What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/1267901
JULY 12-18, 2020 WHAT'S UP! 11 Forecast: Still Sunny LARA JO HIGHTOWER NWA Democrat-Gazette W hen you watch Jules Taylor in a Shaky Bugs performance — several of which can now be seen on the Arts Live Theatre YouTube channel thanks to ALT Executive Director Mark Landon Smith — you might think you're seeing a performer putting on her happy, sunny mask to best entertain children with a series of fun, upbeat songs and creative activities. Who on earth could be that cheerful, that full of energy? As a matter of fact, Jules Taylor can. What you see on stage when she's doing a Shaky Bugs performance is all Jules Taylor, all the time. Taylor has been perfecting Shaky Bugs for 16 years in Northwest Arkansas, bringing her unique brand of performance to festivals, libraries and private events all over the region — including Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. "One of my favorite memories is of little ol' me with a tutu on and my guitar, standing in the middle of the Crystal Bridges Great Hall, on the stage, with 200 babies surrounding me," says Taylor. "That is so amazing." Taylor says her earliest memories are of being a performer. "There are photos of me when I was 3, dancing on top of the coffee table for all of the neighbors during 'American Bandstand'," she says, laughing. "That was my thing." It's possible her gregarious, outgoing personality was enhanced through the transience of her childhood: She moved all over Texas as a girl, changing schools frequently. "My mom would get upset and say, 'I gave you such a hard life,' but I loved it," says Taylor. "I went to so many different schools, lived in so many parts of Texas, and I have so many friends from all over. Moving around like that, you do kind of have to be an outgoing individual. You have to be bold." Her boldness led her to move to the big city, where she first honed her children's performer skills by teaching Wiggle Worm classes for young children at Chicago's venerable Old Town School of Folk Music. "That's where I learned early musical education," Taylor explains. "I took so many free classes there — it was insane how many free classes I took." She loved what she was doing but, after a while, the hustle got to be too much. "I was all over the Chicagoland area — I drove constantly," she says. "Old Town has all of these outreaches. I was doing Wiggle Worms all over the place. I was also doing community theater, so one day I might go teach Wiggle Worms in Hinsdale, and then at the end of the day I'm in Palatine at a rehearsal. I was exhausted from driving all day. That's also 15 hours away from my parents, and I wanted to be closer to them." Taylor hit a few other stops on her way to Fayetteville, but once she landed here, she realized it would not be a temporary engagement. "I had never been to Arkansas before, and I fell in love with Fayetteville so hard," she says. "I got an apartment right by the library. I thought I would move back to Texas, but I started living in Fayetteville as a local — going to the Farmers' Market, meeting everybody, getting to work at Arts Live — I loved it." In her nearly two decades in the area, Taylor has established herself not only as a consummate children's performer but also as a valued theater educator, director and actor. She is on the teaching staff of Arts Live Theatre, where she also directs shows. She is also a member of the improv group Shaky Bugs brightens up ALT online offerings Jules Taylor credits Arts Live Theatre's executive director Mark Landon Smith for the idea of making short Shaky Bugs videos for online viewing. "Had he not given me the impetus, I might not have had the energy to do it," she says. "Everything has been so crazy, I might not have found the energy for Shaky Bugs. It's pretty high energy, and it's even more intense on camera because I don't have the babies as part of the interaction — having those tiny little babies jumping in front of me gives me the energy. But once I get it going, I can recall lots of shaky bugs dancing in front of me." (Courtesy Photo) GO ONLINE! Shaky Bugs Access Jules Taylor's Shaky Bugs videos by visiting the Arts Live Theatre's Youtube channel. FAYETTEVILLE See Shaky Bugs Page 40