This Sunday, August 14th, the Hellzapoppin Circus Sideshow is bringing its thrilling brand of entertainment to Lafayette’s Music Room. Championing themselves as the “world’s largest and last remaining troupe of sideshow freaks and circus performers,” this group of performers defies death every time they take the stage, from swallowing swords to eating fire to practicing foot archery and more — all in a two-and-a-half hour show.
As seen on AMC’s Freakshow, Ripley’s Believe It Not, Guinness World Records, the Discovery Channel, the Travel Channel, America’s Got Talent, and more, these performers hope to inspire audiences in conquering their fears and dwelling in anticipation. Lucky for us, the Memphis Flyer got a chance to catch up with performer Short E. Dangerously in a quick Q&A to ask him all about what it means to join the circus.
Memphis Flyer: What led you to being a part of Hellzapoppin?
Short E. Dangerously: After 15 years in the nightclub business as a DJ, I found myself looking for something different. I had no idea what direction I wanted to go. A mutual friend introduced me to [ringleader] Bryce “The Govna” Graves. He contacted me and offered to have me as a guest on an upcoming show Hellzapoppin had not far from where I lived. I had one skill — I could do an inverted handstand. Now, keep in mind, I don’t have any legs. So, I came out, gave a little speech, and went into a handstand, with the understanding of the audience that the louder they were, the higher up I would go.
What is your act all about?
My signature act is walking on broken shards of glass with my bare hands while it is on fire! It is a demonstration of pain tolerance and mental and physical toughness. I was born with a physical condition that does set me apart from other performers. In the sideshow world, I am considered a half-man. I am also considered a natural born performer, a natural born “freak” if you will. However, I trained and studied for over a year with the glass walking before even attempting it on stage.
Most of the sideshow stunts are passed down from performer to performer as a generational thing. In order to do what we do, you have to have a knowledge of science, physics as well as anatomy. Whereas a musician plays their given instrument, our bodies are our instruments. For example, in order for Willow [Lauren] to learn how to swallow a sword, she had to know the anatomy and the science of what is going on with her body as well as controlling gag reflexes that are normally involuntary. She has to control those with her mind and suppress them.
Circuses have a layered history, often exploitative. How have y’all confronted this history?
Bryce and I get asked this question all the time regarding exploitation. However, there’s no exploitation going on. I am in the show because I have a talent and I’m a performer. It’s not just because of how I look. I have a skill set. My background as a DJ helped me in this field. I run all of the music cues and the production during the show except for when I’m on stage. Then Willow runs my music cues.
Have you ever surprised yourself in being able to perform a certain act?
I can recall one time when I did surprise myself. The big finish to the glass walking act is when I jump down onto the pile of glass from an elevated ladder or stool. This one particular time, the only ladder that was available for us to use was approximately four-and-a-half feet high. I normally jumped from around two or two-and-a-half feet. When I got to the top of the ladder, Bryce came out to me and pulled the microphone away and said, “You don’t really have to do this.” I looked at him. I smiled. I said, “I’m either going to make history or be history.” I looked down, took a deep breath, and sent it! I landed safely with no problems. As I walked off stage, I thought to myself that it was really crazy, but I would love to do it again!
Do you ever doubt yourself or get nervous before doing something that most people wouldn’t dare to try?
I get asked this question a lot and the best way I can answer it is I ask people a question: Do you get nervous before you go to work? This is my job. This is my profession. Ironically, there’s a calmness that comes over me before the show starts. Then, when I hit the stage, everything explodes! All of that fear and anxiety is gone and I am focused on my job, the task at hand.
What does it feel like when you’ve succeeded in performing a death-defying stunt, especially in front of an audience?
It’s the best! It’s an incredible adrenaline rush! There’s nothing like it anywhere! It’s the best drug in the world! I have defied death countless times in my life — injury not so much. A lot of times, audience members and average people fail to realize that we literally torture ourselves for their entertainment. However, when you’re on stage, you don’t feel any pain. We all tend to feel our pain off stage, after the show, when the adrenaline wears off and reality kicks back in. One thing I have learned is that sometimes our audiences are a little bit bloodthirsty. It’s like most of our audiences are the ones that go to a car race just for the crashes!
However, the energy we get from the audience always gives us the energy to get it done. We literally feed off the energy the audience gives us some nights because it’s the only way that we can do it. You do this because you love it and you can’t imagine doing anything else in the world. Only a few people can do what we do, which is what makes us so unique.
Is there anything else that you feel is important to mention?
You can find us all on social media. Make sure to check out www.hellzapoppin.com for all of our tour dates and performer bios!
Hellzapoppin Circus Sideshow, Lafayette’s Music Room, Sunday, August 14, 7 p.m., $20 /general admission, $35/VIP, 21+.
Purchase tickets here.
