March 8th, 2010 by cbg
 Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
For a variety of reasons I’ve earned the reputation of having great promo and being great at promoting myself… It, along with some dedication and persistence has allowed me to enjoy a career that’s spanned almost three decades. It always surprises me a little bit when people comment on my prowess as a self-promoter because I’m still trying to figure it out. Every year there seems to be a new way to reach out and connect with Fans, clients and leads and although email newsletters aren’t new by any stretch of the imagination I finally got the push I needed to push one out the preverbal door… There was of course no door that this virtual campaign had to go through when it got sent out, just a button clicked, but it felt like a very new thing to me on some levels.
Truth be told, I actually toyed with the idea of putting out an email newsletter about five years ago and even went as far as to creating one and posting it on-line where I figured I could send people to get the latest news… Email newsletter campaigns have come a long way since then though and it was my Manager, Corwin, who suggested that we go with Mail Chimp as the package of choice for the very first official cbg world report.
Working with Corwin on this was a really great as it really did feel like a collaboration. Job one for me was to come up with a list of email addresses to send the newsletter out to. I went through my address book pulling addresses out that went back to the days when I hosted a performer’s database on my website. In all I had 1337 email addresses that the first newsletter got sent to. Next I created the header and footer graphics for the campaign, third I needed to generate the content. Corwin took this, added a few snazzy icons for the right hand link info section and voila – Newsletter!
There is a fee charged by Mail Chimp to deliver an email campaign like this and for this particular run my bill came to under five bucks. This has got to be one of the most economical promotional vehicles I’ve ever tapped into… Amazing!
So, did it work? Was it a success?
Well that depends on how you judge these sorts of things I guess. Mail Chimp makes it easy by providing a report with all sorts of interesting statistics…
I knew well before we clicked the send button that many of the email addresses were probably no longer valid. Corwin gave me an interesting statistic at one point that amounted to the fact that the average life expectancy of an email address these days is something like six months. That many of the addresses I pulled from my address book were years old I anticipated that many of the messages sent out would bounce… In the end, about a third of the emails sent out did bounce. These will get pulled from the system immediately. The unsubscribe option was exercised by only 17 people who received the message which was an interesting statistic, and interesting to see who did opt out of getting the email news from me in the future. Some weren’t a surprise at all, others were, and gave me a clue as to where I should (or in this case shouldn’t) focus my efforts.
Were I to list the top three things I learned from this first stab at sending out an email Newsletter the you be, in no particular order -
- There are people who actually want to know what I’m up to and appreciated getting the Newsletter.
- Some of my best friends found it amusing that I was obviously sending this Newsletter out myself, but chose to write in the third person.
- This is likely one of the cheapest way to stay connected with a client and fan base that there is.
Will I be sending out more Newsletters in the future? Yep! No question about it, but I’m not going to make it a once a month thing, rather, as Corwin pointed out, it make more sense to send out a Newsletter when there’s something to tell people about. In this instance it was the recent trip I had to India and the work I had been doing during the Olympics.
Didn’t receive the Newsletter? I find that bizarre as I pretty much sent it to anyone I could think of, but if you didn’t get it and would like to have a look at it go here and have a boo. Wanna get the News as it’s published? Send me an email and I’ll make sure you’re on the list for the next round of info.
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March 6th, 2010 by cbg
 Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
“If you want to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first create the universe.”
–Carl Sagan, US astronomer & popularizer of astronomy (1934 – 1996)
Addendum…
“It’s not an apple pie, but the iPhone I just bought feels like the start of a brand new universe…”
–David ‘checkerhead’ Aiken
I’ve been ummming and ahhhhing about getting an iPhone for a couple of years and even posted about the temptation and seductive allure of this little electronics beast earlier in the week… It hasn’t even been twenty-four hours since I took ownership of this device and already I can really understand what my friend Jeremy Eaton said when he called it the ‘Face Eating Monster.’ Another friend told me that it would change my life… I’d be able to do more all the time and I’m sure he’s right… Not sure it’s a good thing, but I sure am having fun! It’s like that new-ness of a fresh relationship when you’re all on pins and needles… It’s awesome! Wonder how long the romance will last?
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March 5th, 2010 by cbg
 Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
Prologue: I first met Anders at the Provincial Exhibition in Brandon, MB back in 2000 I believe it was I drove out to Manitoba in my freshly painted 1968 Checker Cab (Taxi Yellow with Purple Hot Rod Flames) and did a few gigs in Manitoba including the Provincial Exhibition, The Red River Exhibition and Canada Day at the Forks. Here’s what Anders remembers from our meeting…
I knew who you were through Robin Chestnut and I believe the first time I saw you perform was at the Winnipeg fringe. I remember seeing your Scooter finale and I was blown away with the response. In Brandon, I saw a rare opportunity to hang out with a true professional. I worshipped your performing prowess. I thought I would just see how long I could hang out with you and see what nuggets of wisdom I could glean.
