Impalement
Artist Dick Haines;
The Dean of Knife Throwing
Impalement
Artist Harry Munroe;
Der Werfer
Maximum Risk performed
at The Red Room Theatre on 5/25/02.
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Impalement
Artist Dick Haines; |
Impalement
Artist Harry Munroe; |
5/24-6/29
in the play BIG TOP by Clay McLeod Chapman on stage at The Red Room Theatre,
85 E. 4th Street,
NYC, 5 weeks, Fri & Sat @ 10:30 PM. Niabi and The Great Throwdini will appear
in a monologue, "Pin-Cushion"
performed by Niabi.
Read
an on-line SHOW GUIDE REVIEW1
of BIG TOP (Excerpt: "The story that deserves an award
for being the most disturbing is the renowned act of "The Great Throwdini
& Niabi." When a truly
death-defying feat takes place, without any trademark-Blaine TV cameras, the
tension becomes
palpable. When this feat revolves around the tale of a knife-thrower's sexual
inadequacy and his
frustrated wife/target, it is mind-boggling."). Here is another
REVIEW2
by OffOffOff.com
(Excerpt: "The newest topping on the Pumpkin Pie is the Great Throwdini
and his wife Niabi. I
used to pride myself on being able to watch anything without flinching, but
the poor woman
who sat next to me has scratches on her leg made by my fingernails. What if
the knife slips?
What if he gets dizzy? What if she accidentally moves in the wrong direction?
As it was, one
of the evil-looking knives that was intended to lodge itself in the wood directly
behind Niabi
and directly above her, umm, female parts, didn't quite lodge, and as it bounced
out of the
backboard it also took a nick out of her thigh. The audience gasped, but Niabi
took it in stride.
As an actor, her skill doesn't come close to that of the other three monologists,
but nobody
can beat her for bravery.") REVIEW3
in TheatreReviews said the following, "Sharp knives
hurtle towards a woman pressed against a wooden target board, and the blades
sink into
the wood just inches away from her exposed flesh. The act is performed by The
Great Throwdini
and his assistant Niabi Caldwell. After a few standard knife throws performed
in silence, Caldwell
begins speaking; she directs her words to her husband Walt (Throwdini), who
remains silent
throughout. Caldwell's character verbally abuses her partner even as he throws
the deadly
weapons in her direction. Placing a balloon between her legs, she calmly comments
upon
Walt's impotence. Pop! Thunk! The knife embeds itself into the wood, bursting
the balloon.
Caldwell never breaks character and should definitely be commended for keeping
her cool
under pressure." REVIEW
4 Scary
New York theater, big and small . . ."Pumpkin Pie Big Top,
a late-night variety/literary show at the Red Room in the East Village, was
truly terrifying.
In by far the most entertaining and spine-chilling segment, a knife thrower
is taunted about
being impotent and boring by his girlfriend/assistant, who begs him to hit her.
The distance
is short, but the knives are real, and watching the sketch unfold was very nearly
horrific;
that The Great Throwdini seemed to flub a few of his tosses only made it more
scary. Niabi
Caldwell was terrific as the assistant who goads the knife hurler and brave
enough to put a
balloon-target between her legs." REVIEW
5 THE BIGGER THE TOP, THE HARDER YOU'LL FALL,
"The Great Throwdini elicits gasps and defensive winces from the audience
as he spikes sharp
blades within a hairs-breadth of Niabi Caldwell, his winsome assistant. Supremely
composed,
Caldwell delivers a scathing diatribe about Throwdini's sexual shortcomings
while he traces
her outline with his knives. The virtuoso duo captivate their spectators, yet
it is a credit to
all involved that this interlude, for all its stunning attributes, does not
overwhelm the
remainder of the show."