The Best Street Act I Saw Ever

[Rex Boyd]

I noticed that this topic was mentioned under the topic of Best Act this Year and I thought it deserved its own section.

I am going to give some thought to try to remember some individual shows that I can write about but in the meantime here is a starting point of some of my favorite performers that I've seen.

Dirty Fred
Peppe
Lee Ross
Anthony Livingspace
Leandre
Loco Brusca
Master Lee
Arsene

I'll stop there for the moment because I should save some for later. Try to think of a specific location and show if you reply to this topic and I'll do the same.

Rex

[peterpanic]

before i moved to neverland i kicked around nyc trying to figure it out...watched a lot of shows...i almost quit after seeing michael trautmans one man show. andrew lloyd webber had five shows on b-way, if i saw one i dont recall...
i do remember charlie barnett in washington sq park. very funny- nothing was off limits to charlie but he was not mean about it. he would turn to a woman out of the blue and ask her how often she masturbated...what do you say? turns out she does not speak english, or she is just waiting for a bus or- please not me and he would say oh you dont know what i'm talkin bout let me help and he would do his impression of a woman masturbating for TEN MINUTES and it was spot on, fast slow shuddering multiple orgasms he really got off even if he was faking. then he would turn back to the woman (who was taking notes) and say- now do you remember?
i dont mind giving out one of charlies classic bits for two reasons: he no longer performs the routine due to an unrelated health concern; and lets face it- who has the noive?
it was watching joey joey on the same pitch one day i was amazed by the power of street theatre as i was lurking around the back of his crowd, trying to figure out how to get an audience like that around ME, making those kinds of noises, the beautiful sounds people make when they all focus and something great happens...when some guy in a suit asks me if i am going to stay to the end of the show. yeah i guess so...what else do i have to do? he hands me 5 bucks and says would you give him this for me? then he walks away into the city leaving me to watch joey joey jump rope on a unicycle with a 14 inch knife down his throat and me standing there holding the fiver thinking- ok i can never do 14 inches but if i can do 3 that should be worth a dollar...

[Orange]

i love nick nicholas, and of course robert nelson, the butterfly man. there are loads of others, of course.

[martin ewen]

There are others and I've all their names in a big book but heres one..

DIRTY FRED

Dirty Fred is the most uniquely abusive, shocking, crass, bad tempered street act I have ever seen. Dirty Fred has his own agenda and like all great performers or artists, he has the ability to bend the world to suit him and not the other way around.
He usually begins by abusing his audiences nationality, If he’s in Belgium for example he will comment on how great it is to be here in Holland, if there are any murmurs of dissent he will attack rather than defend and tell his audience that everyone knows that the Belgium language is just fucked up Dutch, then comment that Dutch is just fucked up German if you go back far enough. If anyone objects to his swearing he will sarcastically suggest they run off and get a policeman.
He talks abrasively and constantly, he pulls down part of his trousers revealing a buttock onto which he has a large fake boil that he squeezes the pus out of while explaining that he lives in a van and only showers once a month.
He is a very skillful juggler with a very fluid style and his juggling is the only thing that gives his show any familiar context whatsoever.
He asks for a child volunteer, but not just any volunteer, he needs a really ugly child and not just ugly, his volunteer must be really stupid as well, after explaining that what he is looking for is a spectacularily ugly, really subnormal child-- he immediately chooses a child from the audience and treats them abusively for the next 5 minutes.
He gets away with all this somehow based on his timing and his authority as a performer.
One of his last tricks is peeling and deep-throating a banana that much to his surprise ejaculates all over his face. To pull this one off in front of family audiences is the work of a master.
One I have not yet seen but heard about involves Fred accidently burning his mouth during a fire swallowing piece and running about in pain asking for water and when there is none, taking out a small penis that he spent a week making and bending double, appear to piss in his own mouth to alleviate his pain.
Dirty Fred is one of a kind.

[Rex Boyd]

I've thought about it for a while and I've come up with the best street show I've ever seen. It was at the 1994 Adelaide Fringe Festival. The Three Canadians ( Theatresports Improvisers ) and Flipside ( Glaswegian Juggling Trio ) teamed up for an end-of-festival blowout. The Three Canadians had already managed to become the cult, boyband of the festival by consistently doing over-the-top high energy and different-everytime shows. Talk about groupies. I admit happily watching their show many times over during the festival as well. For this final show The Canadians pretended to be Flipside and vice versa. Bad Glaswegian accents and pretend juggling from the Canadians and Graham from Flipside doing an excellent hyperactive impersonation of Derek in goggles. It was actually probably a bit of a sloppy show technically but the finish was legendary. They set up a "treasure hunt" game/competition between the two groups. Just as time was running out for them to find something red or some such requirement, Eric from the Canadians appeared hoisted some 30 feet in the air shouting into a megaphone while riding in the cherry picker of a fire truck ( or maybe it was a phone company truck ) that drove into the pitch. Talk about putting in that little extra effort to make every show special. Absolutely legendary in my book. I have know idea how you would get the fire truck through customs though if you wanted to travel with this show. Maybe Gazzo could pull one out of his hat. No, forget it. Who do I think Gazzo is - God? ( wry smile -- fire truck appears from behind melon. )

