The Juggler: A Demonstration in Central Park, New York City

February 2nd, 2008 Posted in Juggler, Sports

Up in Central Park many years back, a number of varied acts on display in honor of something or other. I do not remember the details, only one act, a juggler, a man in his thirties, accompanied by two stunningly beautiful women and a child. His equipment: heavy weights, looking like extra large bowling pins. He tossed a slew of these back a forth with the women, they on one side he on the other. Also other associated tricks and a mild patter. The dress was formal, the women with long slim gowns. He in white shirt, black trousers.

At rare intervals he did a back flip that was impressive for a man of his age and masculine bulk. Head and upper torso thrown backward, the pressure to sustain the movement from the feet, pushing and jumping upward. The legs tucked in as the backward rotation commences. At its apex, head down knees against chest, arms clasped over them. His body upside down, seeming to hang in defiance of gravity. Then the completion, legs extended into a landing, upper body rising to a standing position. A trick once mastered we wonder why he would not repeat it again and again as a new way of life.

A gently dominant man, the women and the child are alert for his signals. He accepting the responsibility for their well being, somehow reduced to this odd moment in the park, for small change (metal coins) tossed by spectators into an empty cigar box, exhibiting simple tricks, reached through self-discipline and continual training and practice. Alone without the support of the music and the lights and the associated acts of the circus. Revealed as only a few minutes of show after so many hours stretching over years of preparation.

Where will he go next? What will the rest of his life be like? All I will ever have are these few minutes within the small temporary watching semi-circle. At this moment he is a star performer, albeit anonymous, a hero of the independent way.

Then the drunk appears, about the same age as the juggler, physically flaccid, his drunkenness an index of his general lack of discipline or of useful training. Alone. No woman, no child. In his stupor insisting on inserting himself into the act. Discordant noise. Staggering movements.

The juggler beyond annoyed. His latent anger called out but banked. “Go away,” he whispers to the drunk, “Stop interfering!” But the drunk cannot hear, eyes glazed, no hint of appreciating the despair within the other, of this public display of demotion. A class act out of context. This building up of self and then displaying it raw. No hoopla. No illusion. The body in anti-gravity suspension. The quick and precisely coordinated hands and eyes. There it is, out in the open along the side of the park path.

The punishment. The drunk in the center, facing off to the side. The assistant throwing the heavy pins behind his head, the juggler throwing the weight right by the point of the drunk’s nose. Up pace, faster and faster. “Whoa!” shouts the drunk, almost sobered. A millimeter off and grievous injury or death.

They get through it. The juggler wilting, realizing the risk he had taken. The drunk dead, he in jail, his craft unused, the women and child on their own in a cruel world. But actually the drunk is joyful, alive and in one piece, with a now mild buzz. He reaches to embrace the juggler. Will he join the troupe? Will this sequence become part of the act? Or maybe it was already?

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Sociological note: The juggler is a trained athlete who displays his skill in a demonstration instead of as part of a competitive game.

Good bye and allez, hop! (used as a cue by French gymnasts and trapeze artists. Alley Oop in English.)

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If anyone can identify this Central Park juggler and his act please send us a comment or an e-mail (avi@ordinarysociology.com). I would very much like to credit him and link to his web-site if he has one.

Jugglers and juggling are popular on the web now but do not seem to include any sociology of juggling sites. If you come across one, let me know.

Avi