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PODCAST

the Way of the Showman

Philosophical and esoteric perspectives from a modern day Showman.Each season is different in its approach. S1 is essays. S2 is one book length attempt at Understanding Showmanship, S3 is conversations with remarkable Showfolk. The brand new Season 4 explores the relationship between Showmanship and Play.The host, Captain Frodo, internationally renowned circus performer, director, writer, husband and dad lays out, in great detail, his practical performance philosophy for performers who seek to

arts performing arts

All Episodes

69:50

157 - Serious Play and The Road To Joy with Clay Hillman

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/12/16

Step aboard the Punky Steamer and watch everyday moments turn into portals. -> listen to the fantastic tale here! I highly recommend checking this audio play out before listening to the episode. For one it’s awesome and for sure lots of what we talk about will feel deeper and make even more sense. We sit down with Clay Hillman—once a Lutheran minister, now the imagination behind a toy-and-coffee shop and the audio adventure KC Bonker’s Road to Joy—to explore how play can be bo...

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86:18

156 - Ringling Trains, Three Rings, And The Craft Of...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/12/02

A hat flips, a wig sails, and an arena of sixteen thousand goes from breathless to thunderous—this is where Adam Kugler learned to make comedy work under pressure. We trace his path from the Ringling Brothers train to the Mad Apple stage in Las Vegas, unpacking the paradoxes that shape a clown: technique that opens doors, character that keeps them open, and the relentless practice of reading a room in real time. Adam grew up wanting to be a clown. Juggling paid the bills long enough for arti...

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99:47

155 - Chainsaws, Pumpkins, And Philosophy w JellyBoy...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/11/18

A chainsaw mounted to a sword. Seventeen pumpkins in a minute. And a philosophy that says a show only becomes real when the audience completes it. That’s the ride we take with Jelly Boy the Clown—writer, record-setter, and sideshow artist who turns chaos into craft. We start with the surprise aftermath of America’s Got Talent: millions of viewers, zero promotion allowed, and a door opening from an unexpected direction—Guinness World Records. From there we go inside the workshop, where ideas ...

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69:31

154 - What Creates Stage Presence w Jay Gilligan &...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/11/04

What makes an audience lean forward before the first trick lands? We dive into stage presence as a lived practice, not a buzzword. From Jay’s house in Stockholm, Frodo and Jay unpack how real attention, honest emotion, and contextual awareness turn raw technique into connection you can feel in the room. No acting notes, no hollow smiles—just the hard, generous work of being here with people, right now. We share the messy path many artists take from hobbyist to performer and why conviction ma...

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66:25

153 - Stage Presence Demystified w Jay Gilligan &...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/10/28

Some performers step into the light and the room leans in. Others work just as hard and leave us cold. We wanted to know why. Together with juggler and performance thinker Jay Gilligan, we unpack stage presence without the fluff—what it is, how to build it, and why authenticity beats polish every time. We start by challenging the myth that presence is a gift you either have or don’t. Yes, some people radiate charisma from day one. But most of us can raise our baseline by choosing the right l...

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67:45

152 - Magic, Originality, and the Burden of Knowledge...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/10/14

What separates a technically competent performer from one who creates unforgettable moments? In this captivating conversation between Captain Frodo and comic magician Nick Diffatte, we journey into the heart of showmanship and the complex relationship between originality and tradition. The performers candidly explore their creative anxieties about using established material versus developing original routines. "The reason I'm putting this in here is that this is a book that would have helped...

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66:19

151 - Creating Your Own Voice in a World of Borrowed...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/09/30

Ever wondered where the line between inspiration and appropriation lies in performance art? Captain Frodo welcomes comedian-magician Nick Diffatte for a candid exploration of originality in magic that will resonate with creators across all disciplines. Nick takes us behind the scenes of Tannen's Magic Camp—an intensive gathering where 120 young magicians (ages 10-20) immerse themselves in the craft under the guidance of working professionals. You'll feel like you're wandering the Hogwarts-li...

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72:10

150 - Antje Pode: Kicking Suitcases & other Acts of...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/09/16

Ever wondered what happens when a circus performer's act goes "wrong"? In this intimate conversation with East German circus artist Antje Pode, we explore how the most powerful moments of connection often emerge from embracing unexpected challenges on stage. Ancha shares her extraordinary journey through the fall of the Berlin Wall – a time when her entire professional identity was upended as state-sponsored circus dissolved overnight. We explore the magnificent marble circus buildings of th...

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89:32

149 - Suitcases, Bears, and Train Journeys: A Foot...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/09/09

Step back in time to a vanished world of state-run circus schools, train journeys across the Soviet Union, and the dramatic moment when the Berlin Wall fell. In this captivating conversation, foot juggler Antje Pode shares her remarkable journey from a young gymnast in East Germany to an internationally acclaimed circus artist. Antje reveals the fascinating, rarely-discussed reality of the communist-era circus system, where performers were government employees with guaranteed lifetime positi...

