that fool you. Sure, they could win your adoration with our stunning good looks, charm, and wit alone – but throw in some world-class object manipulation and you’ll never think of love in the same way again.

Beginning Club Passing

This workshop will assume you have absolutely no experience passing clubs. The only requirement for this workshop is that the student have a solid 3 club cascade pattern. The workshop will start out from the beginning, teaching the basics of the four-count pattern, passing with the right hand. Each student will have to provide their own clubs. Ideally come with a partner and six similar size clubs. But if it’s just you and your three clubs, we will be able to work with you as well.
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Steals & Takeouts

This workshop will focus on 2 and 3 person steals and takeouts. This class assumes the person is comfortable juggling 3 clubs and has some experience with passing clubs.  However, passing is not required, as most of the 2 person patterns do not involve passing. So come have some fun and learn some zany looking patterns that will make your friends scratch their heads!
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