Back to the High Seas!
Now, I’m pretty much a ‘land’ guy… Bringing my touring show to a variety of theatres, performing arts centers, and casino showrooms. And that’s only if I’m not booked with corporate and special events across the U.S. Whew! (yes, I DO take some time off here and there. Don’t worry! LOL!).
But I also like to change things up, and for the past 4+ years I’ve been jumping onto Disney cruise ships to headline their main venue, The Walt Disney Theatre, and honestly, it’s been such a blast. Also what a lot of people don’t know is that our family has an unusual history with Disney, especially Disneyland, their first arena touring show – Disney On Parade, and even with Walt Disney himself! Yep, you read that right! After performing for many years with Ringling Bros., my ‘showbiz’ parents decided to be even more adventurous and moved to Hollywood, California. After appearing on a few different television series, Dad happened to find a small ad in the trade papers for “Improvisation Actors” and after auditioning, quickly realized it was for new “skippers” needed for Disneyland’s Jungle Cruise attraction. (More about that later, I promise!). Needless to say, he got the job, helping to create funny one-liners for the ride and bringing laughter to something that at the beginning was rather dry and somewhat boring. Walt had quickly realized that without humor and a bit of story-telling within each scene the boats discover, people lost interest and often didn’t bother riding it again after the first time. (smart man!)
Long story, short. Dad started working at Disneyland and he loved everything about it. And within a year, due to his years of experience in show business, he quickly moved straight over to the Entertainment Dept. as well as Administration. He also asked to work the New York World’s Fair in ’64 and ’65, and in the early ’70s he consulted on the company’s new touring stage production, Disney On Parade. This was also the chance to get back to perfoming, and our family traveled with the show for over three years all around the world, including the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. When I popped onto the scene as a happy, bouncing baby boy, it was reported that Walt Disney actually held me in his arms a few times when Dad was working at the park. (Of course, I don’t remember a thing.) 🙂
These days, during my shows on Disney Cruise Lines, I present a quick 4-minute multi-media display up on the screens, showing a wide variety of personal family photos of my parents’ careers and us as a family touring with Disney, etc. It’s such a cool connection to Walt’s legacy, and after the shows so many people meet me just to say how much they enjoyed the surprise history to all things Disney. It’s pretty emotional for me as well, and a bit of a love letter to my folks and the world I grew up in. The uniqueness isn’t lost on me and I’m forever thankful. <3
The other cruise line that I also headline on is sort of the opposite of Disney. And that’s Virgin Cruise Lines which caters only to adults. So on Disney, I present ‘clean’ shows, much like performing for corporate events, and on Virgin I can be a bit more ‘mature’ with my comedy material, which is a lot of fun. Different routines for different venues and different audiences. It certainly never gets boring! And I’ve never accidentally mixed one for the other. LOL! 🙂
This blog post is a bit of playing ‘catch-up’, as I’m usually only throwing things up on instagram and facebook. So apologies for taking so long.
I sincerely we get the opportunity to meet and/or work with each other should your company need fun and memorable entertainment for your upcoming events! All the best!!
CHIPPER LOWELL
Corporate Comedy Magic
www.CorporateComedyMagic.com
chipper@chipper.tv