Gee… He makes it sound like I actually knew what I was doing when we met – HA! Anyway, thanks in large part to the C.A.M.P. program that’s put on in association with the Winnipeg International Children’s Festival I’ve had the chance to hang out a lot with Anders and have enjoyed the friendship and watching his show evolve over the years. Good guy!
STATS
Name: Anders Boulanger
Birthday: May 24, 1977.
Place of Birth: Brandon, Manitoba, Canada.
Started Peforming/Working in the Industry: Started in Magic in 1982, First Paid Gig 1989 for a $5 fee. Full time professional since 1999.
Discipline: Comedy Magic
Websites: www.andersmagic.com www.TheInfotainer.ca
Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/user/andersboulanger
Venues Worked: Everything from Dairy Queens and Machine Sheds to Luxury Resorts and Convention Centres.
Hot 10 Questions:
- What’s your favorite flavor of ice cream and why? • Chocolate. More exciting than vanilla and yet not too exotic so it’s readily available. Unlike Dr. Pepper in restaurants grrrrr!
- Name one movie that would make it to your Top 10 all-time great films. • Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and Princess Bride.
- What was your favorite toy from childhood? • Fisher-Price Magic Set of course!
- Who were your biggest inspirations when you got started? • Dean Gunnarson, Brian Glow, Paul Daniels.
- From the world of animation what one character do you most identify with or see yourself in? • I’ve been told I look like Fry from Futurama, but I have always liked Robin Hood (the fox) in the old Disney version.
- Name something that scares you. • Boo!
- Apart from the entertainment industry, name one other job you’ve had. • Provincial Park Hiking Guide.
- What’s something you haven’t done yet that you’d like to try? • I always wanted to drink a Zima. I have never seen them in Canada.
- What’s your least favourite thing about being a performer? • I love travelling and yet I hate being away from home since the birth of my daughter.
- If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? • “Wasssszz Uppppppp? “ It would be reassuring to me that God wasn’t too serious.
The Nugget:
Pick one nugget of wisdom you’ve picked up from your career in Show Business to share with the World.
“After the show, no matter how much you charge, if you do a good show and the client is happy, you are worth every penny they paid you. The trick is to convince them you are worth that amount before the show.“
–Anders Boulanger
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March 4th, 2010 by cbg
 Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
Love the image I found to go along with the post today… It’s an image of an old decompression chamber that was used to help deep sea divers… Come up too quickly and divers would suffer from decompression sickness which in serious cases could be lethal.
In my case there’s no risk of death, but I always find that after an intense period of gigging I need to take some time to decompress and adjust to regular life… February ended up being a huge month for me with nineteen out of twenty eight days spent performing, add into that the time I spent traveling to and from India and the total goes up to twenty five out of twenty eight days. That’s a lot! And really if you look at the prep for gigs my brain and body were occupied for the full month.
Especially during the last two weeks of the month while I was home and working the Robson Square project during the Olympics I seemed to let an enormous amount of crap pile up on my desk. Stuff that really did need my attention, but not nearly as much as the focus I needed to give to the daily shows I was doing and the simple act of successfully living through each day.
The result of letting things collect in Piles on my desk was that when I got to the end of the run during the Olympics and along with everyone else in Canada erupted with excitement when the Canadian Men’s Hockey Team won the Gold Medal Match on the 28th to close out The Winter Games I needed a few days just to sift through the piles and make some head way on the stuff that had accumulated.
Normally if I’ve been away doing a cruise ship job, this decompression process takes about two days. After about forty-eight hours I’ve successfully managed to tidy up from what ever trip I was on and get back into the swing of things at home. This time around it’s taking longer… I think this is in part due to the fact that I was both performing in as well as helping organize the BC Street Jam program so I had admin work to do for not only myself, but the program as well. Then there’s likely the reality that I didn’t really have a chance to decompress from the trip to India before I jumped straight into the gig during the Olympics. Add to this the relationship I’m building with a guy who’s taking on some managerial duties for me and getting both of us up to speed with each other’s systems etc… Simply put there’s been more to deal with and it’s taking longer to sift through it all.
I’m not complaining mind you as these are all things that I brought upon myself and I do have the sense that all the work will pay off in the long run, but when you’re in the middle of it all and feeling rather exhausted it’s sometimes better to get a good nights rest than it is to panic too much about the state of one’s desk.
