CAS senior David Sangillo wants people to know that juggling isn't just for clowns.
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Last month's winner of the Senior House Ultra Violet Live preliminaries, Sanglillo has juggled at events from birthday parties to retirement homes, impressing several audiences with his intricate tricks and choreography.
"I think that there's [a] misconception of juggling that comes with face makeup," he said. "I want to show that juggling is much more than that. It can be treated as a sport and art form."
Sangillo first fell in love with juggling at his seventh birthday party when he watched an entertainer at the event. What started out as a hobby turned into a profitable business and fodder for high school talent competitions — all thanks to friend Jake Stevens, who first taught him how to juggle.
"David was just around and he wanted to learn how to juggle, so I taught him a little, but really beyond some first tips it's mostly a self-taught sort of skill," Stevens said.
When his business first began, he said it struggled. But Sangillo used magazine advertisements and references from others to gain more recognition.
"My first 20 or so performances were duds," Sangillo said. "But I eventually learned to keep the audience entertained."
His efforts have awarded him with the Best of Entertainment by Washington Family magazine and a spot on the local evening news. He has since expanded his street performances to New York, and he now relies on his business to help pay for books and a part of his tuition.
This will be Sangillo's third and final attempt at winning the elusive first place prize at this year's UVL. Each time, he said, he has learned something new.
"One thing I need to do this time is [to be] more decisive," he said. "The last time I performed, I kept changing the music. I choose the music two days before I performed, so I ended up figuring out the routine then."
Armed with brand new equipment, Sangillo said the audience can expect to see fresh choreography and more glow-in-the-dark material for his performance in February.
Competing alongside more traditional acts like singing and dancing is a challenge, but it is one that Sangillo is willing to accept and use to his advantage.
"I feel like it makes my art more unique," he said. "People will see many different singers, but chances are they'll only see one juggler."
