Professional Whipcracker

How much of your whole act is the whip cracking part?

Asked by tazyone over 11 years ago

In my whipcracking act it's pretty much all the time :-) exept for when i enter and exit the stage.The act is not very long so the audience won't get bored.There are many artists who make a "western act" with lasso, whipcracking and gunspinning .That way there is more variety.My challenge for now is to keep the audience entertained with an act where whips is the main part of it even if i might add some gunspinning in the future.But i think that if you present your act good and you make a SHOW out of what you do then people will enjoy it.

Have you ever cracked yourself with your own whip, and did it hurt?

Asked by Grammy over 11 years ago

Yes i did... i think that is part of every beginner at whipcracking , it's a litlle bit like being a stuntman and not having bruises i suppose.Lucky for me i never had a BAD cut.I've had some red rashes and you could see a light red mark but that's all.Mostly in the beginning though , now as i'm mastering more the move of the whip i can predict more where the end of the whip is gonna end and i can change it's  course before it hits me.When i try a new move , i tend to mimic it softly until i get it and then i'll ad more energy and power once i already have it.But i've seen peoples having pretty bad cuts.Last year i co organised the Uk Whipcracking Convention , and between the first 15 minutes an man came to see us because he hits himself in the face.There was a 10cm bright red scar on his face.Fortunatly it didn't touch the eye.That's why beginners should always wear glasses, protective clothes and shoes.

How did you first get into such a bizarre pastime!?

Asked by Jess.W over 11 years ago

Haha... it's not my past time , but my job :-) I am lucky enough to live from what i like to do , wich not everybody has the chance to say unfortunatly.But if you want to know how i get into whipcracking , well it was one time we went to see a circus show when i was myself already working in a circus.But at that time i was doing juggling with my partner.In this spow one of the act was done by a guy doing presenting a western act.Dressed up as a cowboy he was cracking whips ,gunspinning and lassos.From that moment i thought that this was a discipline i wanted to learn .I liked all his act but i just found the whips really cool,beautiful motion but at the same time i like the "bad ass " image as well.I bought myself i whip and started practicing!Later i found out that whipcracking is actually a sport in Australia,they are holding many competitions with some of the best whipcracker.As USA consider it more like an art rather than a sport.But in the beggining, the first man made supersonic tool wich is the whip were supposed to drive cattle and others animals.But really whips are every where , from Indiana Jones to Catwoman , Iron man 2, Lone Ranger,Castlemania, or even the latest Britney Spears video. but also in many traditions and cultures around the world.In uk now and everywhere the number of peoples getting to know and to try that sport is increasing everyyear. You should try it ;-)

Does your show have a crowd participation portion, or any other part where you bring someone up on stage, and are they scared you're going to somehow crack them!??

Asked by Handyz over 11 years ago

No , i don't have any audience participation in any of my performances. I would personnaly not take any member of the audience in my whipcracking act to hold a target for me to crack at , for example cutting a cigarette from the mouth. When you go to perform for an event you don't know what kind of audience will be there.And if it's a festival for example or discotheque i do my act in , peoples might be drunk and would be more likely to show off , and they could ruin the trick .Or even worse get hurt.But some whipcracking performers do , and i respect that , just don't feel like doing it.I guess the person who will accept to hold a target for a whipcracker , or accept to take part in a dangerous act, trust the performers and know that the performer master his trick to be safe enough.Or they would just refuse to get on stage.

Is this a long-term career for you, or do you see yourself trying something else eventually?

Asked by Lee-Anne over 11 years ago

It's been 10 years now that i'm performing .I'm planning to do this until i still can and that i still do look ok on stage.But i think that at  one point it is time to let the place to the younger ones.However i love new experiences and if something that i want to do comes up , even if it's not in the performing area , i will take the opportunity.

What's the single most impressive display of whipmanship(?) you've ever seen?

Asked by WRIR over 11 years ago

Some of the whipcracking performances in Australia , in the whipcracking competitions are mad!Rythmic routines very complexe sometimes performed by pretty young whipcrackers.They are very quick and clean routines.

Do people who you meet assume that your show is some sort of adult S&M-theme thing? (Oh and....is it? :)!!?

Asked by Jacky over 11 years ago

YES!! All the time!! I do get that a lot.Friends do makes jokes as well ,but on a friendly way !Also as i make whips myself,when i say to somebody that i make whips , i can see them questioning themselves " whips for....??:-) But most of the time i present myself as visual performer, and that my disciplines are aerial silks and whipcracking and then i explain what is whipcracking. usually they end up thinking it's pretty cool as a hobby and performing it.And most of them will ask to try to crack a whip!!But S&M is not the only thing we, whipcracker get assiociated to.There is also Zorro, Indianan Jones,Catwoman...Haha some think you'll start fighting crime! But no, i am not into that kind of whipcracking and i would not crack a whip at someones body.Even thought i got offered ( happening pretty much being a female whipcracking performer i guess,..) i prefer to spread the whipcracking as a sport or as an art  and i hope it'll become more popular .even though interest in whipcracking has been growing since the last decade.

Is there any sort of whipcracker "community"...or industry groups or something?

Asked by Heathers over 11 years ago

Yes , a lot even!There are facebook groups of whipcracking and whipmaking.There is also websites or forums with whipcrackers sharing ideas and tipps.Like bullwhip org or whip basic de to name just few.Then there are local clubs and workshops in America and england.

How close is the audience for your shows? How close does the cracking end of the whip get to them?

Asked by Paul over 11 years ago

It depends on the venue i'm performing at .Sometimes the place is really small , so i've had 50 cm-1m distance me and the audience in front of the stage.When it's that close and i don't have many space i use shorter whips or i make my routine diffently to be sure that i have enough space.But most of the time it's minimum 2 meters i would say to further away.

Where do you get your equipment from? Is it just a standard whip (whatever that is lol) or do they make special kinds for performers like you?

Asked by Julie over 11 years ago