Many cities, particularly those that rely on tourism, have some form of street theatre. Busking - playing musical instruments in the hope that the public will show their appreciation - is perhaps the best-known and most international, but there are many other forms of street theatre.

Living statues are people who strike a pose and stay very, very still. Usually they are dressed up to some degree - traditionally in a statuesque manner, and often well enough to fool people who aren't paying close attention. Most of them move when money is placed into a hat¹, then either return to the same pose or strike a different one.

Living statues are cousins of the better-known mime artists, but are not usually treated with the same suspicion. In fact, they are generally popular, as they are impressive to look at, do very little harm and entertain a lot of people.

History and Geography

Living statues aren't well-documented historically, but it is thought that they first appeared in circuses in the nineteenth century, and in the music halls shortly afterwards. As a form of street entertainment, they first seemed to take off in Europe, and still have a major presence in many European cities - Paris, Barcelona, Venice and many more. In the UK you'd be most likely to find them in the more artistic or studenty cities - Bath in particular is famous for its living statues. You can also find them in London, and although you're certain to see them in at Covent Garden, it's worth keeping an eye out at the other tourist attractions, such as Leicester Square. They can now be found in many other parts of the world, although depending on local busking and begging laws, they are not always found in public. Some countries favour using them at private parties or on the stage.

Tips and Hints for Would-Be Statues

First and foremost, be warned. Being a living statue isn't always going to make you much money. It can also be rather painful to hold a pose for hours, so don't assume it's easy just because you don't have to do anything - it's the not doing anything that's the difficult part. Still, if you're thinking of doing it, the following advice might be helpful.

Dressing Up

If you're going for the true statue look you'll want to be all one colour. This can be a fairly realistic stone or gold, or a nice bright blue or red. It's just important to match your hair, skin, clothes and, if applicable, props as well as you can.

If you're posing in public you'll need to be wearing clothes - there will be children² present after all. A length of fabric of the appropriate colour would do nicely, but if that isn't available then attacking old clothes or a bed-sheet with spray paint works just as well.

Hair can be decorated with coloured hair spray or hidden under a hat, whereas skin can be covered in face paint or sprayed with the same coloured hair spray. Just don't spray your face with the stuff - you'll need face paint for that part. Not only is it much safer, it looks better. After all, if people look closely at you it'll probably be at your face.

Now you're all set.

Posing

Firstly, be careful when choosing your spot. Obviously you want a spot where lots of people will see you, but you don't want to be a nuisance. At good times people will crowd round you, so make sure there's room for them to do so without blocking any rights of way or businesses. A large pedestrian area is the best place for this, or a park. Also make sure there aren't any obstacles too near - if people see, you lots of them will turn and look. You can't stop them walking into each other, but you can at least make sure there aren't any lamp-posts about.

Now you need to stand³ on something if possible. If you have a box, that would be ideal. If not, now's the time to start looking for low walls. Don't use benches - people might want to sit on them. If you can't find anything then just stand at ground level.

This guide isn't going to give you standing-still lessons. Just practice until you've got it right. However, here are a few tips for not falling over:

• Don't close your eyes - at least, not completely. It's much easier to balance if you can focus on something stationary.

• Don't tense your leg muscles - our bodies, but especially our lower legs, are making tiny corrections to our posture all the time to help us balance. These aren't noticeable, but if you tense your legs it'll stop them, and if you lose your balance you'll have to move far more.

• Put your weight on both feet - you can slowly shift it around a little without people noticing. If only one foot is in a position to take any weight it will hurt much more.

The final tip is nothing to do with balance and everything to do with common sense:

Keep your earnings in sight⁴

You'll probably need to be a statue for a few hours to make it worthwhile financially. Living statues often make more than musicians because they usually only move when people give them money, whereas musicians play on regardless. In addition to this, many children are puzzled by living statues and are generally encouraged by their parents to put money in to demonstrate that yes, they're real people. A brief note - it's not nice to jump out at them. Some children will be scared by you anyway, but there's no need to add to the number.

The Legal Bits

As has already been mentioned, different places have different laws. In some places, street entertaining is seen as begging, and falls under the same laws. In other places you'll need a busking licence. In reality, you're unlikely to have any problems unless you're being a nuisance or are in places where street entertainment is well-known to be banned.

And don't forget to declare your earnings to the Inland Revenue.