Where in the world am I today?: New Delhi, India.
Prologue: I recall meeting Karen at a juggling convention in Amherst, MA back in the late 80s. At the time I seemed to be getting to quite a number of the regional and national IJA conventions and recall seeing Karen at many of them. We didn’t really hang out until we were both performing at the Calgary Stampede in 1999. Karen was working on a lovely stage off to one side of the park, trees, grass, pleasant. I, on the other hand, was brought in to play near the Midway with the asphalt, confusion and noise… I managed to carve out a little nook for myself to make the gig work-able and as we shared a greenroom/dressing room space I bumped into Karen a lot over the days we were both at the Fair. Made a point of going to see her show a few times and also enjoyed a very civilized dinner with her off site one night which was very pleasant. In a nutshell, Karen is a savvy business woman with a show that’s tailor-fit to the Fair and Festival market especially those with a Western component!
STATS
Name: Karen Quest
Birthday: January 8.
Place of Birth: St. Louis, MO.
Started Peforming/Working in the Industry: First professional juggling job: 1977 Magic Mountain Theme Park, Los Angeles. Prior to that, dabbled in amateur clowning and juggling. Cowgirl Tricks show created in 1997.
Discipline: Circus and Variety Arts, Comedy.
Website: http://www.cowgirltricks.com
Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSHilbB7z54
Venues Worked: Festivals, State and County Fairs, Corporate and Private Events, Schools, Theme Parks, Stage, Television, Film.
Hot 10 Questions:
- What’s your favorite flavor of ice cream and why? • No ice cream, but love frozen yogurt, coffee, cappuccino, peanut butter, chocolate and vanilla, especially mixed! Why? Because it’s palate-pleasing.
- Name one movie that would make it to your Top 10 all-time great films. • The Princess Bride.
- What was your favorite toy from childhood? • Wooden blocks and Barbie.
- Who were your biggest inspirations when you got started? • The Great Salt Lake Mime Troupe, my college movement teacher, jugglers, Dimitri, Lucille Ball, Carol Burnett, Marx Brothers to name a few.
- From the world of animation what one character do you most identify with or see yourself in? • Jesse from Toy Story.
- Name something that scares you. • Ignorant mean people, more so if they are drunk.
- Apart from the entertainment industry, name one other job you’ve had. • Television Production Purchasing Agent for an animation studio. I described my job as Part Bloodhound, Part Retriever or Finding Things That Don’t Exist in Life As We Know It.
- What’s something you haven’t done yet that you’d like to try? • Marriage.
- What’s your least favourite thing about being a performer? • What it takes to get the work.
- If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? • “What are you doing here? You’re not due for another 50 years! Get back and keep up the good work.”
The Nugget:
Pick one nugget of wisdom you’ve picked up from your career in Show Business to share with the World.
“The three most important words in Show Biz: Know Your Audience.“
–Karen Quest
