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2021 Presenters
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About our Presenters
Our Vision for professional education for 2021 is to have interactive workshops and hands on experience. Each workshop and instructor has been handpicked to give performance and subject variety and introduce new ideas to stimulate creativity.
This year we have a unique opportunity to have awesome presenters join us through a Virtual experience. Don’t miss these three all convention events featuring “Mario the Maker”, Steve Axtell from “Axtell Expressions” and “Pricilla Mooseburger”.
Kathy Keaton volunteered as a medical clown for 25 years as she traveled around the world as a military wife. Along with her birthday parties, singing telegrams and school programs her desire to share humor and laughter with those experiencing fear, pain, anxiety and stress was a priority. For the past 16 years she has worked as a paid medical clown at San Angelo Community Medical Center. In her book “Prescription Humor” she shares what healthcare professionals in nearly every department of the hospital think about the hospital clown and how clowns help, not only patients, but staff. Her book is full of true heart-warming as well as heart tugging stories she has collected over her four decades as “Piccolo.” “Prescription Humor” is a resource for fellow clowns as well as anyone looking for proof that humor and laughter truly are good medicine for our health and well-being. Kathy is one of only 75 “Certified Humor Professionals” in the nation.
Teri Stokes is a certified balloon artist from Kingwood, Texas with over twenty years of experience. She is an international award-winning balloon artist, a face painter, a professional balloon instructor for Qualatex Balloons and a professional clown. Teri won “All around clown” at TCA and she loves traveling, friends, competing, and transforming a room with her art.
Dal Sanders has been studying and performing the art of magic for family audiences for over 40 years. He is an award-winning performer traveling the world as a featured entertainer in theaters, resorts, schools, corporate and private events and television. He has written and performed school shows on many educational and inspirational topics including the Pillars of Character that have been performed by entertainers all over the world. Dal’s passion is to lecture and mentor other variety entertainers to carry on his Legacy. Dal Sanders has spearheaded declaring Magic as an Art and has carried a resolution through Congress as the first step to achieve this goal. Dal and his wife Cinde are co-hosts of an internationally syndicated children’s educational show called, Kartoon Circus. They also teach the Discover Magic Program to hundreds of children every year. Dal is a past president of the Society of American Magicians, has been awarded the title of MIMC with the Magic Circle in London, is a member of the Academy of Magical Arts (The Magic Castle), is the Dean of the Dallas Magic Clubs and has achieved Order of the Willard with the Texas Association of Magicians. He goal is to “make people laugh and say WOW!.”
David Pitts is a full time, professional, family and children’s entertainer, cartoonist, magician, ventriloquist and puppeteer located in San Antonio, Texas. David has been an artist and performer since childhood. At age 16, to encourage his interest in professional clowning, his father took him several hours drive from his home, twice, to audition for Circus Vargas and Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Clown College. David finally settled on a career in commercial art and design, obtaining a degree from Amarillo College. David worked professionally in art and education as a staff member of the Don Harrington Discovery Center and a long-time employee of AT&T in the art department. With over 20 years’ experience, David has continued to pursue his interest in performance. As a parent of three grown children and an educator, David believes in providing educational, motivational and entertainment content in his presentations
Brittany “Zoē” Allen began her journey in clowning in 2007 as a camper at Mooseburger Clown Arts Camp, as part of her goal to become a clown working with sick children and children in need. She returned to Camp year after year, adding skills like magic, balloons, puppets and caring clowning. Zoe has been on several mission trips to India and has been working as a hospital clown at Medical City Children’s Hospital, in Texas, using the healing power of laughter since 2009. Brittany is on staff at Mooseburger Clown Arts Camp in Minnesota, where her infectious energy and positive attitude help inspire and motivate clowns. In addition to her adventures in clowning, Brittany has a graphic design company where she works with clients to create marketing pieces that help them stand out in a crowded marketplace.
Suzy Wall started face painting to entertain children, but she really improved her skills when she was asked to help with the long lines caused by security at the Salt Lake City Olympics. Suzy found that, with the improvement of the paints themselves, it was a wonderful medium to make people happy. She has painted at the Olympics in Salt Lake City, Athens, Beijing, Vancouver, London, and Sochi, communicating fun even if she couldn’t speak the languages. Suzy teaches face painting at the Texas Clown Association convention, Joey to the World, and anywhere that she can encourage people to decorate faces! She paints at the Clovis New Mexico Fair, the Roosevelt County Fair, and many girls’ camps. Suzy loves to paint at parties; adding color to smiling faces improves any event! She is also sometimes known as Twinkles and more often photographed as Twinkles.
Margaret Clauder has been performing full time since 1991. She is the president and owner of DFW Funny Business, an event and family entertainment company in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. Margaret specializes in performing at schools, libraries, and preschools as over 15 different characters which she personally created, most notably Mother Goose and The Bookworm. She has enjoyed writing articles for The Calliope and The Funny Paper magazine and lecturing at conventions for both entertainers and education professionals. Margaret is also the author of a published joke book entitled “Animal Jokes and More”. Margaret’s abilities range from balloon art and face painting to juggling, plate spinning, magic, storytelling, puppetry, ventriloquism and incredibly bad singing. Her favorite thing is performing with her puppets using ventriloquism to bring her friends to life in front of her audiences.
Virtual Performances
Mario “the maker magician” Marchese is based in New York and is a touring performer with an all-ages theater show full of homespun magic, DIY robotics, and punk rock slapstick. It’s magic through the lens of the maker movement! For the virtual stage, Mario has developed an innovative virtual experience, available as a public ticketed show or a private Zoom event.
Mario has appeared on Sesame Street, NBC’s Universal Kids, HGTV, and live on tour with David Blaine, who calls him “the best kids magician in the world!!” He is the author of The Maker Magician’s Handbook: a beginner’s guide to magic & making. And his lecture for magicians won him the 2020 lecture of the year award from penguin magic!
Steve Axtell – Axtell Expressions
Heres’ a little bit about us…We are a creative design studio specializing in characters, animatronics & puppets, AI, and interactive displays. We are committed to making the world a happier place, which is possible through our partnership with entertainers and educators like YOU! Originally founded by Steve Axtell in his garage in 1982, Axtell Expressions now serves entertainers all across the globe and ships to over 80 countries. We so appreciate your business and loyalty as our new technology and innovations lead entertainment into the future!
Pricilla Mooseburger
Tricia Manuel – Pricilla Moosburger Originals
We’re your one stop clown shop for attire & educational resources! From makeup to custom clown costumes, we’ve got you covered from head to toe. We carry everything you need to be the very best clown you can be by offering time tested products we feel great about carrying. Hi, I’m Tricia Manuel, also known as Pricilla Mooseburger. I started my clowning career with Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus and parlayed it into my dream business of designing clown costumes. In addition to honing my clowning skills, I learned from the masters on what it takes to create a fantastic looking, yet durable, clown costume. I took those skills and started Pricilla Mooseburger Originals (PMO). Our doors opened in 1989 and we’ve been serving clowns around the world ever since! Step by step our business has expanded beyond costumes and now includes the wonderful world of teaching others to learn to be clowns or grow as existing clowns.
Check out this video: https://fb.watch/5grtLtjPeA/