As promised, some photographs from the UV Alien Puppet Show

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eclipsearts_circus/?saved=1

A - G

So here we are with the first installment of the eagerly awaited (by my Mum)
eclipseArts Circus A -Z...

Alien Puppets.  eclipseArts are so called because of an eclipse scene in Tom’s UV alien puppet show, created in the long long ago, before LEDs.   Tom created ‘life size’ alien puppets and various members of the eclipseArts collective operated puppets or manipulated toys around them.  (I'll get some pics up soon.)

Bob Fossett.  One of Tom’s first juggling jobs was with Bob Fossett’s Circus.  For generations the Focett’s firstborn sons have been called ‘Robert’ to save the expense and effort of repainting their regalia.  The Bobs could do fun things like performing the splits on tight-ropes.  Cor!

Circus Parties and Circus Workshops.  Our bread and butter; often for kids.  We can teach and perform loads of stuff - juggling, poi, diabolo, hulahoop, flower sticks, plate-spinning, feather balancing, stilts, unicycle, tight-rope, staff and acrobalance.

Dog show!  My first real stage performance was at Cricklade Dog Show to about 12 people and also some ferrets.  I was terrified and got cramp in my foot whilst hooping on it, but thankfully I didn’t drop. Tom, however, has juggled all over…

…Europe.  Spain, Turkey, Prague, the giddy heights of Wales... the highlight of his career, however, was the dogshow; he preferred this even to working with the Chinese State Circus.  The Chinese State Circus didn’t have ferrets.

Fire!   Our fire shows could include poi, juggling clubs, hulahoop, staff, skipping ropes, a spot of acrobalance and a backflip or two.   We’re thinking about creating some original props too so watch this space…

Glastonbury.  Main stage!  Tom’s first  juggling job, working with Spectral FX.  He took the alien puppet show there a few times too.

Welcome to the first eclipseArts blog entry.

Although eclipseArts have been in the biz for fifteen years, it’s never occurred to us to write a blog before.   I mean, computers, what’s the point?  Can you spin them round your hips, throw them, set fire to them, balance on them?*  No?  Then excuse me while I go back outside with my hulahoop.

However, luddite ideals aside, the net does provide a wealth of teaching resources, online shops, friendly communities and inspirational footage to excite the imagination of any aspiring circus freak.  So we concede and here we are, arriving at the party fashionably late.

The next couple of entries will give you some idea of who we are and what we’ve been up to for the last fifteen years in an ‘A-Z of eclipseArts’.  We’ll start with Alien Puppets and finish with Zacariah Richards, the man who persuaded us to stop fearing technology.  

(* You can probably attempt all four but it would be ill-advised.  Although I wonder… juggling laptops… interesting.)