It’s been a good week of organizing and prioritizing though and I feel like I am making pretty decent headway when it comes to clearing off the desk and de-cluttering my brain. One of the biggest tell tail signs for me ends up being the state of my email in-box. I tend to use my email in-box as a to-do list as often messages will come in that I want to keep floating around because they require some additional action. Four days post Olympic Closing ceremonies and I’m just now starting to feel like I’m getting a handle on things… The in-box is down to 25 messages, but considering early in the week was up well over 50 I think I’m doing reasonably well… Hopefully by the end of the day I’ll have it down under fifteen…
Not quite at the surface yet, but hopefully the slow decompression process will help me avoid getting the bends.
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March 3rd, 2010 by cbg
 Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
How do they do it? Swing by the Moisture Festival Web-site and you’ll see an incredible alumni of incredible performers appear on screen. All acts who have journeyed to Seattle to take part in a festival where the salaries are entirely dependant on ticket sales.
It’s a pretty simple equation. The festival runs for four weeks, shows are put together from a star studded collection of variety and burlesque entertainers, each time you perform you earn one share, once the festival wraps up all of the expenses are paid and then the proceeds are distributed equally amongst the share holders… Is it Democracy? Is it Communism? Is it the way things should run? I’m not sure, but one thing is for sure, incredible acts seem to be drawn to this event.
Back in December when I was sending out festive greeting cards I created an email version of the card that I could send out along with the three hundred and fifty 0dd hard copies that also got distributed during the holiday season. One of the recipients of the email version of the card was Tim Furst one time (all time?) Flying Karamazov Brother. Tim also happens to be one of the key players (if not THE key player – well my main connection anyway) in the Moisture Festival Organization. I sent out a ton of the email versions of the Holiday greeting and some people responded… Tim was one of them. When I heard back from Tim I took the opportunity to ask about Moisture Festival.
Now I have to admit that I’m generally motivated by money when it comes to gigs and I think my capitalist tendencies are well enough known that one of the first things that Tim did was warn me of exactly what I was getting myself int0 -
First, read the Performer / Booking Information page on our website www.moisturefestival.org so that you know what you would be getting yourself into (ie, no financial guarantee but lots of fun – and only doing 5-12 minutes per show. It is, after all, a Varieté festival . . .) Then, if you are still interested, let me know if you can legally work in the USA.
So I read and I reported in that I ‘got it’ and that really all I wanted was a chance to play for play’s sake.
This is, I think, the key. The idea of playing with out worrying about money is very liberating… I know many performers for whom this is the driving force behind why they became performers in the first place and somehow by the sheer act of playing the money seems to look after itself. Perhaps I’m a bit too left brained at times and I should trust my right brain more when it comes to the play quotient, but left brained concerns like family, bills, and responsibility have a nasty way of creeping in more often than I’d necessarily like and play is often shelved in exchange for security.
Moisture Festival for me will be a chance to play. Sure it’s only for one day, two if you count the extra day I’m spending in Seattle to just watch shows, but especially after a very busy February where jobs that offered security were at the for front, this chance to play for the sake of playing is going to be great and I know I’ll get as much (if not more) from going down with this mindset than I may from the actual time I spend on stage…
If you’re in the Seattle area, I’ll be a part of two variety shows on March 14th one that starts at 3:00 pm and the other that’s slated to begin at 7:30 pm. Details can be found on the Moisture Festival website.
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March 2nd, 2010 by cbg
 Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
Is resistance futile?
Ever since the very first iPhone was released on June 29, 2007 I’ve been resisting the temptation of getting one… Mind you getting one in Canada wasn’t an option for quite a while after it was originally released in the US, but even when the iPhone did arrive in Canada I was quite happy not to buy into the ‘God Phone‘ as it was sometimes called.
