Adventures of Captain Frodo: Tales of a Modern Day Showman
Captain Frodo blends his particular style of sideshow entertainment with the story of his life in his one-man show, The Adventures of Captain Frodo. Born the son of a Norwegian magician, Captain Frodo expounds upon tales of his childhood, the things that fascinated him and that led him to become The Incredible Rubber Man. He entertains with a mix of sideshow, musical saw-playing and magic, but what really makes him special is his expertise in double-jointed dislocation. You’ll wince and applaud as he twists and contorts, and thanks to his comic timing and showmanship, you’ll be unable to tear your eyes away.
Captain Frodo’s story offers a look not only into the early life of this wonderful entertainer but also into the art of the travelling sideshow itself, which is rapidly becoming smaller in today’s world. Frodo may appear to occasionally fumble, but his stage presence is captivating. The slapstick comedy pervades and everything is done with a flourish. There is a point when Frodo tells a story from his youth that inspired him and, as he tells of the characters ascending into the air to safety, the feeling of this performer’s delight in what he does is palpable and touches everyone in the audience. This is as much a reflection on his life as a complete one-man show. As he says, though, ‘It may be sideshow, but I like it.’
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The Adventures of Captain Frodo – Tales of a Modern day showman – Trades Hall, Melbourne 02/05/06 – by epod
Captain Frodo is the double-jointed son of a magician, who captivated me with his stories, as well as amazed and disgusted me with the variety of ways that he could contort his body. His show is part story-telling, where he shares some rather interesting and sometimes rather sweet stories from his childhood and time on the road, and part physical freak show.
He began and ended his show by playing songs on his saw. Yes, you heard right – a saw. The music it produced sounded rather meloldic, so don’t knock it till you try it! It was particularly special to hear, “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” produced by said saw.
Frodo demonstrated his ability of sword swallowing, then of balance. He showed balance by starting with one large bucket, which he placed on the floor. In that bucket, there was another smaller bucket. He then took an even smaller bucket out of that, and proceeded to stack each bucket – whilst he was on top of it – until he was about a metre off the ground, on top of a tin which was about the size of a can of baked beans.
As if this was not enough of a feat in itself, he then contorted himself with his legs around his shoulders…and did not fall off! Whilst on the top of the stack of cans, he told the audience, with all the passion of a motivational speaker, that they could do anything they wanted to do with their lives, pointing out that this is what he chose to do with his life.
He told many stories of travelling with his father, including that his father would tie him in ropes and chains – onstage that is. He used to help his father onstage, and said that it had raised quite a few eyebrows when his father had once called to get a child-size strait jacket made up. Frodo told us of his greatest escape ever – his escape from illness. He had Leukemia when he was a child, and said that all the medicine which they gave him would make him so sick. His father, however, had helped him find a way to overcome it.
His father had told him about scuba diving, and Frodo was so excited. His father even got a set of tanks made up for him, so he could be just like a real diver. He did not give him a mask though, so the next time he went to hospital and they put the mask on him, which he usually could not stand, he got so excited. As he shut his eyes, his father told him that he going diving. Recieving the treatment from that time onwards did not bother Frodo.
Frodo’s father even helped out with some of the magic tricks he did during the show, via pre-taped video segments. It was a sweet touch to add to the show. The show ended in a marathon act of contortion, where Frodo squeezed his entire body through two tennis racquets, dislocating a shoulder or two in the process.
This was an interesting show, performed with a lot of humour, heart and compassion, and I recommend it to anybody who does not have a weak stomach!
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