Jun 14, 2002 2 min read

MORGANTOWN – Morgantown will be invaded by flying rings, devil sticks and spinning diabolos this weekend when the third annual West Virginia Juggling Festival will take place in WVU’s Student Recreation Center. A free public show will be held at 7 p.m. Saturday in Eiesland Hall including acts by WVU Juggling Club members Josh Stevenson, Tressa Jones, Amanda Jerrett, Amy Barnes and Jamie Whoolery.

Visiting performers include Stephen Caruso of Saylorsburg and Kit Summers from Trainer, who previously entertained audiences as a featured performer at Bally’s Park Place Casino in Atlantic City. The show will be hosted by illusionist Josh Knotts, a Weirton native studying visual and performing arts at WVU.

In addition, there will be various instructional workshops on Saturday, juggling games on Sunday and free juggling lessons all weekend.

“Learning to juggle is easy – anyone can do it, even the klutziers people,” said Josh Stevenson, WVU Juggling Club member. “A juggling festival is the best place to learn.”

Festival activities will include an Official International Sport Juggling Federation (ISJF) numbers competition, in which competitors will attempt to juggle more balls, rings and clubs than their opponents. In addition, two joggling races will be held at the WVU track on Sunday. Joggling is a combination of juggling and running that was once a part of Olympic competition. The event will feature both the four-by-100 meter relay and the four-by-200 meter relay.

The festival is open to the public. A one-time $4 guest fee will be charged for individuals attending the festival. The fee will allow access to all juggling areas as well as unlimited use of all other facility features for the entire festival.

The new WVU Student Recreation Center, which opened in the summer of 2001, features multiple gymnasiums and courts, an elevated track, weight and fitness equipment, two pools and an indoor climbing wall.

For more information, visit http://www.angelfire.com/wv/jugglingfest/.