For Regan Patno and Julia Snyder, it all began with juggling.
Ten years ago, the two performance artists met at a dance class. They both became interested in a classmate who had juggling skills. Patno and Snyder bonded because of their similar desire to learn this new trick.
"We started meeting with him every week and started learning to juggle," Snyder said. "We had so much fun doing it and it became such a big part of our week. It gave our life so much energy that we just became consumed by it."
Eventually, that energy was turned into a popular performing arts show called the Tweaksters. Patno and Snyder star in the nationally touring show that consists of unique choreography, magic, mime, acrobatics and, of course, juggling. On Saturday, the Tweaksters will perform their last show of the season at John R. Emens Auditorium.
Patno and Snyder said their show is unique because it combines each of their different abilities. Patno has a background in dance while Snyder was involved in fitness and gymnastics.
"We put our skills together along with the juggling," said Patno. "We had fun putting unusual things together and putting things we like to see on stage."
In the show, Patno and Snyder perform imaginative tricks such as table tennis air raids, manipulation of objects and glow-in-the-dark dance routines. They have been called "Blue Man Group without the paint," according to their official Web site.
Originally designed as an adult show, Patno and Snyder said they soon realized their performing arts show was attracting all sorts of age groups.
"As time went by, we realized the show had a strong contingency for families," Snyder said. "There were people in the audience like younger kids and grandparents, so we realized where our marketplace lied. We basically created routines that brought us joy, but we have to keep everything G-rated. We haven't changed our approach, we just respect the innocence of the kids."
Darcy Wood, associate director of marketing at Emens, said she expects the Tweaksters will have a crowd of about 300 or 400. She said the show is specifically geared toward younger audiences.
"It's really just a fun show meant to be enjoyed by elementary school-age children," Wood said. "I don't expect to see many BSU students."
However, even though the Tweaksters show is now aimed at families, Patno and Snyder said universities are a major part of their touring schedule. Patno said they have seen college students enjoy their performances just as much as children.
"We performed for a physics institution. It was very educated people; very adult people. I was balancing balls on columns of air, and the people in the audience were just clapping because they understood the physics of how I was doing it. It was pretty neat," he said.
Emens director Robert Myers said bringing a unique show like the Tweaksters to the auditorium is part of the staff's goal to attract all kinds of people from around Muncie, not just Ball State students.
"The management of Emens Auditorium works tirelessly to bring a wide variety of events," Myers said. "These skew to many segments of our local population."
The Tweaksters stand out from other American performing arts groups because of the intimacy of their show, Patno said. He said audiences do not normally see their level of presentation done by just two people.
"Some of the disciplines of our show, people only see it in a [circus] show with 60 performers," he said. "We've had people say, ‘Wow, we really got a chance to get to know you even though you weren't speaking.'"
Snyder said despite who is in their audience, the Tweaksters only want to have a positive effect. A former fitness model, Snyder said health and creativity go hand-in-hand in the Tweaksters show.
"Regardless of your age, we like to show people you should spend time every day having fun; especially having fun with your body," she said. "We want to show people that being in shape is a lot of fun. We also hope people will be more motivated to use their bodies artistically."
After a decade of developing a show based on an innocent curiosity about juggling, Patno said the best part of the Tweaksters is simply being able to entertain.
"I've learned how truly international the physical performing culture is; how universal things like music and mathematics are and how they bring out a response in people," he said.
The Tweaksters will perform at 1 p.m. on Saturday at Emens. Tickets are still available. They are $10 in advance and $13 at the door for adults and $5 for children and Ball State students.
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