"What Age Are You Focused On....?

A big breakthrough in my performing came when I decided I wasn't the clown for everyone. I can get a group of 4 to 7 years olds howling with laughter in a way I wouldn't have believed possible. This comes from zeroing in on my focused age group.

I read David Kaye's book a few years ago about performing magic for children. I had been doing all the right things but got permission through his book to just totally go for it. What I mean by permission, I was self censoring my show from an adults point of view. I knew what would make kids laugh, repetition of a gag, saying poop. I censored because as an adult, I'm not real interested in seeing a trick done over and over. To a child if it's funny once, it's funnier the second time, the third the fourth etc.

Two of my funniest routines. I say my name, tip my hat to introduce myself. I say, oops, or sorry, try it again, the hat falls off, now I can't get my hat on my head to save my life. It repeats the gag over and over, just putting a hat on my head. I used to cut that routine off way too early.

The other routine. I am figuring out what to do with my juggling clubs. I finally figure out they are for juggling, I start to juggle, everyone applauds (it's cool to see someone juggle). then I bonk myself. Hey. I do it again and again and again. Getting really mad at the blue colored juggling club.

For the first 20 years of my career, I wanted to be respected. I wanted to be like Bill Irwin on stage. But I'm not an adult performer, it's not my focus, it hasn't been in many many years. I changed and looked at the laughter of my group, very specifically 4 to 7. Silly silly silly. bodily functions, physical bits, slips of language. It's the same stuff Dr. does but in physical form.

What's interesting, I get adults laughing really hard now. Watching kids laughing that hard makes the adults laugh, making the kids laugh harder. There are times it's too much laughter. I have to pull it in or the kids will use too much energy and not have the power to watch the whole show.

When I focused on my age group, I was afraid I would leave people behind. It's interesting this didn't happen. I also realized a lot of what people pay me to do is give their children fun and laughter, they didn't hire a stand up, they hired a clown.

I now see things all the time I can do more of or quicker. I can flip through books at a bookstore on child development and get ideas. Doing shows for a very specific age group, just made my performing life so much simpler. My promotional materials, my video stuff, my booking methods and my show. I know nearly exactly how it works and what will work and of course what won't.

I'm no longer the jack of all trades and master of none. I'm master of making 4 to 7year olds laugh till they fall over!