Families enjoyed a stunning array of fun in Cork at the weekend. Contortionists and tattooed artists vied with face-painters to entertain children and adults alike at the Laya Healthcare Street Performance World Championships

HAVING LONG been a home for exotic and colourful plants and vegetation, Cork’s Fitzgerald Park hosted a different type of exoticism this weekend with the Laya Healthcare Street Performance World Championships.

The second leg of the competition takes place in Dublin this weekend, where you can expect men reconfigured as lizards, performers putting themselves through tennis rackets and quite a lot of swords being swallowed.

The weather stayed dry on Saturday as families took picnics in the park and availed of the free entertainment. There were zip wire rides across the lake, balloon-making and face-painting, as well as a host of acts and performers rotating throughout the day.

Organisers estimate that 22,000 people went through the gates on Saturday alone, with a larger crowd expected yesterday.

Producer Shell Holden said: “Every year the crowds get bigger, performers get stronger and the atmosphere more infectious, We want to pay a huge thank you to Laya Healthcare for making this possible.”

One of the early performers making an impact in Cork was Jonathan Byrne, a contortionist who could clap his legs together over his head and walk crab like around his performing area.

Smaller audience members sat on the grass at the front with their heads turned sideways trying to figure out Byrne’s body angles in the hope of adapting some of his elastic-limbed techniques when they got home.

One parent could be heard having a word in the ear of his child, assuring her this was not to be copied and that getting stuck in a tennis racket would make Mammy and Daddy very cross indeed.

In the backstage area, Erik Sprague, aka “The Lizard Man”, was drinking from a large bottle of water ahead of his first time appearing at the festival.

Sprague has undergone somewhere in the region of 700 hours of tattooing and had five Teflon horns implanted above his eyes to form horned ridges.

Can he ever walk down the street and be anonymous?

“I don’t think so. It hasn’t happened yet. If it does I won’t know what to do. Whether you are a lizard man or not, everyone has those days when you just won’t want to deal with other people. When I have one of those days, I am better off staying indoors. I enjoy it for the most part.”

Eoin Nash and Rachel McCormack were having some downtime in one of the many chill-out areas, with their two children, Cian and Caila Mai. “We saw Lizardman on the Late Late Show but we’re not sure how the kids will respond to him,” said Eoin.

As a former part-time busker himself, Eoin says he appreciates the effort some of the acts go to in order to earn their crust.

“I am a trombone player by profession and we used to busk for our lunch. We’d play the trombone enough to get two Big Mac meals in McDonald’s. It’s probably the most money I ever earned from music!”

Last year’s reigning champion and holder of 11 Guinness world records, Chayne Hultgren, aka “The Space Cowboy”, was also a big draw. His best trick is to juggle knives blindfold on a unicycle, as you do, and he felt that the recession is not having much of an impact on the money people donate.

“We don’t ask for much at the end of our acts – people always tend to give a little donation. I enjoy Cork, it’s a lot more relaxed than other places.”

Locals Aidan Mulcahy, Ursula Earley and their six-year-old son Patrick arrived shortly after lunch, and first item on the agenda was face-painting for Patrick. A couple of flicks of a street-artist’s hand later and Patrick had transformed into Iron Man.

“We use the park every weekend as we live locally,” said Ursula. “I think there’s not enough going on in the park. It’s great the weather has held up and people are picking up their rubbish after themselves.”

Her husband Aidan, who was being volunteered by his family for the zip wire act, felt that the festival helped break down stereotypical attitudes based on appearance alone.

“Everyone is walking around with piercings or their face painted or some other change to their appearance. So really, we’re ones who stand out today.”

Tricks of the trade: Street performers on money and showbusiness

JACK WISE Variety performer

Can you describe your act?My act is a mix of sword-swallowing, ventriloquism and magic. The idea is to get them laughing and then hit them with the magic.

How do you work the crowd?I improvise with members of the audience throughout. It is all about getting people involved.

What tricks of the trade do you use?The sword is real. You have three muscle valves, one in your throat, one in your chest and one we won't go into any detail about. The trick is to open two at the right time. The real trick is to make sure it is the right two.

How did you get into it?I got into magic when I was 12 or 13. An elderly neighbour caught me stealing apples, and he taught me a trick. That kick-started it. Then I read a book called Memoirs of a Sword Swallower. I thought it was really cool so I decided to learn.

What was your best gig?It was great when I won the Street Performance World Championships in 2010, as I was the first Irish winner.

SCOTT JACKSON Beatboxer

Can you describe your act?What I do is vocal percussion and human beatboxing. Really the idea is to grab a microphone and not use any gimmicks; just show what the human voice can do.

How do you work the crowd?I usually judge the crowd by looking at them. Beatboxing can cover any genre, so if there are kids you do sounds for them.

What tricks of the trade do you employ?I always have a bottle of water nearby. The other important thing is to warm up and make sure you do a drum-kit sound beforehand.

How did you get into it?When I was about 15 I was ill and had to spend three months in bed. So I started making sounds with my voice. I heard later some people did it professionally and got paid for it and so I wanted that.

What were your best and worst gigs?Once, when I did a bar mitzvah, they said I'd have to keep the sound system very low, as there were older people there. I respect that, but my show is based on the sound quality; it is not very visual. My most lucrative day's work? I can't exactly say but around $5,000 Canadian for street performance. I've gotten more for commercial jobs.

REUBEN DOTDOTDOT Acrobat and performer

Describe your act?I do an acrobatic act, which involves a lot of balancing and traditional Chinese circus routines. I do a finale on top of a 20-foot pole and a one-handed balance. It is incredibly dangerous and a big spectacle.

How did you get into it?I'm an ex-gymnast and I got into doing circus routines. I started in street performing and I've returned back to work the street. I love the spontaneity of it.

Any tricks of the trade you can share?The trick is to keep training and never stop improving. As soon as you stop, it gets hard to get back into it. I got hit by a car three years ago and broke my leg. It was eight months before I could start working again and it was incredibly hard to get back.

How do you work the crowd?My show is based on my personality and what I can get from the crowd. I am half Chinese and half Polish Jew. My discipline is the Chinese pole. So, I am a Chinese Pole and I do the Chinese pole. That always gets a laugh.

What was your best performance?I would like to say I haven't done it yet.

LISA LOTTIE Hula-hoop artist

Describe your actMy act is a hula-hoop and contortion act. It is very high energy, very pink and colourful.

How do you work the crowd?I have a script I work from. I read my audience; I let them take me to new places, and I take them to new places.

Any tricks you'd like to share?With my act there are no tricks, just incredible dedication. I train every single day.

How did you get into it?One of my friends gave me a hula-hoop in my late teens. My friends and family thought it was great that I got to follow my dreams.

Tell us about your best and worst performances.I think every performance is so different. I've had so many incredible shows. I can't pinpoint it to a day and time as I perform almost every day. In terms of worst, I had someone try and push me off my rig once in London. I blocked it out of my memory and kept going.

What was your most lucrative gig? Idon't talk about money. How much do you earn? It's not something I discuss.

The Laya Healthcare Street Performance World Championships runs from July 19th-22th in Merrion Square, Dublin