The Art of Adaptability: What Makes a Great Live Entertainer?

Lauren Beth Stein brings energy, creativity, and audience connection to her performances, adapting each experience to the people in front of her.

What happens when a performer shows up for a carefully planned routine and the music doesn't work? Or when a character entertainer arrives expecting to sing Christmas songs, only to find themselves performing Fleetwood Mac and Whitney Houston instead?

For some entertainers, those changes could throw off the entire performance. For others, they're simply part of the job.

That's one of the most interesting things about live entertainment. You can rehearse, prepare your equipment and have every detail planned out, but once you're in front of an audience, you have to respond to what's actually happening.

It's a subject we explored on Magical Memories Unlocked with Lauren Beth Stein, better known as LB or Lady Blaze.

LB has spent more than 20 years performing and developing skills across circus arts, fire entertainment, bubble shows, stilt walking, character acting, hula hooping and interactive games like Super Simon Says.

Having worked with her through Magical Memories Entertainment in several different capacities, I knew she had an unusually wide range of abilities. What made our conversation especially interesting was discovering how much those different skills have in common.

Being a versatile entertainer isn't just about knowing how to do more things. It's about knowing how to use those skills to connect with the audience in front of you.

The Difference Between Knowing a Routine and Knowing How to Perform

One of the stories LB shared involved an event where she had prepared a routine to a specific song.

The organizers wanted the performance to be exactly the same every time. They expected the music and movements to follow a predetermined sequence.

That worked until she returned for another event and the planned music wouldn't play.

With the performance still scheduled to happen, the organizers wondered what she was going to do.

LB asked what other music they had available, listened briefly to another song and went out to perform.

She was able to use the routine she'd prepared while adjusting the timing of certain movements to follow the new music.

The organizers were surprised that changing the song hadn't completely disrupted her performance.

But to LB, that flexibility was part of knowing her craft.

There's a difference between memorizing a routine and understanding it well enough to perform under changing circumstances.

When a performer truly knows their material, they can make adjustments without losing the overall experience.

That doesn't mean preparation isn't important. In fact, it highlights why preparation and experience matter so much.

The more comfortable a performer becomes with their equipment, movements and audience interactions, the more freedom they have to respond to what's happening around them.

Circus Arts vs. Flow Arts: A Different Approach to Performance

An especially interesting part of our conversation was LB's explanation of the difference between traditional circus entertainment and flow arts.

Both can involve many of the same skills and props, including hula hoops, poi and other objects that performers manipulate through movement.

But LB described an important distinction in how those skills are presented to an audience.

As she explained it, traditional circus routines often emphasize individual tricks followed by a pause for applause.

A juggler might perform an impressive sequence, stop, acknowledge the audience and then move into the next routine.

Flow arts, on the other hand, often emphasize continuous movement.

Rather than stopping after each trick, the performer transitions from one movement into another, frequently following the rhythm and energy of the music.

LB described the difference simply:

"Flow keeps going and circus does a trick and then stops for applause."

She was careful to acknowledge that this isn't an absolute rule. There is considerable overlap between the two approaches and performers use elements of both.

Still, it's a useful way to understand why two entertainers using similar props can create very different experiences.

In a traditional circus presentation, the audience may be focused on individual feats and the anticipation of the next trick.

In a flow arts performance, the appeal may come from the continuous movement and the way the performer connects their skills to the music.

Neither approach is inherently better. They're different performance styles with different ways of engaging an audience.

And understanding those differences helps explain why adaptability matters.

Sometimes the Audience Changes the Entire Show

Adaptability isn't limited to equipment or music.

Sometimes the biggest adjustments come from the audience itself.

LB shared a story about being hired to appear as a singing elf for a Christmas in July birthday celebration.

She arrived prepared to perform Christmas music.

Instead, the guest of honor wanted karaoke featuring artists like Fleetwood Mac and Whitney Houston.

So she sang those songs.

Later, a keyboardist arrived and the entertainment shifted again. Now she was dancing, interacting with the group and responding to live music rather than following the original Christmas themed plan.

