Review Centre: Children's Entertainers

"Love these people and this school. There's no judgement and I can just dance my sillies out!!"

Reply by Belly Dance & Beyond Studios
KW you are a gem at our studio ❤️

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Serendipity is what you’re aiming for in Edinburgh: a happy discovery out of the blue. Yes, it sounds like a paradox, like “expect the unexpected”. But up here, you must not just expect it, but welcome it. So if you hear, for instance (in a genu-ine example from a few years ago), of a 15-minute musical about a stewardess called The Jolly Folly Of Polly The Scottish Trolley Dolly playing in a minor venue towards the bottom of the Royal Mile, well, it’s not much time or money, so you’ve nothing to lose by taking a punt on it. And if you’re staggering across the Royal Mile in the small hours and meet a crowd of drunken loud¬mouths, wait for a couple of minutes before writing them off: it could be comedian Arthur Smith’s legendary Alternative Walking Tour. This event, though, is now in semi-retirement following an incident in 2000 when the reeling mob was mistaken for a bunch of nocturnal anti-Ann Widdecombe protesters (no, honestly), which led to the arrest of comic Simon Munnery for assaulting a police offi¬cer . . . “assaulting” in the sense of getting in the way of the cop’s body- charge. (Munnery’s tried and acquittal were amusing, too, but took place outside Festival season.) The true Edinburgh expe-rience is being knocked side-ways by a show, trying to explain it to others and real-ising that there’s no way you can do so and still sound remotely compos mentis, such as the piece about 10 years ago which consisted of a Hungarian woman in a sealed Perspex tank, per¬forming a dance routine whose duration and moves were limited by the available air in the box. If I were to say that last week I was affected beyond words by a Polish theatre company singing the ancient Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh in the strange polyphonic harmonies of southern Albania, you’d no doubt wonder whether I’ve been getting enough sleep lately. Yet Chronicles: A Lamenta-tion by the Piesn Kozla com-pany is a remarkable piece admirable and impressive, though hardly shattering. And then, walking away from the venue a few min¬utes after it was over, I had to stop in my tracks: I was fighting back tears, for no reason I could identify. Somehow the piece had bypassed the conscious areas of my mind and tapped into the well of basic emotion. Harrowing stuff. But the main discovery of the month so far is altogether more joy-ous: a bunch of Ukrainian paper-tearing clowns: Around 1990, Italian “ori¬gami impressionist” Ennio Marchetto was the hit of the Fringe, performing a series of mime impersonations while wearing amazingly intricate costumes he had constructed out of card¬board. Marchetto returns this weekend for the first time in several years, but he may find his thunder already stolen by the Mim-I- Richi company and their show Paper World. Not that their show is as painstakingly designed . . . dean me, no. They sim¬ply tear loads of plain paper up and play with it. And I mean loads: possibly around an acre of the stuff per show. You walk into the theatre, see a huge paper backdrop and think, “Ah, that’ll be the climax of the show.” Not a bit of it: it’s already in shreds after half an hour, and the fun keeps coming. Mim-I-Richi’s discovery is a simple one: tear paper, crumple it up, and you can pretend it’s just about any-thing: a football, a baby, a maneating monster, what¬ever. It’s the same sort of aesthetic which has informed many of designer Julian Crouch’s projects in the UK with Improbable Theatre, but more endear¬ingly ramshackle. Also like Improbable, Mim-I-Richi relishes the spontaneous and unexpected; it’s that shared delight in the moment which is at the heart of the best clowning. The players go to great lengths to involve the audience in their show, and are happy to take ideas and run with them, even when the “idea” is an uncontroRa- ble little boy in the front row who won’t stop flinging balls of paper back at them. For this isn’t enforced audience participation of the “let’s pretend we’re having fun” kind. The four perform-ers manage to get hundreds of people in the Pod Deco’s main space all pratting about gleefully like kids in a playground; they create an atmosphere of free play that is intensely liberating, and make sure that every single person in the house is car¬ried along. All that without a single word of dialogue. People by the hundred are discovering Mim-I-Richi up here, but that doesn’t make the joy of serendipity any less when you find them yourself."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Tristan is the best magician you will ever witnessed! He performs unbelievable tricks with a great charisma!"

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Dante was an incredible magician. He arrived early to scope a suitable spot for the show then setup all his gear. The kids were very curious during this preparation and he was patient to "keep the magic sacred". The show was a blast and many of the tricks were super incredible even for the adult audience. Dante was always engaged with the audience and pulled multiple different people to participate in his magic show. It was a rather large group and he did a superb job. Thank you Dante!"

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Shay is great! Her class is reeally funny, you should try"

Reply by Shay Anhai Calima
Thank you so much Agnes! And don't forget to shake it shake it shake it! ;D Shay

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"I’ve worked with Jay at loads of events, recommended him to clients when I can’t do a gig and booked him myself. The guests always love him and the feedback I get from events he’s covered for me is always second to none. Jay is an absolute pro, just give him an audience and he’ll knock their socks off every time."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Hire him! He was amazing! Showed up early and was very personable with all of our guests. Such an amazing personality and person!"

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Kemin is so good that the way he presents magic is different than anyone I have seen. He upgrades the art of magic into a new level."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Rachelle was nothing short of wonderful. She was quick to respond and was available. She was kind and sweet and the kids loved her as much as the mom did! She was insanely busy the night before and day after and still was excited for my daughter's birthday in between big events. Each child had their face painted and they all LOVED it. She is creative and extremely talented. I plan to use no one else except Rachelle for further gatherings. I will always recommend her moving forward."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Tristan is an unbelievable magician! He performs breathtaking magic while he is a perfect person! Next year we will invite him again for sure!"

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Dante is amazing worth every penny you spend on for your special day. We hired him twice and every time he left with tons of joy, excitement and memories for our event. Thank you and highly highly recommend him to any big or small event. ( we host over 150+children at once and everyone doesn't want him to leave:)"

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Holiday event with Santa Joe Santa Joe was wonderful. He looked great! arrived on time! The residents clapped when they saw him. He greeted all residents one by one once he was in the Activity room. Santa Joe took a picture & handed the residents their gift. The residents were so happy! A couple of our residents couldn’t make it to the dining room, Santa Joe made a couple of room visits to bring in more cheer! the nursing staff took a couple of pictures with Santa Joe as well. He was wonderful & we would be happy to have him again! Thank you "

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Amazing entertainment for the night, kept everyone very happy and brought the spirits up wonderfully. Definitely recommend"

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Perfect organized artist, very professional, I like to work with her and invite her on all my events."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"I hired Susan for my daughters 7th birthday party and she was awesome. She was punctual and showed up early to ensure she has time to set up before her time slot began. She was very patient with the kids who were in her face the entire time. She even took time to make balloon creations for the teenagers there because she had time in her hired window to do so. I highly recommend and her prices are very affordable."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review: