We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Paul Newman a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Paul thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you recount a story of an unexpected problem you’ve faced along the way?
When you have a unique presentation that can not simply be put into a category, genre, or checkbox; you have an interesting problem. How do you sell someone on a show that has to be experienced to be understood? I have been a musician/variety performer for the last 20 years. I am the man you hire to engage any audience who might not actually be ready to be engaged. I utilize a variety of circus skills, street performer intuition, and musical instruments to win over a room and connect with folks of all ages and backgrounds. I am up for the task of sharing in that unique transitional space with strangers and be the catalyst to inspiring everyone involved to collectively create the next moment. I can tell you with experience that ‘next’ moment always feels better than the previous moment. Yes, you can make a list of all of my offerings like my one man loop band, juggling, unicycling, face balancing, and more, to get a tangible glimpse of what my show will look like. But I’ve found it doesn’t give the full story. A picture or description won’t show those unexpected moments. I am a real live person having a real live person experience in front of all these real live people. I share that reality as part of my show. The audience is the ever changing wildcard that informs the show leading no two to ever be the same. The environment and randomness of the people who find themselves in my time and space are the real focus of my inspiration for creation and why I call it entertainment art. Like an imaginary snowglobe of the upcoming now, the next moment will be a piece of art owned only by our shared memory of it. It’s a “you had to be there” kind of moment.
I am still finding ways to convey to future clients this elusive and magical element that booking me provides. This is why most of my bookings are repeat clients or someone who experienced my show and had to have me at their event. But how do I explain to someone who has never experienced the magic in a way that leads them to understand the intangible elements that come with booking me? One way has been to encourage folks to write testimonials of their experiences. The way my audience puts into words their unique perspective has been the most touching and useful ways of making that pitch for my proposals. But it remains a unique challenge for me even after 20 years of doing it.
Paul, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
My name is SuperTallPaul. Not because I am super tall. At 0.00124274 miles (2 meters or 6 ‘6”) I AM a tall drink of water. But there are a lot of tall Paul’s in the world. No, I am not Super tall. But of all of the tall Paul’s out there, I am the one that is super! I am a world champion live looper. Essentially a modern day one man band. Utilizing the technology of Looping with my array of tiny instruments, I spontaneously generate a fully produced musical track at the same time I balance those instruments on my face. These are the boiled down tangible elements of my show but the reason for my presentation is to present the hilarity and absurdity of reality by including my genuine experience and relation with the audience as an awkward, yet relatable, element of the show. We are all just trying to connect!! The audience’s presence is measured as their time and space and is why I call the whole experience an art installation in motion where the audience is the fuel of the ship. Some unexpected facts about me: My real life name is Paul Newman. People ask if I am THE Paul Newman. My answer has always been…”No, I’m the other one!” I am an honorably discharged former Marine. After spending so many years getting a required haircut every week, I currently have long hair because I am still trying to decide what kind of haircut to get. My glasses are not prescription but they do make me feel special. I am inspired by Jazz, Funk, and Motown music and discovered improv theater through my love of improvising music. I bring a unique entertainment perspective due to my experiences in the circus as a skill based clown and seasoned street performer. I live on either side of the 4th wall boundary line. I have learned that jumping back and forth creates a joyfully experienced, cognitive dissonance, which I advertise as a show but is really an experience for all who take part in that shared moment to include myself.
