Locations, Maps and Transportation

because this is our land... er, at least i think it is

We return this year to our larger, more centrally located gym at Berkeley High School for daily juggling, unicycling and general fun. This relocation, though undoubtably an inconvenience for those of you accustomed to driving straight to King, means that we can finally keep the gym open until midnight on Friday and Saturday!

In addition to the extra space and late hours, our new location puts us closer to downtown Berkeley with it's pleathora of shops and restaurants, and is a mere two blocks from the downtown BART station. We encourage all attendees to carpool and use public transit if at all possible as PARKING ONSITE IS LIMITED. There are some parking spots on Milvia between Bancroft and Durant. If you don't have to carry lots of unicycles and juggling equipment with you, you might also consider parking at the North Berkeley BART station and taking BART to Downtown Berkeley and walk the rest. PLEASE READ ALL PARKING SIGNS! Most parking in downtown Berkeley is TWO HOUR, so you will need to park about three blocks either West or South to avoid the bad parking karma. Saturday morning, Berkeley has a large Farmer's Market just across the street with great food and a public plaza for any attendees who want to sample local produce and the Bay Area sunshine.

The show will be held at the Florence-Schwimley Theater which is located right inside the Berkeley High School, so you can juggle until five minutes before the show!

Berkeley High School

the festival venue

1980 Allston Way
Berkeley, CA 94704

Please note that the most direct entrances to the High School are on Milvia Street at Durant or on Allston, directly across from the park.

Variety Show

(sexy blue aliens not included)

The Berkeley Festival's public variety show has become a community event, attracting over 500 attendees last year! We work hard to provide a show with a variety of acts from the full spectrum of circus arts, and this year we have something special planned.

Working with U Games, we are assembling a show of particular magnificence to serve the audiences of both events. Mega-awesome, I know. We have assembled a selection of performers from the incredible pool of talent here in the Bay Area and amongst our many attendees.

The show is family friendly, fun for all ages and the best entertainment value you can possibly imagine! All show proceeds go directly to funding the Berkeley Juggling and Unicycling Festival and supporting circus arts in our community. Aside from arriving with your props and positive spirit, attending the show (and convincing your friends to join you!) is the best way to support our efforts.

Dan Holzman Emcee

Juggler, comedian, Raspyni Brother. Dan has the strangest bag of juggling props you've ever seen, and he's invented more tricks with each item than you've forgotten. We're proud to feature Dan and his well-pressed pants as our emcee for this year's show! More information (and bookings, don't forget bookings) at www.raspyni.com/

Sarah Starlight Bay Area Hooper

Sarah Starlight has been a dancer for 16+ years and now focuses her attention on hoop dance, fire dance, yoga, and aerial fabric tissu. Recent hoop performances include the 53rd Venice Biennale, Fear Society Pavilion in Venice, Italy and the 2010 Temple of Poi Fire Dancing Expo in Union Square, San Francisco. www.starlighthoops.com www.youtube.com/starlighthoops

Kyle Johnson object manipulation

Kyle has been juggling for 6 years and has not done much else.

Ashley Foster aerial duo

Ashley Foster discovered aerial dance through Terry Sendgraff and eventually began performing as a part of Terry Sendgraff's Aerial Dancer's and the Technomania Circus. Ashley continued developing her aerial dance and performance skills after Terry's retirement with Cherie Carson and as a solo artist and teaches aerial dance at STUDIO 12 in Berkeley. Ashley also enjoys unicycling and tickling fancies.

Kiran Haithcox aerial duo

Kiran's love of aerial dance began when she studied motivity trapeze 10 years ago with Terry Sendgraff, the mother of aerial dance. (Or maybe it began as a child when her older brother swung and flipped her around until she was dizzy.) Her favorite apparatus is rope and harness and has danced in the air regularly for Cherie Carson and Dancers for the past 6 years. When stilt-dancing, she is known as Pavlova Vonstilt. Kiran teaches Pilates at The Working Body in Oakland to a wide range of clients: from a nonathletic intellectual with hip replacements to the current World Super Middleweight Champion Boxer.

