I'm from here and I dont like sharing...

[jeep caillouet]

I usually tell people that crash my spot "go to work,I don't care what you do". You can't out perform me, at nothing that is unless you are break dancers.Dem guys come up with there getto blasters, rug and 60 boys from the hood. When they through there shit down you may as well move on. Or you could become road kill.

[MagiCol]

Break dancers

Do the breakers want the place, the hat, or both? by the time there's a bit crowd of performers they wouldnt get much each from a crowd, would they? I don't have that group performers problem in my nearby small city - I havent seen anybody dancing in the strand I work in. The people here must have other things they think are more important, or just like to hang around. Or maybe they can't/wont dance in public.

[jeep caillouet]

You must not have break dancers in New Zealand?

[MagiCol]

There must be break dancers, but I havent come across them doing their thing on the streets. New Zealand is a small spacious country; largest city is 1 million and total population about 4 million, many of them oldies.
We dont have the intensity of population in cities so not attendant low-rise ghetto appartments. Skateboarding at outdoor skateboard parks seems to be the most common physically-demanding activity for teenagers grouping together in open public/streets and skateboarding is very much a male thing. Many teenagers in public places just hang out together in groups of up to half a dozen, with the fellows doing girl-watching, bragging to each other, chatting. Most towns and cities have a law forbidding open drinking in downtown areas. Drug abuse is bad but off the central city streets - alcohol and mari and P etc. Street entertainers in NZ seem to be pretty low numbers - not enough people to support full-time busking, I reckon. Though I know a guitarist who, from what he tells me, does very well when he does part-time busking in a small circuit of cities/towns. I'm happy enough doing my part-time street magic, balloons, and circus trick/s. I do it mainly for my, and spectators, enjoyment. There is a yearly Buskers Festival in NZ in summer that starts in Christchuch city and them moves on to Auckland city. That brings some big name performers to New Zealand for a month or so and then they move on to other countries again.

[Irina]

Nobody owns a pitch as long as it is public property - a lot of harborfront private companies do assign street performers to specific times and areas. (Bayside Miami, NYC South Street Seaport, Seattle Pike Market etc) The only way to "own a pitch" in US is to get arrested by cops and go through the court-process with a good lawer - in this case you can get the court ruling allowing you and only you to work the certain pitch - I know several street performers who've done this (not me, I feel that this is "selling off to the system", I am a strong believer in "fighting for your rights" in unity).

As to sharing the pitch - general rules of courtesy and good manners apply. If you do not like sharing - work at festivals or on regulated pitches, where management tells where to set up...

[Irina]

And what I want to add to my last post - Brothers and Sisters, stop fighting! There is much bigger issues here in US with private interests taking over your right to perform on public land! Look at San Francisco City Hall driving out street performers out of Fishermans' Wharf! Look at Central Park, which is still formerly a public park, but is run by 5th Avenue merchants and condo-dwellers, considering it thier pivate backyard! Everywhere I go in USA - it's getting worse and worse for street performers - except for Boston, where Stephen Briard and Community Art Advocates won the Federal lawsuit against the city - so there's a lot of freedom for buskers to work - and fight our petty fights...We are all on one side - freedom of speech and self-expression...if you have a lot of testesterone boiling- fight the big corporations taking over your civil liberties...

[Evan Young]

Peace and love; lets unite and fight "the man"... I agree, but

Even if you are super fair and friendly and democratic; there will still be people who want to push you over. It's best to learn how to hold your ground. An individual performer on an unregulated street may be far more threatened by another performer than "the man".

this thread is really old. I'm not sure why it got dug up and re-started.

[MagiCol]

Why revive the thread?

Evan, the issues continue, no doubt. And those who havent yet read all the thread will find extra to read. The pitch/spot where we want to perform is our stage, and we want to be on it, or find or make another one.

[ROBERT BLAKE]

i had this also a few time. some vendors saying that they are doing a special action afternoon and i should leave. i didn't. i said to him the immortal words:" do you know what? we will take your license and my license and go to a cob and ask him what the regulations are here, if i am wrong i leave".

he looked at me and said it was ok.
threatning to get a cob to sort things out worked many times for me.

[roughtoughcreampuf]

You're from Brooklyn? C'mon! Kick some ass!