A little over a year ago I opted to get an iPod Touch instead of buying an iPhone because I reasoned that if I kept my regular phone and didn’t buy the additional data-plan that goes with all smart phones on the carrier I use I’d save enough over the course of the year to more than pay for the fanciest of the iPod Touches and that’s exactly how things played out…
Then back in October, almost a year to the day after I had originally gotten my iPod Touch I accidentally stepped on it at a gig cracking it’s screen and have been staring at a somewhat funky screen for a little over four months… Apple could fix the screen for $250.00 but the funky screen doesn’t seem to effect the playback ability of the audio on the device…hmmmm. It is rather annoying when it comes to doing anything that uses the beautiful touch screen interface for video, games or other apps… Sigh…
A few months back I also upgraded to the latest version of iPhoto and was introduced to a cool new feature called ‘Places’ that allows you to ge0-tag images and track where in the world the picture was taken. I’ve been geo-tagging by hand and love opening up iPhoto and then clicking on the map to see where around the world my pictures have been taken… I’m a bit behind with my iPhoto responsibilities though and one of the most time consuming aspects when it comes to the Places feature is the tagging of the images with a location stamp… Of course, the iPhone does the tagging for you automatically thus eliminating one of the most time consuming aspects of that particular task that I do like to stay on top of… Sigh…
Back in the Summer I was really impressed when my friend, Rick Kunst, whipped out his iPhone, took a picture, connected to Facebook and uploaded the image with in seconds… Moments later people were commenting on the photo and leaving feedback… Crazy! I think it was around that time that I started to see how powerful the iPhone could be in terms of doing stuff like Facebook, Twitter and Flickr. I’ve resisted the Web 2.0 revolution for ages too, but I’m slowly becoming a convert and having an iPhone to use as the interface device would certainly allow me to update my status on the various sites easily from just about anywhere potentially helping me stay more connected to friends and clients…
To make matters even worse my wife who’s as thrifty as I am turned to me the other day and more or less said… Dave, you should get an iPhone… Man… It’s like seeing the most delicious cookies going into the cookie jar and then told you can eat as many as you like… Does it get any better than this?
Everywhere I turn I see people using and loving their iPhones… Hooked up with a friend yesterday who put it this way…
Ask ten different iPhone users if they love their phone and nine out of ten of them will pull out their phone and start kissing it.
Temptation… I’m not sure how much longer I’m going to be able to resist…
Posted in Technical Tuesdays, Thoughts | 7 Comments »
March 1st, 2010 by cbg
 Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
The Olympics in Vancouver saw so many performers descend on town to perform including six members of the Big Nazo Lab from Providence Road Island… I had no idea that they were going to be in town but ran into Erminio Pinque in costume on the corner of Granville and Robson one night just bringing Art to the crowds and being involved in the excitement on street level.
I’ve always had a great deal of respect for the work that Erminio does not only as a builder of some of the most amazing foam monsters and creatures you will ever see, but also for his love of creating renegade video and capturing the raw energy of the moments that he embraces… It’s awesome!
Anyway, I called Erminio this morning trying to figure out if there was going to be a way for us to hook up and hang out. Over the course of the conversation he told me about the Big Nazo Blog which was launched a bunch of weeks back and helped captured the build up to the gig they were in Vancouver to do. I ended up spending about an hour poking around an checking out stuff that was posted on the blog and getting a better sense of what they had done while they were in town to perform during the Olympics.
Got some time? Then I highly recommend swinging by their blog and checking out some of their fun!
I ended up hooking up with the Big Nazo Crew at Yamato Sushi on Davie Street in the evening and I handed out CBG Ball Caps for the whole gang… On one level this was a promotional move as all swag is, but on some the level I was trying to find a way to say… Man… I wish we’d had more time to hang out while you were in town, here, take a little bit of me back to Providence with you…
Erminio and I dove straight into reminiscing about the fun we had in Halifax the year we met and some of the craziness that took place at the Halifax Busker’s festival. The year was 1988 I ended up hooking up with Brian Hulse and a group called Twist and Shout (Dave Rave and Henrick Bothe) on about day three of the 17 day run and forming a sort of Boy Busker Super Group which we called The Bounty Brothers… Erminio and the Big Nazo Crew did a show at the time that included having a monster come out and eat a small child… The flood of memories was awesome! At the end of the evening as we headed out of the sushi restaurant I took the crew past my car (very much the sort of thing I thought would expect a Nazo creation to drive around in) and took the snap that accompanies the post.
Hanging out with the Nazo Crew and checking out their blog was really good for me as it was a great reminder of how important it is to sometime dream REALLY big and dive head first into the adventure of creating art and performance that connects with people and has a really positive effect on shaking up the status quo…
I think if you can mix art and performance with a bit of anarchy there’s something really powerful and really magical that results. After having spent two weeks crossing my t’s and dotting my i’s it with the Robson Square Gig for the British Columbian Provincial Government and needing to be accountable, it was great to have the reminder that sometimes you really do need to shake it up a bit.
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February 27th, 2010 by cbg
 Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
“Canada is a country whose main exports are hockey players and cold fronts.”
–Pierre Trudeau, Canadian politician (1919 – 2000)
Addendum…
“Make that Gold-Medal-Winning Hockey Players!!!”
