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Cheeky Monkey Sideshow When the Cheeky Monkey Sideshow comes to Joe’s Movement Emporium, Steve Wannall will appear as the magician Mr. Eon.
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Cheeky Monkey Sideshow The Cheeky Monkey Sideshow will perform at Joe’s Movement Emporium on Friday night.
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Cheeky Monkey Sideshow Mab Just Mab is a performer with the Cheeky Monkey Sideshow. One of her talents is glass walking.

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Lisa Oberg knows sideshow acts can be hard to stomach. When she and her associates at Cheeky Monkey Sideshow perform at Joe’s Movement Emporium on Friday, Oberg will take the stage as the Amazing Trinket. Her specialty: drinking motor oil.

Since its start seven years ago, Cheeky Monkey takes classic sideshow acts and puts its own spin on them. In sideshow terms, Oberg’s act would make her a “glommer.”

“A glommer eats unusual things, and it’s different from, say, the geek, in that the geek was always somebody in sideshow history. That was kind of the lowest of the low,” Oberg says. “All geeks are glommers, but not all glommers are geeks.”

Oberg was once a fire-eater as well, but says she retired due to inherent risks like blood poisoning and liver failure. Drinking motor oil has its complications as well, which is why she does it so infrequently.

“This is rare because it’s dangerous,” Oberg says. “I have some stunts that I’ve done that are absolutely 100 percent illusion. However, if it goes wrong, you can still suffer very badly for it. We’re all taking risks.”

What compels Oberg to attempt such stunts is the audience’s reaction. In an age where people can safely watch the worst of the worst from the safety of their computer screens, she says the entire experience changes when people are up close and personal.

“It’s sort of like understanding that an elephant is big and then actually getting to touch one,” Oberg says.

Cheeky Monkey Sideshow began seven years ago under a different, much longer name. The group was founded by Stephon Walker, whom Oberg met while the two were working the Maryland Renaissance Festival.

“I was working for a booth and caught this show and ... started talking to him,” Oberg says.

Walker, who lives in Silver Spring, says the sideshow was created as a theatrical piece, but slowly evolved into a variety show with Walker playing host with his character Swami YoMahmi.

Friday’s performance differs for the Cheeky Monkey crew as it will return to a more theatrical bent. Walker says the show will contain more of a through-line and involve onstage interaction among the characters. The show will begin with Walker realizing it’s 24 hours later than he thought it was.

“We’re not prepared,” he says, “but have no choice but to do the show.”

Acts will include popular feats such as glass walking, a bed of nails and sword swallowing. Oberg also will perform a burlesque act.

Among the tricks Walker will perform is something he calls “mental flossing,” where he inserts a balloon into his nose and pulls it out of his mouth. He began learning the trick while entertaining onlookers for the archery trials in New York City prior to the 2000 Sydney Summer Olympics.

“I started trying it and it was very unpleasant,” he says. “All my friends up there have wonderful stories about me standing around gagging every few seconds.”

As with every good sideshow, there’s always some inside knowledge to ensure the show will go on. In Walker’s case, balloons traditionally used to make balloon animals work best.

“The length is good because it’s latex, it’s easy to lubricate it with saliva and when you put just a tiny bit of air in its flexible and solid,” Walker says.

tforhecz@gazette.net

Cheeky Monkey Sideshow

When: 8 p.m. Friday

Where: Joe’s Movement Emporium, 3309 Bunker Hill Road, Mount Rainier

Tickets: $15 for general admission, $12 for students and seniors, $10 for youth

For information: 301-699-1819 or www.joesmovement.org