Fred Garbo's All Puffed Up
Performance Artist and His Inflatable Theater Just Bouncing Around
Sep 2, 2009
The man who is best known for bringing inflatable theater to stages worldwide for the past two years knows to stay away from scissors and knives, because nothing takes the fun out of his show like a fizzling inflatable prop. And fun is what Garbo's colorful, acclaimed production is all about.
Recently, he appeared on Late Night with David Letterman, but Garbo and his stage partner, Daielma Santos, have earned rave reviews worldwide over the 20 years that they've been insatiable for inflatables. After they played the Lincoln Center stage, the Washington Post called the show "the most dramatic pneumonics the world has ever seen ... a stunning mixture of science and art."
A bold merging of entertainment aimed at both adults and children, it's been a dream that began early on for the imaginative Garbo.
Fred Garbo's "Street" Past
Garbo once played Barkley the Dog on Sesame Street, although his first paying gig was doing card tricks. His inspiration was found watching the Marx Brothers and cartoons like Bugs Bunny, where the idea for bringing animation to life in three-dimensional color was ultimately born.
He spent his childhood doing magic, and later worked with other professionals to master the art of comic timing. He developed his skills along the way - he played the chief juggler in the Broadway production of Barnum - along with a love of the thrill of skydiving, which led to his current gig as master of the inflatable.
An Idea Takes Flight
While packing his chute for an aerial adventure, Garbo realized that the chute's bright colors and strong materials would be ideal for inflatable costumes. Especially so, he writes in an online letter to fans, because "so much of it could pack into a really small space, most important to a traveling performer who spends a ton of time flying in airplanes to theaters."
He took his idea to a hot air ballon artist, and together they devised a line of props including a stage set that turns into a sofa and a self-inflating body suit that transformsGarbo into a human beach ball. That character, Fred Zeplin, was the first in a series of innovative inflatables that now grace Garbo's playful stage.
Garbo's Show of Shows
Garbo's show kicks off with audience participation, as inflatables burst off the stage from a 10-foot cylinder that slithers out as part of the opening act. From that colorful, mesmerizing starting point, Garbo and Santos transform themselves into a wide variety of inflatable characters, merging mime, juggling, comedy and acrobatics with the innovative inflatables, turning the stages on which they perform into playgrounds of sorts for both them and their audience.
Compared to "a kitten that got at the catnip" by New Zealand writer Chris Moore, Garbo's kinetic energy was made for his inflatable props, which bounce wildly across the stage. "People need to laugh," Garbo said in a 2008 interview with the Register & Bee in Danville, Va. "With the show, they can come and forget about the troubles for a hour and 15 minutes. A little longer, if the jokes go as planned."
Find out more information on Fred Garbo and His Inflatable Theater at his Web site, www.fredgarbo.com.
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