–David ‘checkerhead’ Aiken
OK, so I sort of cheated on this one… Normally quotes go up on Saturday and this post is back-dated so that it looks as though it was posted on Saturday, but truth be told I waited until after the Men’s Gold Medal Hockey Game to find the quote, and throw it up… What a great way for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games to wrap up! Awesome Hockey! Yippee!
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February 26th, 2010 by cbg
 Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
Prologue: James called me out of the blue asking if we could get together in about 2006 I think it was. We hooked up at a Tim Horton’s near where I live and discussed performing. I think the basic question that came out of that initial conversation was – how do I become a successful performer. My answer? Just keep doing it. Do it a lot! Do it every chance you get. Apparently he listened because I kept hearing about him on gigs here and there but it wasn’t until the Nanjing Clown Carnival in 2008 that we really spent any time hanging out… Had a hoot performing with him in China, then got to hang out with him again in Miami in December this past year. He had a gig in Miami for about a month and I came through on a couple of Cruise Ship gigs. Gave us the chance to hang out and have him tell me about his passion for powered para-gliding. He keeps threatening to get me up flying at some point and I sure do hope that it works out that I get the chance to play because it looks like a hoot!
STATS
Name: James Johnson (was Jamie Biggar)
Birthday: April 14, 1975
Place of Birth: Richmond, BC, Canada
Started Peforming/Working in the Industry: 1999 as ”Baxter” the clown
Discipline: Variety Comedy and climbing inside a giant balloon.
Website: www.biggerballoon.com
Video Link: http://www.biggerballoon.com/video.php
Venues Worked: Most fairs across Canada, some state fairs and special events in China, Saudia Arabia and Fiji.
Hot 10 Questions:
- What’s your favorite flavor of ice cream and why? • Soy Chocolate Chip mint-perfect combination of cold chocolate chunks to chew on and an awakening minty flavor that has a good after taste. Almost good enough for a meal!
- Name one movie that would make it to your Top 10 all-time great films. • Dumb and Dumber with Jim Carey.
- What was your favorite toy from childhood? • G.I. Joe F16 tomcat fighter plane.
- Who were your biggest inspirations when you got started? • David Aiken – first street performer I ever saw perform.
- From the world of animation what one character do you most identify with or see yourself in? • The Ice man surfer guy.
- Name something that scares you. • Drowning.
- Apart from the entertainment industry, name one other job you’ve had. • Captain in the Canadian Armed Forces.
- What’s something you haven’t done yet that you’d like to try? • BASE Jumping.
- What’s your least favourite thing about being a performer? • Loosing my voice.
- If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? • ”Why the heck are you here so early?”
The Nugget:
Pick one nugget of wisdom you’ve picked up from your career in Show Business to share with the World.
“The audience is everything. If there is no one who wants to watch your show then the whole purpose of performing is pointless. I am grateful that people actually want to take the time out of their lives so that I can share my idea of entertainment with them. To me this is an honour so I like to perform my very best every time.”
–James Johnson
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February 25th, 2010 by cbg
 Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
Still in the middle of the BC Street Jam program on Robson Square at the moment. It’s been a great run to date and today was the last day of the run for two great acts – The Chairmen and Mike Battie. It’s a pleasure to work with these two acts, because the totally ‘Get it.’ I was talking with Bob from the Chairmen after his show last night and really just thanking him for making it so easy to bring the Chairmen in as an act in the program.
Every gig is different and each environment dictates a certain acceptable or expected behaviour from the people fronting the bill. Working a straight street pitch is one thing, working for a corporate client is another, doing work on cruise ships another beast all together. Each venue needs to be approached as it’s own entity and appropriate behaviours learned for each. It’s been really interesting for me to be involved on both sides of the equation with this project during the Olympics, both as an act as well as part of the production team, because I’ve become even more aware of how important it is to make sure the performers involved in the program help promote the positive image of the end client in this particular case the Province of British Columbia.
In my conversation with Bob we used the analogy a mechanic pulling out tools from his toolbox to work on different jobs and compared that to what a performer needs do every time they work with a different client. A great set of skills, appropriate costuming, good promo, these are all a given. You need these ‘tools’ if you want to get the gig in the first place, but beyond this, the ability to recognize that when you step out on stage (and off stage for that matter) you are actually a representative of the client who booked you is critical. Understand this successfully being able to executing any tweaks to the content of your performance to keep your show and it’s image in line with that of the end client is critical if you want to craft a win-win scenario that might see you working for that client again.