What had started as a fairly straightforward character appearance became an interactive musical experience.

LB didn't abandon the character. She adapted what the character was doing.

That distinction matters.

A good character entertainer isn't necessarily someone who performs the same scripted material at every event. It's someone who can maintain the character while responding to the people they're entertaining.

haracter entertainment brings imagination into live events, but it's the performer's flexibility and connection with guests that make each interaction memorable.

The costume establishes the initial experience, but the interaction is what makes it work.

LB's background as an educator also plays an important role in how she approaches different audiences.

Rather than assuming everyone should participate in the same way, she pays attention to what people are interested in, what they're comfortable doing and how they respond.

Sometimes that means encouraging more participation.

Other times, it means recognizing that the audience wants something completely different from what was originally planned.

Knowing When Not to Push an Audience

One of the most revealing stories from our conversation involved a stilt walking appearance at a corporate gathering.

LB had been hired to surprise a gentleman for his birthday.

She arrived wearing a colorful costume with large decorative elements and was expected to sing to him while walking on stilts.

There was just one problem.

He was terrified of people on stilts.

Nobody had mentioned this beforehand and the organizers apparently didn't realize it would be an issue.

At first, everyone encouraged LB to approach him so she could perform the birthday surprise.

But every time she got closer, he moved away.

Eventually, LB recognized that continuing to approach him wasn't helping.

Instead, she gave him space.

Once he was able to interact with her from a comfortable distance, the situation changed.

He started asking questions about what it was like being on stilts and how tall she was.

By the end of the appearance, he had become comfortable enough to take a photo with her.

That story connects to something LB learned through her background in education and experiential learning: the concept of challenge by choice.

The idea is that people can benefit from trying something unfamiliar, but they need to feel supported and have some control over how far they participate.

LB described three general comfort levels.

At one end is the familiar comfort zone, where someone isn't being challenged.

Beyond that is a zone where the experience feels new or slightly uncomfortable, but the individual is still willing to participate.

Push too far and the person may become genuinely frightened or overwhelmed.

At that point, encouraging participation can become counterproductive.

For entertainers, recognizing those differences is an important skill.

An audience member who doesn't want to volunteer isn't necessarily being difficult.

A child who hangs back during an activity might simply need more time.

And someone who isn't enjoying a surprise interaction may respond much better when they're given space.

Successful audience engagement isn't about getting everyone to participate at all costs.

It's about creating opportunities for people to participate in ways that work for them.

Turning Spectators Into Participants

LB applies that same understanding of audience behavior to one of her other specialties: Super Simon Says.

Most people know Simon Says as a simple children's game.

A leader gives instructions and participants are supposed to follow only the commands that begin with "Simon says."

But turning that familiar game into a full entertainment experience for a large audience requires more than calling out instructions.

LB learned about large scale Simon Says through performer Steve Max, who visited a camp where she worked.

After repeatedly winning his competitions, she eventually began developing her own approach, which she calls Super Simon Says.

One of the most interesting parts of her version is what happens when someone gets eliminated.

In a traditional game, being eliminated often means the participant sits down and waits for everyone else to finish.

LB takes a different approach.

She turns eliminated participants into judges.

Now, instead of sitting on the sidelines with nothing to do, they're helping watch the remaining players and identify mistakes.

This keeps them involved in the activity even after they're no longer competing.

She also pays attention to participants who seem reluctant or uninterested.

Sometimes, rather than asking them to compete, she'll give them a special responsibility as a helper or judge.

That change in role can make a significant difference.

Someone who doesn't want to be the center of attention might enjoy having an important job behind the scenes.

It's a small adjustment, but it reveals something important about interactive entertainment.

Participation doesn't have to look the same for everyone.

A performer who understands that can keep more people engaged without expecting every audience member to respond identically.

The Skills Behind the Spectacle

When someone watches one of our fire performers, their attention naturally goes to the flames.

When they see a stilt walker, they notice the height and costume.

