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ARTICLE REPRINT

September 30, 2004

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Performer makes art from bubbles

CHOREOGRAPHED BUBBLES -- Casey Carle knows a lot about dish liquid. The comic "bubble-ologist," who performs Saturday in Sherborn, says creating the perfect soap solution from Dawn or Joy can make or break his act.

"Unlike the bubbles you blow in your backyard, my bubbles have to perform on cue," he says. Besides creating ephemeral masterpieces out of thin soap, like his "crystal ball" or "the space ship," Carle's "Bubblemania" show features a "Bubble Concerto." "I choreographed the bubble manipulations to big-band music," he says.

"Bubblemania," which is suited for ages 5 and older ( adults, too), combines nonstop humor with a little science and plenty of visual treats. "There are things that you can do with soap bubbles that will just stop you in your tracks," says Carle, who lives in Connecticut and performs close to 400 shows per year.

Long columns of foam are balanced, bubble hats and jewelry donned, and even square bubbles blown. "Then after demonstrating that I can blow bubbles from just about anything, I leave the stage and grab things from the audience," he says. "I've been challenged by some pretty bizarre stuff--shoes, jackets, stuffed animals, food items."

Behind the act is a wealth of training and a passion for this slippery art. Carle began developing his bubble act after attending the former Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Clown College. Then he performed itŐs first incarnation with the circus for two years, to much applause. In 1989, he developed a complete show, branched out on his own full time and hasn't looked back since.

"There's something absolutely fantastic about creating something from nearly nothing and then it being gone," says Carle. "And, I'm actually glad they pop, because if they didn't, I would have to have a lot more storage in my house."

Jokes aside, Carle's awe for these momentary prisms comes through. "I often think of what Mark Twain said about soap bubbles," he says. "He wrote, 'A soap bubble is the most beautiful, most exquisite thing in nature. I wonder how much it would cost to buy a soap bubble, if there was only one in the world?' "