Now for true ‘Artists’ these sorts of restrictions placed on their creative head space may appear too limiting and for that sort of performer, working for certain clients may not be the best option, but having the ability to adapt and conform a bit will open WAY more doors for you work-wise. Having this understanding of how your show reflects on the person who’s hiring you could well be one of the most important tools in your toolbox.
To use a hockey analogy, you need to not only be good on the ice, you need to be good in the locker room as well.
Having a sense of the bigger picture that your show is fitting into at a large event like this one I’m currently involved with is just a part of the job. The BC Street Jam program is just one part of the larger Celebrate British Columbia at Robson Square Programming. The result is that each show that’s part of the BC Street Jam ends up being one small element in a much larger picture made up of many other elements. The more harmoniously the individual parts flow together, the better the results are going to be for the entire program and the happier the end client is going to be. Playing well with others just make the whole thing work.
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February 24th, 2010 by cbg
 Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
Since 2005 I’ve consulted with Patrick Roberge, the creative director for the Pacific National Exhibition, on the PNE’s Street Stars Program. Over the year’s we’ve had some of the best artists on the street in the program and as we gear up for the 100th anniversary of the Fair August 21 and September 6th 2010, I’m hoping to maintain the tradition of excellence when it comes to the Street Stars Program.
I’ve always assumed the role of “Man Friday” for the program because although I go out and do most of the leg work when it comes to tracking down the acts that I think should be involved in the program, it’s Patrick who has the final say in who comes in to perform. This isn’t the worst scenario in the world and it has certainly allowed me to learn and grow my knowledge of how to create a world-class street program and include it in a bigger event such as the PNE which has been great. One of the biggest challenges involved comes to co-ordinating the decision making process around each other’s schedules.
Along with being the creative director for the PNE, Patrick also runs a special events company called Patrick Roberge Productions (PRP). This company does everything from help organized and run awards shows to creating new stage productions for the PNE to managing and producing the opening and closing ceremonies for the upcoming Paralympic Games. This year has been a huge year with the Olympics and Paralympics in Vancouver and related events have meant A LOT more work for Patrick and his company.
The result of all of these additional events is that decisions about the 2010 PNE and the Street Stars Program, which have traditionally be sorted out by this point in the year, have been put off. I had an initial meeting with Patrick a few weeks ago, but it was very clear at that point that other projects were taking priority. I was trying to set up a meeting this week to start moving forward with things, but the scope of the Opening and Closing of the Paralympic Games is such that all other projects are being put on the side-line for the time begin.
The Paralympics wrap up on March 21st and Patrick and I won’t really get into the programming of this year’s Street Stars Program until after that, so, to those of you who’ve expressed interest in the program. Thanks for your patients, If you end up getting other offers for work at the same time and need to make decisions my advice would be to take the guaranteed gigs, but please do keep me in the loop as to your availability. For those of you who haven’t contacted me yet but who are interested in the gig, please get me the following information so I can add you to the ranks of those being considered for the 2010 fair -
- Act Name:
- Real Name(s):
- Web Site:
- Web Video :
- Email:
- Mailing Address:
- Phone Number(s):
- Bio/Program Blurb (40 – 60 words max):
- Photo (4 x 6, 300 dpi, jpg):
If you haven’t heard anything more about this by the end of March feel free to contact me to see where things are at. That’s the update for today!
Posted in Job Opportunities, Performance | No Comments »
February 23rd, 2010 by cbg
 Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
Nothing too complicated about today’s post. I travel enough that I’ve run into most of the plug types that are out there and have gotten into the habit of carrying the various travel adaptors with me. I do this primarily so I can plug in my computer where ever I happen to be in the world. Now if I was actually a bit more organized I’d actually swing by a handy dandy on-line resource to check which plug type(s) I’d need for any given trip, but two of the three adaptors in the picture above are small enough so that I just have them tucked into a small case that carries various cables and connectors for the electronics that I fly with.
On a recent trip to India I ended up spending about five hours in Hong Kong Airport on the way over and even longer on the way back. The great thing about the airport in Hong Kong is that you can tap into a free wifi connection which is awesome. The tricky think about a five or more hour lay over is the fact that my computer’s battery was pretty tapped out by about the two hour mark. Hong Kong’s plug (the white one in the picture) is the same as that in England and although I had already picked one of these up in my travels I totally spaced on the fact that I’d need it for the layover in Hong Kong.
