- What is it that you do?
a. Adria the Juggler: Audience interactive comedy juggling. Whimsical mix of education, history and jokes in a way that audiences of all ages respond favorably (and loudly). Material is strictly family-oriented, unless specifically requested by the venue. Parents are guaranteed to approve of the Public Health messages of the prizes. Props include, but are not limited to: Chinese yo-yo’s, rubber chickens, toilet plungers, knives and axes. Audience members are expected to not only know their lines by the end of the show, but to voluntarily yell them.
Performances are 25-30 minutes in length, appropriate for the venue. Between shows there will be walk-around juggling, juggling instruction and visitor and vendor engagement.
Up to 5 shows per day, line entertainment, vendor and visitor engagement. For a nominal bribe from any vendor, I am willing to direct visitors directly to their booth
- Where are you located?
a. Kirkland, WA - What is your local faire or home faire?
a. Even though I live in Kirkland, WA, I consider my Home Faire to be Shrewsbury Renaissance Faire in Kings Valley, OR. I am also the Entertainment Director for this Faire, a volunteer position. - Do you travel and if so, how far will you go?
a. I am willing to drive up to 100 miles without a significant increase is asking price. If you are willing to reimburse me the cost of travel, I am willing to fly anywhere in the USA. - What would you say (nicely) to a faire manager or owner?
a. How can I best be of service to you? Where do you want entertainment and for how long? - Why Renaissance Faires or theme? What is it that made you so interested in this period?
a. The Renaissance Faires are historic representations. During my show, not only do I provide comedy, but I also tell the history of juggling props and the history of juggling. I get the audience involved by having them repeat after me and yell things. This particular period was just after we lost everything in the Dark Ages, including knowledge of how to make certain juggling props; all we have left is the history to share from before. Pre-dark ages juggling was a female-based activity (especially in the Chinese empires). During the Renaissance the lost performance arts were starting to be rediscovered, reborn and, unfortunately, male dominated. There are very few historical books about juggling so the more we can share the better. - At faire, what garb/attire is your usual go to?
a. My ancestry is Middle Eastern, specifically Jewish royalty. Historically, Mediterranean clothing differed by people’s. Many of the peoples of that time were nomadic and each culture wore a style of clothing unique to them. Bakhtiari wore one style of clothing, Bedouin wore another, Kuchis wore another, Parnis wore another, Sarmatians wore another and Turkmens wore another. There are no surviving actual artworks testifying as to what Jews wore, much less those of royal status. I chose clothing types and colors that we know that came from medieval Mediterranean that were reserved for royalty and courts due to the extensive labor and costs of making and shipping them. I also chose a style represented in one painting as worn by Queen Hadassah (otherwise known as Queen Esther), but altered for jugglability: a light, black blouse and a red velvet with black lace overlay skirt. My outfit is handmade for Faires. - How many Faires other than those you are vending or performing do you go to?
a. None really. I am not comfortable being a patron. I really need to be involved in the back end doing the entertaining. Saying that, any event I discover that I want to attend, I reach out to them and find out what it will take to be able to perform there, or be part of the team. In addition to my Renaissance and Medieval Faires, I also perform at Crypticon in Seattle, Fairy events, state fairs, street fairs, housing fairs, and I am the Director of Operations for the Weekend of Wizardry Harry Potter Fan Fair in Tacoma. - Plug your website or fan page here (or both)
a. https://www.facebook.com/Adria-The-Juggler-1602298700030961/
b. http://www.adriathejuggler.com/
