48th Annual IJA Festival

Viva Las Vegas

Hosted by the IJA in cooperation with the Hacienda Hotel and Casino.

When
Jul. 16-20, 1995

Pictures

Reviews

Where
Hacienda Hotel/Casino, Las Vegas, NV

Cost
See the registration form for all the details.

Registration form, now available on line in:

Registration: Pre-register by June 10th and Avoid Lines!

Weekly, daily and individual event registration will take place on-site at the Hacienda's Matador Arena. There will be no admittance to the juggling arena before registering. For more information on Registration contact Bob Mahler at 413/367-9235.

Schedule

Sunday:

Monday:

Tuesday:

Wednesday:

Thursday:

Details
Las Vegas is the unmatched entertainment capital of the world, offering modern-day as well as historical attractions. It is a sea of neon lights, spinning roulette wheels, spectacular shows featuring top world performers and endless nightlife, AND even more!

Las Vegas' best kept secret is its fabulous offering of scenic destinations and close proximity to magnificent natural attractions and recreational opportunities in the surrounding mountains and desert. Enjoy wonderful family oriented entertainment, such as the 26-acre Wet 'n Wild water Park, or windsurfing, swimming, sailing, fishing, scuba diving and water skiing at Hoover Dam and Lake Mead. For nature at its best, tour the eighth wonder of the world, the Grand Canyon, or visit the world-famous Death Valley. Search for petroglyphs at the Valley of Fire State Park. Or for real hands-on fun sign up to climb rocks Thursday with rock climber Richard Dingman - IJA's own secretary/Treasurer - in Red Rock Canyon!

All these scenic delights are easily accessible by bus, car, helicopter or plane. Whether you have a few hours to spare or a few days, you can make your IJA festival trip to Las Vegas even more memorable by taking a fun-filled excursion.

Remember, though, daytime summer temperatures in Las Vegas may often reach over 100 degrees, so plan appropriately and, please, leave pets at home!

For general information on Las Vegas, you may want to check out City Nets' pages or The Las Vegas Review Journal.

Aside from all around town, bottom line is, it's juggling you really want, it's juggling you'll really get!

Beside all IJA jugglers at the festival, many top performers are currently appearing on Las Vegas stages, including Wally Eastwood, Dick Franco, Anthony Gatto, Michael Godeau, Atsuka Koga, Antonoli Miagkostoupov, Gregory Popovich, and the Qian Brothers. Also, not to be missed, is the world-renowned Cirque du Soleil showing at Treasure Island, which - among its all-star cast - featuring jugglers Jason Bernard, Pat McGuire, and Steve Ragatz.

Special Guests

Dick Franco (IJA Award of Excellence)
Dick Franco's success story gives hope to all late-blooming jugglers. This former IJA president was 20 years old before he learnt to cascade 3 balls, but practised diligently while holding down a job, attending school and raising a family. In 1975 he made a leap of faith and took his wife, Carlene, and young daughter, now also a juggler, on the road to look for work as jugglers. At first he worked as for small circuses, and even passed the hat on the street. But in 1977 he was hired by the Harlem Globe Trotters as the halftime juggler, and the rest is juggling history.

In 1979, he left the Globe Trotters tour in Europe and went on to win gold medal and the World Champion title in a juggling competition against two established European Stars. An overnight success at some of the finest night clubs in Europe, in 1980 he became one of three jugglers, ever, to win the Silver Clown at the Monte Carlo Circus Festival.

Since 1981 he has been a regular star, performing in Las Vegas, Reno and Atlantic City. Recently, he and Carlene developed a unique way to entertain their audiences, moulding their juggling skills into a country western theme for Wild Bill's Dinner Theatre in California. Dick has continued his work in character development and created the role of Cher Rico in his current Conga show at the Rio Suites Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.

A vaudeville history buff as well, Franco has been the subject of two cable TV features, written two juggling instruction books, painted canvases of several famous vaudeville jugglers, and co-produced a documentary on Bobby May. His daughter, Noelle, has also benefited from his coaching which has led her to a successful juggling career.

Rudy Cardenas (IJA Historical Achievement Award)
Born into his mother's Circus Suarez family in Mexico, Cardenas has no memory of a time when he was not juggling. At age 7 he had a single act in the circus, and at 8 he became the first ever act to open at the El Patio, the largest nightclub in Mexico City. At 10, he was working at Rio de Janiero's La Urca, the most famous casino in the world at the time.