Thankfully there was an electronics shop in the airport that sold the adaptors, so I picked one up and was away at the races in terms of charging up my battery and plugging away at the seemingly endless amount of internet-ing that needs to be attended to on a daily basis. Actually it was the layover in Hong Kong on the way home where I was able to catch up on about a week’s worth of blog posts… I seem to have been running a bit behind on my self-imposed blogging schedule, but somehow I seem to be able to get the posts up eventually and am more or less on track with things…
Anyway… Travel adaptors… Check where you’re going before you fly and make sure you pack the right one(s). Most AC adaptors will convert the input voltage so that when you actually plug it into your machine it doesn’t fry the circuitry but I did experience a pretty odd phenomena while I was in India… The voltage coming out of the outlets in India is 230 volts, the voltage in Canada is 120 volts. The increased voltage didn’t have an effect on my computer’s power adaptor’s ability to recharge the battery and run my machine, but the aluminium body of my Macbook Pro seemed to vibrate when I touched it… It was as though the additional voltage was making the whole machine quiver… When I’d unplug the machine the vibration would go away, when I plugged it in I could literally feel the voltage running through the aluminum casing of the computer in this weird sort of way. Imagine running your hands over a velvet surface and that feel of the little hairs of velvet running underneath your hand… That’s about the closest way I can describe it… Very odd to be typing away on my machine and have this sensation occur. It was almost like the machine was alive… I got into the habit of unplugging the adaptor when I was working, working until the battery died, then taking a break while the battery recharged… It was just a little odd…
Anyway… Keep in mind that countries around the world run on everything from 110 volts to 240 volts and although most AC adaptors can accept inputs in this range you’ll need to carry a collection of adaptors to ensure that you’ll be able to keep your electronics juiced up!
Posted in Technical Tuesdays, Travel | 2 Comments »
February 22nd, 2010 by cbg
Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
OK… So I admit it… Just two short weeks ago when I posted that I’d created a Facebook Fan Page I was a bit sceptical about the how’s and why’s of it all, but I’m becoming a convert. I think this is in part because at the end of the shows I’ve been doing on Robson Square during the Olympics I’ve been mentioning to people that if they liked the show, they should check me out on Facebook and they have… Someone (Gina Johnstone) even sent me a link to a video she had taken… How cool is that!?!?
OK… It’s not like I’ve got a gazillion Fans who have actually signed up to the page at this time, but I’m starting to wrap my head around the importance of building a bit more of a resource on-line to specifically reach out to Fans and not only for me to reach out to Fans, but for Fans to reach out to me… I Fans can interact more immediately with a Facebook Fan Page than I had at first realized and the ability for them to post pictures and videos to the Fan Page is pretty cool.
I’m a big fan of Steve Martin, have been for years and around about the beginning of this year he posted a little video of himself playing banjo and inviting his Fans to create a video to go along with a song that was inspired by his dog running around the back yard. He offered a cash prize for the best video submission and then sat back and waited to see what people would come up with. What a cool way to create a music video! Let other people do it for you! Ha!
My friends in the Barenaked Ladies have also got an amazing dialogue going on with their fans and have had videos created for them by Fans as well. The BNL boys have actually done a pretty amazing job of reach out to fans and giving them the tools necessary to play with the originally recorded music tracks for creating new and interesting mixes of BNL songs and generally making the relationship flow both ways… Artist creativity flows out but then is reciprocated by some amazing Fan based creativity.
Since creating the Fan Page on Facebook there’s been a slow rumble of interest from people who are connecting to the page and connecting to me and slowly but surely I’m learning how to feed Fan interest with this page… Hopefully over time it will continue to grow and I’ll be able to tap into the the creativity and brilliance of some of the folks who’s watched my show, had a laugh and saw something there they might be able to contribute to – who knows where it might lead. Should be fun finding out!
Posted in Marketing, Performance | 1 Comment »
February 21st, 2010 by ZimmyPage
Zimmy Page Strikes again! The Sunday guest blogger tradition continues with this fantastic take on traveling as a performer! Hope you love this piece as much as I did!
Cheers!
d. – checkerhead
I don’t remember much. There were all these strange little creatures buzzing about, speaking some crazy-sounding language. I had this awful feeling of dread as they took me into this big room with all these bright white lights. Then this other one, I guess he must have been their leader or something because his uniform was a little different. He leads me into this other smaller room. They stripped me down, turned me about and began to probe me. At one point, I turned around and there must have been about five or six of these creepy little beings all gang-probing me. It was ter-rib-le…weep, weep, weep!
No doubt about it; going through customs in Singapore was the worst.
(You know, they stamp a skull and bones right on your passport just to remind you that they kill people for drugs there. “Welcome to Singapore, imperialist dog! If you brought any herb with you, prepare to die. Have a nice day.”)
