The Guard

I am doing some posts for several days around the vicinity of Parliament Hill. The Changing Of The Guard ceremony takes place here during the summer, from the end of June to the end of August, promptly at ten in the morning. Two units, the Governor General's Foot Guards and the Grenadier Guards, march out onto the lawn. One comes from behind the East Block, taking the part of the Old Guard. The other marches from the Cartier Square Drill Hall a few blocks away, coming up onto the Hill to take part as the New Guard. There are narrators speaking in English and French to explain the process to onlookers. The military bands play music, the troops are in formation, inspections of the line are made. On a hot, humid day like this one was, military medics are on hand just in case one of the Guards collapses in the heat (it happens). Tomorrow I'll show you their departure en masse from the Hill.

A reminder to members of City Daily Photo: the theme day for September is Curiousities.

The Guillotine

When last we left Queen Marie Antoinette (otherwise known as the busker Kate Mior), she was just getting started in a baguette duel with the commoner she'd picked out of the crowd. He was no doubt wishing he had been further back in the crowd.

There were feints and footwork, baguettes coming close to a strike from both sides...

And then the commoner struck a lucky blow, knocking the Queen's wig straight off her head.

This could not do, of course. There had to be punishment. So the commoner was hooded and led to the guillotine. Oddly his bindings seemed to vanish at the last moment.

La Reine brought out a line of spectators to bid adieu to the condemned. Music was being played- most fittingly the operatic Time To Say Goodbye. 

And then she dropped the blade.

Of course he didn't die. Can you imagine the headline- unwitting bystander killed during busker act? What came out when the blade fell looked like red confetti (I wish I'd gotten a shot of that in time!), the Queen announced that he was alive, and took a bow to the applause of the audience. It's a great way to end a show, and a delightful act by Kate Mior.

Vive La France

My last featured act of the buskers festival is Kate Mior of Toronto, in the first of two posts. She specializes in several different characters with a living statue motif, but has taken that in a new direction this year with an act she's entitled Madame Guillotine. Her Marie Antoinette character is front and center for this fun, hilarious act that brings in audience participation and delights onlookers. She can be found at her Facebook page.

She begins by speaking to the audience- quite a switch given that when I've seen her in the past, she's always been silent as a living statue.

And then the Queen brings in the first of her victims... I mean, volunteers, a warm up for the act.

This leads into a duel involving two audience participants with fake baguettes, refereed by the Queen herself.

But the Queen decides to enter the fray as a combatant. 

Tomorrow I'll show you what happens when a lowly commoner is caught up in a high stakes baguette fight with Queen Marie Antoinette.

Flexible Legwork

Lisa Lottie is a busker based out of Britain and Australia, and a link to her Facebook page can be found here. She specializes in tricks with hula hoops and body contortion, and watching her at work bantering with the crowd was a lot of fun. 

Trickery Of Venus

Venus is a Dutch busker whose specialities include juggling and the art of the diabolo, which you learn more about here. I caught her act a couple of times over the weekend, once when she was juggling torches with the help of a bystander she'd brought into the ring, and the second when she was juggling other items and then going to work with the diabolo.

The Silver Starlets

The Silver Starlets are two acrobats featured in the buskers festival this year. These two women had a knack for bantering with the audience while doing tricks on suspended hoops, swings, and fabric. They even switched costumes mid-set and brought on a pair of guys from the audience (mostly to give them a boost, and then to hold up the two quick change mobile closets, so to speak, they had on them so they could make the costume switch- you can see the blue fabric hoops on the ground in the fifth shot). Watching their act, and their flexibility and talent up in the air, was fun. They can be found on Facebook as well.

Chalkmaster Dave

Something different as busking goes, this is the work of one of the featured performers of the event, Chalkmaster Dave, a street artist who specializes in rendering three dimensional work. He can be found on Facebook.

In this case, the dragon in the first shot takes a three dimensional look when one photographs it from a second angle.

Fireweaver Sophie

Sophie the fireweaver was another act I caught during the buskers festival (though I wasn't around when the torches came out). She incorporates dance, juggling, and the performance style of poi into her act. When I came across her on Sparks Street, she was juggling before moving into some knifework. And yes, it did end up looking like she was dancing.