Cardenas didn't begin working with balls until aged 12, but was immediately captivated by the art, practising as much as 10 hours a day. At age 14, he was a major sensation when he premiered his new 14-minute act at El Patio, and later at La Urca, and other hot night clubs all over South America.

In 1948, he burst onto the world stage with an appearance in Miami, which led to a 5-year contract with Paramount Pictures. He was voted best novelty act of the year twice and was the only act ever featured on the electric billboard at Times Square in NYC.

In the 1950's and 1960's, press reports extolled Cardenas as the world's best juggler.

Astounding crowds in notable venues such as Radio City Music Hall, the London Palladium, the Lido in Paris, and the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. He also won the Rastelli Trophy in Italy, appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show, toured with Bob Hope, and has performed for three presidents of Mexico, Winston Churchill, Richard Nixon, Princess Grace and Queen Elizabeth II of England. Phew! Now retired, he lives in Las Vegas.

Cascade of Stars: Show Headliners - The Qian Brothers
For more than three generations, the Qian family has been devoted to traditional Chinese acrobatic arts. The founder of the current troupe, Jian Ping Qian, has blended the traditional art form with modern technology of sight and sound.

Qian trained in bicycling, balancing, martial arts and music with the Shanghai Acrobatic Troupe, Hsu-Chou Acrobatic Troupe, and Nanjing Acrobatic Troupe in China from 1961 to 1989. He won first place at the National Acrobatic Competition in Beijing in 1976, and again at Shanghai in 1986 by the Chinese Ministry of Culture, that year he also won the Prix du President de la Republic at the Cirque de Demain Festival in Paris.

As vice chair of the Chinese Acrobatic Association, Qian has led his troupe and performed in more than 50 nations around the world. Since 1988, they have charmed audiences in the US, at the Big Apple Circus, Disney World and Ringling Brother's Barnum & Bailey Circus. The troupe, now known as Great Wall Acrobatic, has performed its Zaji show at the Circus Circus resorts in Las Vegas and Reno, and is now at the Tropicana Hotel.

Rendez-Vous Dinner Party: Awards, Rare Movies, & Show
Don't waste a moment! Rendez-vous the first night with old and new friends alike over dinner - 6.30pm at the Matador Arena, Sunday, July 16 - for an evening of dinner, fun entertainment and merrymaking. Host Sam Kilbourne will emcee as special guest Kris Kremo presents the IJA Award of Excellence to Dick Franco, and the Historical Award to Ruby Cardenas. Be enchanted by rare footage movies of our honoured guests and other celebrities, and amused by a 90's juggling show highlighting European talent, directed by Todd Strong. Sponsored in part by Toy Crafter.

A "Glowing" Night Club Experience: The 1st Ever IJA UV Room!
Immediately following the Rendez-Vous Dinner, you are invited to a "Glowing Experience" in the UV room. Completely dark except for the illumination of glowing objects flying through the air, the UV room will delight hundreds of jugglers and onlookers. Special fluorescent black lights will enhance the illumination effects, and theatrical smoke and Techno music will give the room the excitement of a night club. WOW! So, brush your teeth - wear white to glow or black for no-show - and bring your glow-in-the-dark or day-glow juggling props!

At 10pm, be there or be square... Brought to you by the Affiliates of the IJA. For more information call Deena Frooman at 803/577-6947.

Juggling Facility
The Matador Arena is in the Hacienda Hotel and Casino, which is ideally located at the top of the strip and next door to the new, too cool, pyramid-shaped Luxor Hotel. The Hacienda is also within easy walking distance of the MGM Grand Adventures Theme Park and the Excalibur and Tropicana Hotels. The Matador Arena has 20,000-square-feet of floor space - and will be open 24 hours a day for juggling, yayh, so let's boogie!

Workshops
Dozens of one-hour workshops covering a wide variety of juggling skills will be offered during the festival. If you are interested in teaching workshops, contact Bob Peck at 413/498-4452 (10am - 11pm Eastern Time).

Stuart Celarier kindly posted a full list of workshops, as well as a summary to rec.juggling. Plus, Martin Frost (also kindly) posted new details of the R/L passing workshop he is to be running.

Special Workshops
Jugglers are invited to meet Dick Franco during a special 2-hour workshop. Franco will teach head-roll techniques and discuss development of an effective routine.