When they watch a bubble entertainer create an enormous bubble, they're focused on the effect.

What they don't always see is the amount of experience and judgment involved in delivering those performances.

LB discussed how she structures her fire shows around a progression of different props and effects.

Rather than simply repeating one movement throughout the performance, she selects different equipment and builds toward larger visual moments.

But her choices depend on the location and conditions.

A large performance area might allow her to use a rope dart or other equipment requiring considerable space.

A smaller area calls for a different selection of props.

Weather conditions, the audience, event theme and available performance space also influence what she can present.

She explained that her fire performances include a safety technician and that she handles applicable permitting as part of her own process. Those are specific elements of LB's approach rather than universal procedures for every fire entertainer.

The important point is that knowing when and where to use a skill is just as important as being able to perform it.

The same concept applies to bubble entertainment.

LB described three different approaches: ambient bubbles, interactive bubbles and structured bubble shows.

With ambient bubbles, she's creating effects for people to enjoy as they move through an event.

With interactive bubbles, guests get to use equipment and create bubbles themselves.

Interactive bubble entertainment gives guests a chance to become part of the experience, transforming a visual demonstration into a shared moment of wonder.

With a bubble show, she's presenting a sequence of different effects and audience interactions.

The core skill may involve working with bubbles, but the experience changes considerably depending on the setting and audience.

An experienced entertainer needs to understand those differences and select an approach that fits the event.

Why Experience Creates More Freedom

Something that became increasingly clear throughout our conversation was how LB's different skills reinforce one another.

Her experience with hula hoops led into fire performance.

Her circus and flow arts background influences how she uses LED equipment.

Her work in education influences how she handles audience participation.

Her experience with mime and character acting helps her communicate without relying entirely on words.

And her background in costume creation allows her to develop characters and visual presentations suited to different themes.

These aren't necessarily separate talents that exist independently of one another.

They provide a collection of skills she can draw from when circumstances change.

But LB also emphasized that learning new skills takes time and practice.

She described how she spent years developing her hula hoop abilities before incorporating fire and why she believes learning from experienced performers is especially important when working with potentially dangerous equipment.

Having more props or more costumes doesn't automatically make someone a better entertainer.

The value comes from knowing how to use them.

During our discussion about LED entertainment, we talked about the considerable investment some performers make in sophisticated illuminated props.

But expensive equipment alone doesn't create a strong performance.

An entertainer still needs the technical ability to use the equipment and the performance skills to present it effectively.

That's a distinction worth remembering across the entertainment industry.

A performance isn't simply the collection of tricks, props or activities a person can offer.

It's how those elements come together in front of an audience.

The Best Performers Know How to Read the Room

After nearly two hours of talking with LB, we had covered an enormous range of entertainment.

Fire performing, hula hooping, circus arts, bubbles, stilt walking, mime, character acting, LED performances, Simon Says and more.

But the idea that connected so much of the conversation wasn't any individual entertainment specialty.

It was the importance of paying attention.

Paying attention to the music.

Paying attention to the environment.

Paying attention to how people are responding.

And recognizing when the best thing to do isn't necessarily what you originally planned.

That's one of the reasons I enjoy having these conversations through Magical Memories Unlocked.

At Magical Memories Entertainment, we work with entertainers across a wide range of specialties. Understanding how they approach their craft gives us a better appreciation for everything that goes into a successful performance.

LB's perspective is a particularly good reminder that technical skill and audience connection need to work together.

You can have an impressive routine, beautiful equipment and years of practice.

But once the performance begins, the audience becomes part of the experience.

And knowing how to respond to them can make all the difference.

Watch Our Conversation With Lauren Beth Stein

There's much more to LB's story, including how she got started with giant puppets, developed her fire performance skills and built such a varied career in entertainment.

We also explore the differences between performance styles, the realities of working with specialized equipment and the importance of continuing to learn throughout an entertainment career.

Magical Memories Unlocked is our ongoing series exploring the people, skills and experiences behind live entertainment. Join us live every Monday for another conversation with the entertainers who make these experiences possible.