Jamey Mossengren Comedian and World Champion Unicyclist

Jamey has been unicycling for over twenty years and is currently living and working in Australia. He is a World Champion (in his age group) and a Level 10 rider so s no wonder he feels so at ease on unicycles. His skills astound the audience by fearlessly jumping over a volunteer, jump roping, pedaling with his hands and juggling on his 12 foot unicycle! He has traveled the world bringing people together to smile, laugh and have fun. Check out www.uniproshow.com for more info.

Jean Paul variety arts

Jean Paul is an entertainer's entertainer. His act builds on over five decades of classic vaudeville excellence. How many you got? More info at www.jeanpaulvaljean.com

Comedy Industries comedy

Scott Meltzer & Katrine Spang-Hanssen learned their craft working as street performers on San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf. Later, they honed their skills travelling the country, performing at more county fairs than the world's smallest horse and the world's largest pig combined. Now, as Comedy Industries they specialize in writing and performing custom scripted presentations for trade shows, training sessions and sales meetings. Together, they've toured the world with their hilarious combination of comedy and juggling, unicycling and bad judgment. www.comedyindustries.com

Thomas John comedy and juggling

Thomas John is a juggler and comedian. You can catch his show at Pier 39 monthly. Check him out. Red sneakers guaranteed; red hat likely.

Brianne ball spinning

Bri is a local juggler from Oakland, CA. She spends her time juggling, thinking about juggling, and fixing (read: changing) her hair. This is her first time performing at the Berkeley Juggling Festival! w00t!

Chris Garcia diablo state champion

Chris is a juggler and fierce diabolo-ist from Santa Cruz who can run four diabolos simultaneously, juggle seven balls, program video games (about magical frogs, no less) and tickle a bearded dragon. We're grateful to have had Chris performing in our show for several years now, and he's always a thrill to watch!

Schedule and Workshops

becoming one of "The People"

You're never too old to learn something new! No circus arts festival would be complete without an assortment of workshops, and we have something for everyone again this year, from complex passing patterns and whip cracking to mountain unicycling and good old fashion balloon tying (just don't put your local clown out of business!)

We are currently assembling our workshop sessions schedule, and we want you! If you'd like to run a workshop, contact us and we'll work with you to find a time. We generally announce workshops to the gym as they begin, but please check with the front desk throughout the day for updates, since times might change.

Construction Zone: Learn to Juggle

ladies and gentlemen, you are not in Kansas anymore

At the BJC, we firmly believe everyone can, and should, learn to juggle. Newcomers, the Construction Zone is for you! A juggling festival is the perfect place to learn how to juggle, whether the thought just came to you or you've been wanting to learn for years. We have a special area set aside that we call the Construction Zone, replete with basic props and helpful volunteers, where you can quickly move from your initial drops right into that thrilling first cascade.

Jugglers: volunteering in the Construction Zone is a great way to meet people and give back to the juggling community. Do you remember how exciting it was to get that first exchange? To finally get a cascade running? Now you can help others find the joy of juggling. Please see us at the front desk if you're interested in helping us staff the Construction Zone.

Vendors

sorry, you probably can't buy one of those cool mechs

As in previous years Neon Husky will be there and Serious Juggling might also make it (not confirmed yet). Furthermore, Renegade Juggling and Unicycle.com are coming.

Supporting our vendors is another great way to show your support for the Berkeley Festival; buy props for that new juggler in your life today!

Sponsors

saving the mystical world of juggling and unicycling from corporate exploitation

In addition to lots of hard work by the festival organizers we owe a debt of gratitude to the Berkeley Unified School District for providing our home five years running. We would also like to give a special thank you to our non-profit sponsor Camp Winnarainbow, celebrating 35 years of camping and circus fun!

Many thanks also to Flying Clipper for donating raffle prizes.

Of course, none of this would be possible without you, the attendees! Y'all are the reason we put this thing on year after year, so do us a favor: have a great time and come back next year!