In addition, Anthony Gatto and Kit Summers are planning independent workshops for a fee, before and during the festival. For details see their ads in this issue of Jugglers World.

Smothers Brothers
The Smothers Brothers will be performing at the Debbie Reynolds Hotel. Join yo-yo enthusiasts on Tuesday evening to see the Yo-Yo Man himself! Contact Stuart Crump for details at 703/742-9696.

The Games
New, crazy and as exciting as ever, this year's games are full of plenty of surprises! Psyche-up for fun and a high energy day in the Matador Arena, Wednesday. Sponsored by the Rubber City Jugglers. For information call Games Director Scott Slesnick; 4436 Greenmeadow Ave. N.W.; Canton OH 44709; 216/494-4827.

Championships
IJA championships judging will be based on the ordinal system of awarding a gold, silver, and bronze medal to the top three jugglers in each event. Winner of the seniors event will also be presented with the IJA Championship Trophy. Dan Holtzman, championship director, will be assisted by Barry Bakalor in the Numbers events, and by Larry Kluger and Mike Hout in Joggling. For more information, contact Dan at 510/412-2161. Questions or suggestions regarding rules should be directed towards Arthur Lewbel, assistant championship director, at 617/736-2258.

Auction
Going once...going twice...we're back with a super array of juggling related posters, cards, props, memorabilia, and one-of-a-kind artworks at the new IJA Auction! everything will be sold at auction to the highest bidder, with proceeds going to preserve our juggling history.

We invite you to take a look into that prop bag, root around that studio or rec. room, dig into that dark corner, look at all those old or unused props that are gathering dust, and give them a new life, a new home and lots of love and attention by donating them for the auction. Please send donations for the auction to coordinator Braidy Brown: 1197 Cornell Ave.; Binghampton NY 13901; 607/724-0538.

Hotel Accommodation
The IJA has blocked a number of Garden Rooms around the beautiful landscaped Hacienda pool and a number of Tower Rooms in high-rise buildings near the Casino.

Festival attendees are entitled to a special rate advance purchase. The Garden Rooms are $50 per night for one or two people (including room tax). For a third person, add $10.80 per room, per night. Children under 12 are free. To receive this special rate, reservations must be made through the IJA with 100% room payment by June 10.

Use of tennis courts is free.

June 10 is the reservation cut-off date. After that, out block is released and rooms may not be available.

Cancellations must be received in writing. There is a $25 cancellation charge between June 10 and July 10, and a $50 charge for cancellations after July 10.

There is ample free parking at the hotel, and RV parking is available at $14.95 per day.

Dining In
Restaurants in the Hacienda Hotel are:
  • Charcoal Room: Gourmet dining
  • Cactus Room: 24-hr Coffee shop
  • New York Pasta Co.: Italian Cuisine
  • El Grande Buffet: All meals, buffet
  • 2 quick service delis
  • Room service

Transportation

Getting There
Call Eager Travel Corporation Toll-Free in the continental US and Canada at 800/718-7285 and avoid that annoying musak on those hold-on-forever, double-speak calls to the Airlines. Eager is the IJA's official travel agency, and your best bet for discounted airfares. They know how much we all want to get there for pennies, and will guarantee you the lowest available rate, no hustles, no hassles, no charge. And, it gets even better...by using Eager, you'll even be helping to directly benefit the IJA.

Time Saving Tip
We suggest Faxing your reservation request to Eager at 706/638-6810. You will be called back the same day as the request, most likely in the evening.

Information to include on the FAX:

  • Names in party.
  • First and second choices for departure dates and times.
  • Departure and destination cities.
  • Day and evening telephone numbers.

If you'd like to book yourself direct, call American Airlines, the official airline of the festival, for discounted fares at 800/433-1790. Be sure to give them the festival number, STAR #S0275MZ.

Cheap Tips
When calling Eager, or anyone, for airline reservations and info., please keep in mind the following tips:
  • Airline prices and availability, and restrictions are constantly changing, so, if you don't purchase within 24 hours of your call, don't assume your quote will still be available at the time you decide to confirm your reservations.
  • In order to obtain the lowest available airfare, you must book reservations at least 14 days in advance.
  • We suggest, however, confirming your reservations 30 days out since the number of seats available at a SuperSaver fare are restricted.
  • Try to be somewhat flexible in your departure and return flight times so that if one flight is not available at the lowest fare, you may find one which is. Airlines also run special fares based on travelling only certain days of the week, so ask.
  • Airlines run price-wars periodically, but with very little advance notice. When in effect, you can save an additional 30-40% off the SuperSaver fares. Keep in mind that the "wars" usually last about 3 days, and it is extremely difficult to get through to the airlines or travel agencies.

