The Mutaytor brings circus atmosphere to outdoor fest

When Matty Nash was a child, nothing could satisfy his racing attention span quite like the circus.

“They’re in the air … there’s clowns in this car here, there’s tigers over there,” Nash recalls.

“You’re trying to take it in all at once, and it’s designed so you can’t take it in all at once.”

Lately, Nash doesn’t have to go to circuses; he’s the ringleader of his own. With his arsenal of strangely talented performers – as in fire dancers, aerial performers and huge, costumed anime-style characters – Nash formed The Mutaytor. Part musical act, part performance art, The Mutaytor is a barrage of sights and sounds.

“It’s kind of like your birthday, Halloween, New Year’s and Mardis Gras all at the same time,” Nash explains.

On stage, The Mutaytor looks something like this: There are 60 drums pummeling the air, burlesque dancers in various stages of undress slinking across the stage, and acrobats flying through the air. Most of them are on fire.

The live performances are backed by a team of music and video that works together to form one strange experience. The Mutaytor, Nash admits, is “a taste that is not often found on a music festival palate.”

Its sound is as schizophrenic as its acts. The sonic attack of the drumline is laced with anything from techno to eerie orchestral sounds to live funk, rock and jazz. Each music segment is tailored to match the action on the stage.

More about The Mutaytor

Nash, who commands over 30 performers, says Mutaytor’s cast shrinks and grows to fit various stages and audiences. The group’s performance at Wakarusa, Nash promises, “is going to be big.” Just as big as, say, its performance at that “other” music festival, Coachella.

The 30-plus twisted acts will ensure that no one leaves bored.

“If you don’t like the music, how about the people flying through the air on fire? If you don’t like the people flying through the air on fire, how about the interactive experience when our dancers are bringing you onstage to do some silly participation?” Nash says.

Nash adds, “It’s short attention-span theater.”