Life as a yo-yo expert has its ups and downs.
But on the afternoon of March 18, a crowd of more than 50 gathered in the Goodrich/Atlas Lyceum to witness the ingenious Zeemo with his arsenal of yo-yo trickery.
Zeemo, also known as Whitmore Lake resident Paul Kyprie, estimates he was 9 years old when he first started playing with yo-yos, now more than two decades later his clever routine including loop-de-loop, walk the dog and sleep are wowing crowds of all ages.
?(Twenty years) is a pretty good run in show business,? says Kyprie, who did not wish to revel his age.
‘Everything has gone wrong at one time or another? that’s how you become a seasoned professional,? says Kyprie. ‘There’s things that you have no control over. You have to learn to cope.?
Mishaps are made manageable by Kyprie’s love of entertaining.
‘I really, really enjoy what I do,? Kyrprie says.
But life as performer was not originally what Kyprie had in mind for himself.
After graduting from the University of Michigan with aspirations of being a physical education teacher, Kyprie worked for a year at a school in Byron, Mich.
However, he found his new teaching position unfulfilling.
‘I liked teaching and I liked kids.? says Kyprie. But ‘It wasn’t what I wanted to do.?
Kyprie decided to take an opportunity to go to graduate school at U-M. It was during his time there he had an epiphany of sorts.
‘I said, ‘I know what I want to do? why don’t I just become kind of a teacher at large?? says Kyprie.
So Kyprie did just that.
Now, in acts that incorporate puppetry, juggling, yo-yo’s and magnets, Kyprie uses humor and props to teach children.
‘I get to teach the stuff I really like to teach,? says Kyprie. ‘I believe that if kids have fun, they’re going to get interested in (the subject). The concept of teaching kids with toys, I think, is a great approach.?
Performing everywhere from schools and libraries to museums and festivals, Kyprie uses yo-yos to explain concepts such as gravity, friction and centripetal forces.
?(The science involved is) something that allows you to do a yo-yo trick, but it’s also why the moon is spinning around the earth,? says Kyprie.
In his long career, Kyprie has made an effort to stay current.
‘Kids have changed a lot. I think it’s because of the differences in technology. This is not the same kind of world that I grew up in or a generation ago grew up in. These kids’you’ve got to have some really good stuff for them.?
With such a passion for his career, Kyprie does not consider his career to be a typical job.
‘I’m retired, it’s not like work to me,? Kyprie says.
Kyprie estimates he knows more than 225 yo-yo tricks including: sleep (the yo-yo pauses at the end of its desent before returning); eifle tower (the string forms the shape of the eifle tower and then returning) and walk the dog (the yo-yo follows along the ground as would a dog on a leash prior to returning).
To become a master of the orb on-a-string, Kyprie says there is only one thing you really need.
‘You don’t need to spend a lot of money, you need to spend a lot of time practicing,? says Kyprie.
The yo-yo master also has some practical advice for any entertainers in- the-making.
‘You have to know an awful lot about an awful lot to be a performer,? says Kyprie adding, ‘there’s a difference between a ‘wanna be? and a ‘gotta be.??
‘You need to find your own calling,? says Kyprie.
‘Do what ever you find you like to do…you’ll have a satisfying sort of life.?
To watch Zeemo in action, visit www.ZeemoShows.com
Details:(800) 205-3275