Getting There from outside the US & Canada
Groups of 10 or more travelling together can get discounted airfares from overseas. We need to know:
  • How many are travelling together.
  • Date of departure from what city.
  • Date of return from Las Vegas area.
  • Include country and city code with your telephone numbers.

Fax requests to 011 706 638-6810 or telephone 011 706 638-6800.

Getting Around Town
Transportation is no problem in Las Vegas, with the ultra-modern McCarran International Airport, regular train service, and excellent road system. Taxis and airport vans (Bell Trans and Grey Lines) are located just outside baggage claim. Taxi fare to the Hacienda from the airport costs $5 - $8, and the vans cost $4.75 one way.

IJA Affiliates
The IJA encourages its affiliates and all other juggling groups to hang their banners in the Matador Arena. During the festival, there will be an Affiliate meeting to discuss mutual concerns. Affiliates are also invited to present special awards to deserving individuals. For affiliate information, contact IJA director Deena Frooman; 9 Montagu Court, Charleston SC 29401; 803/577-6947.

Video Policy
Only videotaping for non-commercial use is permitted in the Matador Arena with permission of the person being taped. No video taping of any staged championships or show (except joggling) is permitted. The IJA will tape all events and make the festival tape available later in the year. Videotaping of workshops is left to the discretion of each workshop leader. Call IJA director Dr. Steven Salberg; 41 Merrie Trail; Denville NJ 07834; 201/586-3132.

Volunteers
The organisation need your smiles and support in lending a hand with registration, security, staging and other duties. If you can volunteer a little time at the festival, please call Ginny Rose, festival coordinator, 413/367-9398.

Vendors
Floor space for vendors around the perimeter of the Matador Arena is available on a per-day basis of for the entire week. Call Barry Korengold; 872 Peralta; San Francisco CA 94110; 415/648-9387.

Affiliate Post-Festival Campout
Due to a lack of a sellout and the need to reduce the size of our reservation, the deadline to register for the IJA Affiliate Camping trip is June 20th. There are currently about 50 paid reservations and about 30 unpaid, so there is still plenty of room for you to join in the fun!

For More Information Contact

Registration: Bob Mahler
Tel: 413/367-9235.

UV Activities: Deena Frooman
Tel: 803/577-6947

Workshops: Bob Peck
Tel: 413/498-4452 (10am - 11pm Eastern Time)

Yo-Yo (Smothers Brothers): Stuart Crump
Tel: 703/742-9696

Games: Scott Slesnick
4436 Greenmeadow Ave. N.W.
Canton OH 44709
Tel: 216/494-4827

Championships: Dan Holzman
Tel: 510/412-2161.

Championships Rules: Arthur Lewbel
Tel: 617/736-2258

Auction: Braidy Brown
1197 Cornell Ave.
Binghampton NY 13901
Tel: 607/724-0538

Affiliate Information: Deena Frooman
9 Montagu Court
Charleston SC 29401
Tel: 803/577-6947

Videos: Dr. Steven Salberg
41 Merrie Trail
Denville NJ 07834
Tel: 201/586-3132.

Volunteers: Ginny Rose (Festival coordinator)
PO B ox 218
Montague
MA 01351
USA
Tel: (1) 413 367 9398

Vendors: Barry Korengold
872 Peralta
San Francisco CA 94110
Tel: 415/648-9387.

Campout: Steve Gerdes (of the Orange Jugglers)
IJA Camping Trip
5535 Monlaco Road
Long Beach, Ca. 90808.
Tel: 310/497-1097
email: orngejuglr@aol.com

Eager Travel Corporation
Tel: 800/718-7285 (Toll-Free in the continental US and Canada)
Fax: 706/638-6810

American Airlines
Tel: 800/433-1790. (quote festival number, STAR #S0275MZ)

Overseas bookings (10 or more people)
Fax: 011 706 638-6810
Tel: 011 706 638-6800
48th Annual IJA Festival / Juggling Festivals / festivals@juggling.org
© 1995 Juggling Information Service. All Rights Reserved.