Traveling is far and away the best and worst thing about choosing street performance as a career. My buddy Mickey O’Connor quotes the adage–”I don’t get paid to perform, I get paid to travel.” That’s because it just plain SUCKS to travel now. It used to be so glamorous, “jetting” here or “jetting” there. Something bad must have happened in like, late 2001, because ever since then, moving a whole show of props, a week’s worth of regular people luggage and my own ass through airports just about kills the joy of getting to see this planet on someone else’s dime.
Still, it is great once you’re there. Wherever you land is usually pretty fantastic. I mean, how great and smart are British audiences? Plus, you’re in the U.K. Congratulations! Top of the food chain, baby. Ever been to Japan? Dave Aiken is HUGE there…he towers over his audiences. I hear that buskers are beloved in Brazil and cities like Barcelona and Prague.
Personally, I love Canada the best. The people are probably the nicest anywhere. As audiences, they’re razor sharp like an L.A. audience, but they’re unarmed. I like that.
Most countries will love you more if you make an effort to speak the local language. Knowing how to say your hat lines in Quebec-quois gives them the sense that you’re no tourist, man. You care about them. Now you’re a welcome guest. (Yes, I called Quebec a country…but only because it IS one.)
Same thing if you learn those same lines in Parisian, they WILL notice the effort…unless of course, you’re from the States. For the last time, I wish to explain this. I do not create U.S. foreign policy. I just live there. I don’t even vote. Voting is for suckers! Remember George W. Bush? We didn’t elect him–TWICE! They do whatever the hell they want, man. I’m just here to learn parts of my show in your language, make you smile and then bugger off. I may foul one or two of your local women, but I won’t endorse or enforce any of my countries’ insane politics. (Okay, maybe three women if I can lose the last of this beer weight.)
Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not some farcical hipster doofus marionette ceremony!
It was in Cannes, France that I experienced the worst anti-American contempt of my life. They lost the ONLY key they had to my quaint little hotel room, right during the half hour I was supposed to be on stage at the MIP-TV convention. That same key re-appeared on cue just seconds after my gig was ruined. I think it was done to me just because of my passport.
The worst part is, the British producer who hired me understood. He knew it was possible and therefore, true. That’s okay, I got even with ‘em. I kidnapped a French guy and actually bathed him. Gave him a splash of deodorant…he was instantly deported.
Here’s a great example of my performance persona standing in conflict with my nationality. I was working in Vlissengen, Holland. I went into a restaurant with a fellow busker from Scotland. He ordered his meal in his thick accent and with no problem.
I tried to order, even attempting to read it as written–I wanted a hot dog. Of course, the word for hot dog in Dutch is something like “hottendorgen doggendonkendonkendurgan.” (I think one of the ‘o’s had a line through it…I mean, what the hell is that?)
I guess I said it wrong because all of the other patrons gave me foul glares…my own accent so rich in U.S.-itude.
I apologized profusely, citing “how difficult I found the language to pronounce.”
The owner replies, and correctly so, “Really? Because I see it being spoken every day by very, very small children.” He was right. He was also a fascist douche bag who deserved my wrath. The whole place howled, and all twenty patrons made me feel like a political rodent. I held my tongue though, as I didn’t want any “spitten hocken” on my sammitch, okay?
We walk around the corner and are stopped cold by two couples…four well-dressed perfect human specimens, the kind of people you only see in beer ads and Holland.
“You! You are The Puppet Guy! Everyone on the boardwalk is talking about the show you make here today! Let us take you out…let us show you around!”
And they did. They were fantastic and warm, wonderful hosts. I didn’t have the heart to feel anything but overjoyed…I instantly forgot the ugly events of five minutes earlier.
That’s because Lee Zimmerman is just some obnoxious loudmouth from the United States.
The Puppet Guy is a citizen of Earth.
Posted in Zimmy Speaks | 5 Comments »
February 20th, 2010 by cbg
 Where in the world am I today?: North Vancouver, BC, Canada
“Sports serve society by providing vivid examples of excellence.”
–George F. Will, US editor, commentator, & columnist (1941 – )
Addendum…
“The 2010 Winter Games not only provides a venue for sports excellence, but also amazing crowds in good spirits to play to as a performer!”
–David ‘checkerhead’ Aiken
Wanted to have a quote that I could tie in to the Olympics and found this one… The Olympics certainly has transformed Vancouver. I discussed it a bit a couple of days ago, but it really is amazing to walk down town and feel the excitement in the air! The enthusiasm and spirit that’s floating around is just incredible and it’s a joy to be in the middle of it all! If you can get yourself here before the end of the Game you’ll see what I mean. If not, enjoy the buzz on TV or however else you can!
Posted in Quotes | No Comments »
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