How hard can street performance be?

Times Online: "Street theatre, it turns out, is in rude health. With the revival of circus schools and the burgeoning festival scene, an ever higher calibre of athlete, acrobat and artist is joining the increasingly competitive cobblestone circuit. There is now an annual street-performance world championship, in Dublin in June, as well as a raft of sideshow and modern circus tours; and the recent offspring of street theatre, living sculpture, has blossomed into an eye-popping art form. (The human-sculpture world championship, with more than 100 works of art, including tableaux of up to a dozen performers, takes place in Arnhem, Holland, at the end of this month.) The close-knit community of street performers follow the decent weather and arts festivals around the three most welcoming regions, Australasia, Canada and Europe — but largely give America a miss. As the glass-ball juggler Robin Spehar says: “In Europe, people say, ‘Look, it’s street theatre!’ In America, they say, ‘Look, a beggar!’ ”"