Showmanship?

Whenever I play yoyo, I made a serious face, which is really awkward. I recorded a video today and realized it is really noticeable… Does anyone has tips on how to be a better performer?

I actually sort of like it better when the player keeps relatively still and straightfaced. I mean, you don’t want to look like a zombie, but usually the contrast between the cool demeanor of the player and the crazy movement of the yoyo looks really neat.

what i like to do is that when im alone, i like to make my serious face when working on a trick…but when im in public like at a store or something, i always have fun with it, i smile and laugh everynow and then, i make it so that people know im having fun with what im doing which i am, but i dont over do it to make me look cocky and think" that was easy" when it really wasnt, your expression should match the pplay style your doing at the time, slow and flowy, relaxed., fast and aggresive, serioius, but its whatever your feeling

I have similar problem, and I think probably it just needs time …
Maybe practice in front of mirrors?

I think yoyoing around others help a lot, especially those that encourage your hobby.
It’s probably a feeling of comfort and settling in with an environment.

If you enjoy it, it will eventually show once you get comfortable enough.
It’s also best to not take it seriously; mistakes should be laughed off, ya know?

I personally make a serious face when yo-yoing. Even on stage my serious face comes up until I really get into it. Trust me, it’s a lot different when you’re freestyling for an audience. Maybe, act like you’re dancing with the yo-yo more often, or just relax and throw like you always do. Just smile!!!

I find myself more of having fun while throwing so I don’t have a serious face all the time xD
So I’m good, I guess :stuck_out_tongue:

Great discussion. I’m one of the old guys here and spent 35 years as a professional muscian. I was often coached to smile more on stage and I always ignored it. I was a serious muscian and didn’t care how the audience felt about me. Later in life I learned that both musicians and non-musicians alike enjoyed me and my music a lot more if I let me face know how much fun I was having inside. You don’t have to smile like a fool…just relax your face a bit and don’t look too stoic.

Let me say that is first thing I noticed when I saw Ann Connolly. She just always looks like she is having fun and that probably makes her performance come across better and I’m sure is appealing to sponsors. Not to mention John Higby…who takes it to another level.

I noticed that too. Ann is smiling when things are going good, but when she has to kind “pour it on” by upping the degree of difficulty, that smile goes away when she’s concentrating.

I don’t see anything wrong with showing emotion on stage. I think one of the best I’ve seen was actually Josh Yee at BAC for 3A 2012. His performance in his opinion was clean and he felt good about it. He took 3rd place, so clearly he did what he needed to do to ge the job done. He clearly had a good time doing the well practiced performance and he was so happy with what he’d done that he couldn’t contain it once he was done.