Juggler finds his passion on the street

Juggler finds his passion on the street. John Park, aka the Funny Waiter, performs at Scotiabank BuskerFest, Aug. 25 to 28, at St. Lawrence Market. Courtesy/James Andrew Kachan

It might seem odd a couple who pursued medicine and the law produced a son who juggles for a living, but for John Park it's been second nature since the age of 12.

He attributes his career to basic geography - he happened to grow up in the San Francisco Bay area a stone's throw from Fisherman's Wharf, one of the city's prime tourist locations. As a kid, Park said he would go into San Francisco with his parents and watch the street performers.

"It's extremely exciting to watch, especially as a 12 year old," said Park, who lives with his wife and children in the Jane and Annette streets area, "There's an immediacy and excitement you don't find in other theatrical endeavours. It's so right there and then."

Park said he first learned to juggle as a pre-teen and began performing in a four-person juggling act at 14.

"It takes a lot of practice," he confessed in an interview last Friday, Aug. 12. Fortunately for Park, his parents were extremely supportive. By the time he'd received a university degree, he said he was already earning a living.

It wasn't until he arrived in Toronto about seven years ago he heard the term 'busking.'

"'Busking' was a totally new word for me - I'd never heard it before," he admitted.

This year marks the third time Park will be performing at the Scotiabank BuskerFest, Toronto's international street performer festival, Aug. 25 to 28. He'll be performing as 'The Funny Waiter,' a plate-spinning, juggling comedian.

"One thing I find really great about Toronto's BuskerFest is that the performers are from all over the world," he said. "I find it really exciting to look at the program and to see where each performer is from and to find out if they're people I've never seen before."

Park's 'Funny Waiter' was inspired by the need to create an act even further removed from the typical juggler's routine.

"Bookers were saying, 'we already have a lot of jugglers,'" said Park.

And so, he decided he'd do a food and drink-based comedy routine.

Since then, Park has been booked for such events as the Taste of the Stratford Festival, but he performs corporate gigs, agricultural fairs, in Las Vegas, even with such legendary bands as 'The Grateful Dead' and Donny and Marie Osmond. He even appeared on the Gary Shandling Show.

'Have show will travel' is Park's motto. It takes enthusiasm for the art itself to succeed.

"There's something really, really special and exciting about street shows that you just don't find anywhere else," he said. "If people haven't gone down to Buskerfest before, it's just a great opportunity for those of you who like entertainment, but especially family entertainment, to see world-class acts for a price that's beyond belief."

BuskerFest is four days and four nights of some of the most unique pogo-sticking, hula-hooping, fire-breathing, artistic juggling, body-contorting, whip-cracking, plate-spinning, unicycle-lassoing performances from around the world. The festival not only supports Epilepsy Toronto, it is its largest fundraiser of the year.

Visit www.torontobuskerfest.com for further details.