Music Making and Circus Acts!

We had two show-stopping Drop-in Days at The Museum last week! On Thursday we made some awesome rhythms and beats with our special, musical guests. Friday was also another entertaining day because we had amazing circus performances by AWESOME ROBB and performers, Jeremy and Jenn! We learned all kinds of cool circus tricks that I have always wanted to know how to do.

We made some funky beats last Thursday at The Museum! This Music Making Drop-in Day gave us a chanceto make some noise and learn all about different musical instruments. Tony Fonseca from All Hands Drumming started things off by teaching us how to play the drums. He set up all different types of drums in The Wild Place for us to bang on. His helpful color-coding system on the drums along with his instructions made it easy to learn how to

play them correctly.

So Tony got the party started, but Jenn Bliss and Jason Berube kept it going strong with their exciting exploration of the wonderful world of music! First, they gave us a little background on what makes music. They told us the history of how it progressed, and how there are all different types of ways to makes music, such as with our voices and with instruments. Like Tony, they also showed us how to play a few instruments, like the guitar and the recorder. After they taught us some awesome musical skills, they let us showcase them in our very own concert! Our jam session down in The Wild Place was a lot of fun, and a great way to practice the new things that we had learned throughout the day.

After Jason and Jenn’s musical exploration was complete, Annawon Weedon taught us about his Native American culture and how music is apart of it. He showed us some cool artifacts, like a deer rattle! This musical instrument is made from a deer’s foot and his tribe uses it during their musical routines. Annawon also taught us The Alligator Dance, which they use to get rid of gators! How it works is two people dance together with their arms intertwined, and the dance will ward off these unwanted creatures. Overall, each presenter’s take on music taught

us something different, which made this Drop-in Day filled with great musical knowledge and skills!

While it is usually more like a zoo down in The Wild Place, last Friday it definitely was a circus! Awesome Robb started

the day off with his circus routine. He gave us a little history on clowns and how things have changed over time, one being their shoes! Robb’s first pair of clown shoes was very heavy leather. Shoe cobblers made the shoes so durable because most clowns wouldn’t have time to get their shoesrepaired if they broke on the road! Modern clown footwear and clothing are more lightweight, which is nice when performing on hot summer days like last week.

Robb went to The Ringling Brothers Clown College in 1983 where he learned what it takes to be a clown. His experienced clown teachers showed him how to put on his clown makeup, what his wardrobe should be like, and what tricks get the most laughs! One trick that he performed involved and underwear tree, which certainly got some big laughs with us!

In the afternoon, Jenn and Jeremy taught us juggling, plate spinning, and hula-hooping down in The Wild Place. They started the show with a little trick for us: it involved 5 members of our audience and a hula-hoop. Seems pretty harmless, right? Jenn held the hula hoop in the air as Jeremy jumped

through the hoop and over the 5 volunteers!Lucky for them, Jeremy successfully cleared their heads and made a smooth landing.

With one trick behind them, Jeremy and Jenn continued with the rest of the show. Jeremy is a professional juggler! He showed us that there are all different ways juggle and different objects to juggle with. Jeremy juggled with the classic pins, flower sticks, a Chinese yo-yo, and even with these balls that he usually sets on fire!

But Jeremy isn’t the only one with tricks up his sleeve! Jenn is great hula-hooper. She can hula all over her body, including her neck! She let us in on a little secret: the bigger the hoop, the easier it is to hula. You would think that it would be more difficult with a bigger hoop, but it’s not because it doesn’t take as much hulaing to keep it going!

We have certainly learned many new things at the Museum this summer. Whether we are watching an animal show, listening to the history of clowns, or singing pirate songs, we all could learn something that we didn’t know before we went to a Drop-in Day. And best of all, it’s actually fun. I mean, I think that it’s pretty cool to learn how to be a poop detective! These are just a few of the many awesome ideas that came through the Museum this summer. If you only got to go to a few Drop-ins this summer, then don’t fret because there will be more fun Drop-in Days in the fall!

-Ashley Balerna

Public Relations Intern