There’s this trick that Tobin Renwick and David Graham know is a show stopper.
For about 15 seconds, Renwick does a hands-free headstand. On its own, sure an impressive show of balance and athleticism, but add in the fact he’s doing it on top of Graham’s head and it’s one of the signature moments of their street performance. Sometimes they decide to pass some juggling balls back and forth, and that only adds to the audience’s thirst for more.
It’s been 13 years since the longtime Wilton friends embarked on their two-man act known as The Red Trouser Show and it’s taken them to places all over the world. Last month they traveled to Ireland for three days, they’ve performed in Australia and New Zealand, and Scotland and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in the United Kingdom, but their main spots are at Boston’s Faneuil Hall Marketplace in the summer and the Sunset Celebration in Mallory Square in Key West, Florida from February to April.
They spend about three months each winter performing just about every night in the famed southern location for street performers. These days, they travel to Boston on weekends until school gets out and then it’s a big push for the rest of the summer with a five-days a week on the schedule.
At Faneuil Hall, which requires an audition process, Renwick and Graham get a two-hour time slot (sometimes two in a day) and can pull off about 12 to 14 shows a week. They don’t get a paycheck to do their highly skilled routine, but rather rely on the generous offerings of those who stop and see their show.
“On any given day, you can go out and do really well or make nothing,” Renwick said.
In order to get people to stop and watch – and hopefully add something to their collection pillowcase – the duo must put forth a show worthy of the attention.
“Every show you start from nothing,” Graham said. “Most people don’t even know they’re going to see a show that day.”
But there’s something organic to the experience.
“They become your audience and you become their show.” Graham said.
While the headstand is impressive, since The Red Trouser Show is a 30-minute act, Renwick and Graham are constantly trying to keep the crowds engaged and in awe. They juggle fire (when allowed), while Renwick will stand on top of Graham’s head and toss up machetes. At one point they incorporated an extension ladder into their routine and it proved to be a difference maker.
“Height is always important in a street show,” Graham said.
Renwick has been known to balance the ladder on his face, Graham will do handstands on the top of it and with the help of audience members holding it upright with the use of ropes, the pair will do what equates to a sideways handstand.
“It completely revolutionized our show,” Renwick said. “It was that much better immediately.”
And while the acrobatics is what keeps people in awe – and around for the show – Renwick and Graham also mix in comedy and explanations to engage those who have chosen to stop.
“Initially, talking wasn’t our strong point,” Graham said.
But over the years, they’ve developed a style that works, apparent from their lengthy career.
“We still like to make little tweaks,” Graham said. “With a street show – pacing is really important.”
It’s much different than when the two were hired by a circus show in their early years of performing and got paid based on the fact that people bought tickets to go see the show. With what they do now, it’s all about location and performing feats that get people to stop and watch. There are no admission fees or tickets to buy, which is why it’s such a unique way to perform – and make a living. But judging by the fact they’ve had no other jobs over the last decade-plus, they’re doing something right.
This summer, in addition to their weekly schedule at Faneuil Hall, The Red Trouser Show will also be doing a number of festivals as close as Newbury Old Home Day on July 13 and Fitchburg Civic Days on July 3. They will also be heading to the Summer Nostos Festival in Athens (Greece) later this month, the Iowa State Fair in August and both Carolinas in the fall.
Graham and Renwick were part of the group of middle schoolers at Pine Hill that can be credited with the creation of Flying Gravity Circus in Wilton. Once they were off to High Mowing, there wasn’t a circus program to continue with. But they and some of their classmates were hooked, so along with Jackie Davis they banded together to get the program off the ground.
“Initially it was the joy of learning the next step,” Graham said. “There are unlimited things you can learn.”
“It just captivated so many of us in the class,” Renwick said.
They stuck with Flying Gravity all through high school and also performed with the Circus Smirkus touring show for five years. When it came time to apply to college, both Renwick and Graham knew they already had a career path they wanted to pursue.
“So we decided to give it 10 years,” Graham said.
“Luckily it worked out a little earlier than that,” Renwick said.
Graham’s father built a 20- by 24-foot addition on their Wilton home with 18-foot ceilings to be used for training.
Their first real jobs were with Midnight Circus in Chicago, where they performed their four-person club juggling act with Graham’s sister and a friend. They got spotted in a Circus Smirkus show at SeaWorld in San Antonio in 2004, and that was the first time they encountered a hiccup. The fourth person was unable to go, leaving them in a scramble to find a fourth member.
“We were juggling at a pretty high level, so you have a limited number of people to choose from,” Renwick said.
A Smirkus colleague joined in for the run of the show, but after they decided to make it a three-person act. Then Graham’s sister hurt her knee.
“Then it was just the two of us,” Graham said.
Their first try at a two-person show came at Six Flags Great America in Illinois.
“It was the first time we were part of a smaller show with some talking,” Graham said.
They went on to perform with other circus shows, but it was a conversation with a longtime friend from Circus Smirkus, Sam Johnson, that turned them on to street performing.
“He said, hey you guys got to try and learn how to do this,” Graham said.
So they went to Church Street in Burlington to check it out. Soon after, they would head up there on weekends to perform, sleeping on camping mats in the apartment of a friend of a friend. Admittedly, at first, it wasn’t easy.
“There’s something brutally honest about street performing because the feedback is immediate,” Graham said. “And you know immediately if it works.”
After feeling like they hit their stride, the duo got a bit of a wake-up call during their first winter in Key West.
“It was a learning curve down there,” Graham said. “It can be very demoralizing at times.”
But they kept with it, got accepted into the Faneuil Hall program and haven’t looked back.
For more information visit theredtrousershow.com.