"If the Skinny German Juggle Boy could do a trick with two, he wouldn't be here. He would be in Las Vegas and his parents would love him... that is so not funny!" - Hilby

Hilby: The Skinny German Juggle Boy, is a hilarious and talented performer who draws in some of the biggest crowds we've ever seen at the faire. He juggles a variety of different objects over the course of his show including balls, shaker cups, bowling balls, plungers, knives, torches, and juggling pins. He also rides a unicycle with a child from the audience on his shoulders, and ends his show by juggling different objects on top of a tall unicycle. Hilby always gets a great reaction from the huge crowds that he gets, and the audience is always willing to participate (especially when he gets out his bullwhip and demands you get on stage). He even gets everyone to sing along to The Sound of Music while he attempts to set his hair on fire!

We first saw Hilby back in 1998 when he was performing on the old Jury Rig stage (now the Blackfrier's Theater). Up until that point, we were not into the whole show aspect of the faire and preferred to just walk around. When we saw his show, we realized how wrong we were and then became huge fans of his and so the festival became much more enjoyable to us. Over the many years that we have been seeing Hilby at the faire, the general framework of his show hasn't changed much, but he is always adding new jokes and warm up tricks to keep it fresh. He may always do the same old cheesy stuff (his words), but it is his delivery that is priceless. We always laugh at the same jokes because his facial expressions and delivery are just so funny.

We always enjoy seeing Hilby's show at the Maryland Renaissance Festival, and in the 15+ years that we've been seeing him, he has missed only one year. Even though we know all of his jokes and tricks, the faire really felt like it was missing something when he wasn't there. Hopefully Hilby will continue to come to the faire for many years to come; it just wouldn't be the same without him!

Photos

2000-2005

2006-2010

2011-2013

2014-2016