You can count on me to help facilitate a safe and connecting environment for all unsuspecting patrons. I am an entertainment artist dealing in all things entertainment. I am well versed in performances for live events, live streams, Host/MC, product spokesperson, video and audio production and more. But what you are really getting from booking me is my intuition around the group dynamic and how to creatively insert myself into the collective moment and to steer the metaphorical ship towards the desired destination. I am the best back up plan or emergency escape hatch suitable for every show or occasion that needs it or not.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
I started out in LA as a very shy yet persistent musician. Along my journey I was offered a peculiar opportunity to occupy a retail space for a time being as an ambient performer for a product. It was in this situation that I realized the only difference between being hired to perform and performing in regular life circumstances (such as the produce aisle of the supermarket) was permission. I decided to try an experiment on my life perspective socially by giving myself the permission to perform anywhere at random. This led to me getting into street performing as a method of practicing under the influence of the hyper engaged state you feel when performing on the stage. I found the results to be more beneficial than anything I had ever done to improve my ability to keep my cool and find ways of making the show continue even when I made mistakes or had technical difficulties. I started to find that people would pay more attention to me when I seemed to be failing than when I was really hitting all the notes perfectly. I was then able to use that attention to fuel my heightened state in the moment to pull off tricks and notes I had never even thought I could do. I gradually became a person obsessed with that uncomfortable feeling most people get when public speaking. I learned that internal fear could actually be perceived as joyful excitement for what is coming next. I fully believe that if you can hold on and manage the uncomfortable long enough you will without doubt magically transition to an inspired moment that can truly be felt by all who witness and participate in that moment in time. The art of now! I have made a career out of my pursuit of experimenting with, and understanding, the psychology of stranger group think. What attracts a crowd of people on the street? What makes them stay? What inspires them? What moves them? I have found common ground within this social experiment that we are all looking for connection. Over years of honing this type of perspective I have been able to translate it to all forms of entertainment and artistic presentations. I offer team building workshops utilizing elements of improv theater for the non performer as ways to connect with and support each other. I lead groups into safe situations of uncertainty to demonstrate a way to garner a new and fresh perspective. It also has the beneficial side effect of improving your life by helping give you more tools in managing life’s unexpected challenges. I bring this same kind of energy and purpose into my shows and presentations.
My mission is to bring my personal experience and knowledge to anyone who will listen and receive my ideas. Life’s uncertainty can trigger the anxiety that so many people face daily. I know, I was once one of them and still am on occasion. I want to share the principles of self discovery and confidence building I have cultivated in my years of performance to those who have no interest in performing but do have an interest in living with more joy and peace. I want more opportunities to bring smiles to faces as we can all use a little more safe positive connection with our fellow humans. I want to continue developing my craft and exploring more ways of giving back to my fellow man. For me, life has purpose and meaning when it is done from a service oriented mindset and that is exactly where I intend to continue to go. To connect in the uncertain and together be excited for the magic of our next shared now.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
During the pandemic my life changed dramatically. Suddenly I was not allowed to do my show because public gatherings were no longer permitted. I started doing live streaming shows on the internet, and still do, but they are just not the same as sharing the same breathable air with an audience. I was randomly contacted by a collective who was putting together an underground event of 150 friends on private land in another state. I said yes to the event as I had no other bookings set for the year. I flew in the night I was hired to perform and arrived onsite just after a major torrential storm ripped through the area. The rain had pooled up in the audience area of their mainstage where I was to perform. So they put together a bunch of large catering style tents and prepared a makeshift space for me. Most of the DJ’s and acts that were going to play ended up leaving because of the rain. But there were still just under 100 people there ready to be entertained. I ended up playing a 6 hour set which was 2 hours shorter than my previous personal record for a long set. I was tired and proceeded to a small tent that they set up for me to sleep and took a 3 hour nap. When I woke up there was still no one performing so I took over the sound system again and played another 6 hour set. So I now have a new record for myself playing 12 hours within a 15 hour period. In my larger show called the Jive Joint I will often play 5 – 8 hours at a time so the longevity has been on display for many years. This has come from playing on the street where I would play almost as long. Proof that when you are doing what you love, time can cease to exist.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.supertallpaul.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/supertallpaul
- Facebook: facebook.com/supertallpaul
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heliosjive/
- Twitter: twitter.com/superTpaul
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/supertallpaul
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/super-tall-paul-los-angeles?osq=supertallpaul
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/@theheliosjive888 https://www.youtube.com/jivejoint