Rex

[Butterfly Man]

Anthony Livigspace probably is the best street act I've ever seen ... actually, no, it's KeanO ... but that doesn't really count 'cause I was the only one watching ... but to be fair, it should be Pepé, unfortunately, he wasn't around during the show ... and if the truth be told, it actually is Martin ... though I am quite unawware of it, even now ... so then, it really probably has to be Nick, by that I mean Gazzo.

[DEBBIE ROBINSON]

I'll agree with that. Anthony Livingspace.
First act I ever saw that I thought was different - made an impression. He just did stuff that was so odd. Hilarious. Off the wall funny. Weird. Appealed to my sense of humour.
He was sooooooo funny!
Today, Gary animals show is hard to beat
( ok, hands up, I'm biased, but it's ohhh sooo true )
Gazzo's is coming along nicely aswell.

[LUCKY DIAMOND RICH]

The Best Act I have seen this year,is The Calipso Tumblers (Washington Square) N.Y.C

I do not think Debbie R's "Boy Friend" is good at any act's at all,that I have ever seen,or heard of!As far as I am concerned the people he stole the acts off of (Noel Britian,Nick Nickalos and Gazzo)do the act's better than anyone,and he should have stuck to a normal job in the english suburbs!

As for Toney Cambell AKA (Anthony Livingspace),it's a shame he is not as funny or good to be around outside of his show,as in his show!Oh well nothing a shit load of therapy want sort out,may-be!



LDR

[ 09-04-2002: Message edited by: LUCKY diamond RICH ]</p>

[LUCKY DIAMOND RICH]

I am typing this message for Peppe Mime -
the best act I have ever saw,I do not know his name.He put Magic onto the street and also originality,as allusive as a butterfly,and memoriable in time.A person that changed my direction and never,knew.Edingbregh Festival,not sure of the year..............


PM

[DEBBIE ROBINSON]

Well, and a good evening to you too LDR.
What happened to your new found harmonious character?
I think your your tats are stinging abit too much tonight.

Gary's straight jacket show just earnt him what is probably
one of the highest hats on record for a straight jacket show full stop. And he got it without the aid of a 10ft pole.
Heh, where's your generic show taken from? Just curious.
Ooooh, lets kiss and make up?
I thought you'd made up with me!
You turncoat.
I'm gonna let you off, I think you're in pain.

[gweedo]

I am typing this for Kumi, wife of that Butterfly Man, who thinks Peppe Mime took the piss out of her husband better than the best ... she says she is still laughing ... “he fucking hirarious, I rove him!”

[Rex Boyd]

I was just in Tarrega and saw my new winner for best street show ever. They were a trio from France called "Les Blues du Travaille". Imagine 3 of the most amazing acrobrats you've ever seen who have characters along the lines of the Marx Brothers, with ridiculous dance routines and purposely bad guitar playing. They did the tightest, funniest, most action-packed show I have ever seen anywhere. A full hour of non-stop laughs built on top of tumbling, balancing, and completely solid characters.

The finale was a 15 minute rendition of "Alcoholic Acrobatics" in which two of the characters conspired to getting the stupid one drunk and making him do mad tumbling till he passed out. They then made him drink more, revived him with an old shoe used as smelling salts and then he went spinning round again. I laughed til it hurt and I definitely can't even remember the last time I thought something was that funny.

Rex

[LUCKY DIAMOND RICH]

Debbie R,
we are not fighting,sister!And yes you are right i am in alot of Pain but do not feel sorry for me,as it is all self induced!
I love our weird friendship and till we crossed paths again Queen of the Pavement!

LDR

[DEBBIE ROBINSON]

Lucky,
Yes life is too short to fight.
If we were really going for it I'm sure we could do alot worse.
We blow alot of gas - everyone is capable of button pushing eh.
A trouse is called for,
if our paths cross again lets hope we can get on.

Good luck with your tatoo quest, It IS an amazing feat Lucky.
And thankyou for what you said about my dad, he'll be chuffed.

Peace
Deb.