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59:23

148 - Play is the Way (Showmanship & Play 30 of 30)

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/08/26

What if imagination isn't a distraction from truth, but our only reliable path to experiencing it? In this episode we conclude our 30-part exploration of showmanship through the lens of play. Using a personal case study of creating a plate-spinning poetry act, we witness how true artistic creation evolves organically—not as random elements slapped together, but as a cohesive vision that transcends its individual components. The journey takes an unexpected turn when the pandemic transf...

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79:16

147 - Imagination at the Heart of Reality...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/08/12

What if imagination isn't just fantasy, but the very faculty that brings our world into existence? In this philosophical deep dive, we explore the fifth and final criteria of play: that it is imaginative and improvisational. Unlike previous episodes in this series, I'm not arguing that imagination benefits performers—that connection is self-evident. Instead, we're examining imagination as the arena where showmanship unfolds. From the initial creative impulse to the finished performance, imag...

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58:25

146 - Unleashing Your Inner Showman (Showmanship &...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/07/29

The delicate dance between performer and audience reveals itself as we explore the self-motivated, voluntary nature of play in this deep dive into showmanship. Drawing from personal experiences during the pandemic and inspired by observing children at play, Captain Frodo uncovers how true connection emerges when audience members move from passive viewing to active participation. At first glance, the power imbalance between showman and audience might appear problematic. The performer directs ...

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44:40

145 - Is Your Life Missing a Dose of Pure...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/07/15

What happens when we lose touch with play, friendship, and authentic human connection? This episode dives into the surprising links between playfulness, friendliness, and showmanship – revealing how these seemingly "purposeless" activities might be the very foundation of what makes us human. I explore Belyaev's groundbreaking fox experiment, which demonstrated something remarkable: when researchers bred foxes solely for friendliness, playfulness emerged spontaneously without being selected f...

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61:12

144 - Toilet Plunger Aliens and the Value of...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/07/01

There's a profound paradox at the heart of play – we're told it's "apparently purposeless," yet this very quality might reveal its deepest value. This episode dives into the second criteria of play and examines how it mirrors the essence of showmanship in fascinating ways. When we attend a circus show, comedy performance, or music festival, we don't go primarily to learn something or accomplish a task. We go to have a good time – to experience life fully in the moment. Yet society has condit...

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62:13

143 - The Metaphorical Showman: Connecting...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/06/17

Have you ever wondered why some performances captivate you completely while others leave you checking your watch? The secret might lie in the ancient art of play. In this expansive exploration of showmanship through metaphor, Captain Frodo delves into the profound connection between performance and play. Drawing on both philosophical underpinnings from Aristotle to modern cognitive scientists like Lakoff and Johnson, this episode reveals how metaphorical thinking shapes our reality—not just ...

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44:37

142 - Alive! On the Inside - Carnival Wonders and the...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/06/10

What if embracing play could transform not only our perception of reality but also the world we live in? Join me, Captain Frodo, as we embark on a whimsical exploration of the intrinsic connection between play and showmanship. Together, we’ll question whether play unearths pre-existing truths or crafts entirely new perspectives. Drawing inspiration from cultural phenomena like the Marvel Cinematic Universe and thinkers such as Huitzinger, we’ll investigate how play might be the cornerstone of...

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46:44

141 - The Sacred Art of Play (Showmanship & Play 23...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/06/03

What if the most profound aspects of human experience—from religious ritual to artistic expression—have their roots in play? In this thought-provoking exploration of serious play, Captain Frodo challenges the false dichotomy between seriousness and importance, revealing how playful engagement offers access to deeper realities than solemn endeavors often can. Drawing on Plato's assertion that "life must be lived as play," we explore how imaginal play allows us to embody different identities a...

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57:51

140 - What if Play Reveals the True Nature of...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/05/27

What if our capacity for play is not just a quirk of evolution but a fundamental way we grasp reality? Much like sight reveals color and hearing reveals sound, could play be a sense that unveils essential dimensions of existence otherwise hidden from us? Captain Frodo challenges us to reconsider the nature and value of play beyond its utilitarian functions. While science often explains play through its evolutionary benefits—practice for hunting, social bonding, developing cognitive flexibili...

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50:10

139 - Redefining Seriousness (Showmanship & Play 21...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/05/20

What makes something "serious" and why do we automatically equate seriousness with importance? In this thought-provoking journey through linguistic history, educational systems, and cultural hierarchies, Captain Frodo reveals how the very concept of seriousness has been weaponized as a tool for social control. Diving into Alan White's groundbreaking essay "The Dismal Sacred Word," we discover how the first dictionaries deliberately created distinctions between "high" and "low" language, with...

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46:05

138 - Play for a Living: Finding Joy in Your Work...

the Way of the Showman ·

2025/05/13

What if your work felt like play? What if that seemingly childish question—"What would you do if money was no object?"—actually held the key to living without regret? Captain Frodo takes us on a profound journey through the false separation between play and work that dominates adult life. Drawing wisdom from philosophers Johann Huizinga and John Dewey alongside mystical thinker Alan Watts, this episode challenges our cultural assumptions about what constitutes "serious" pursuits. The explor...

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158 results

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