FOR an ordinary couple, having kitchenware thrown around the house is usually grounds for divorce. But for professional entertainers Rachel and Charlie Atlas, the art of hurling knives is all part of the act – an act that has taken them from manning the door of nightclubs to the heights of an 18-date European tour.
The Glasgow-based duo's Death Do Us Part Danger Show takes in venues across the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands as they bring their rock-and-roll version of the traditional circus act to the public. In the four years since taking to the stage, they have been revitalising the venerable performance art form, adding a burlesque twist and developing a dedicated following on social media.
Their success has come despite Charlie, 47, who grew up on the sleepy island of Islay, being a relative novice to the showbusiness game having previously worked as a bouncer.
Rachel said: "I have always been involved with circus-style shows and we were looking to get Charlie involved because he's got such a strong stage presence. We decided to try knife-throwing because no-one else was doing that and he took to it immediately."
She added: "My husband has a martial arts background, and he's one of these people who has crazy ninja hand-eye co-ordination. I joke that when it comes to our marriage and other women, I can only trust him so far. But when it comes to weapons, I trust him completely. He took to knife-throwing like a natural and became an expert almost overnight."
So far the performers have proven a big hit on the festival circuit, as well as at club nights and tattoo conventions.
They have even been booked for private parties and have a toned-down vintage version of their show that's suitable for children.
Rachel said that she and her husband are proud to be the standard bearers of an old performing tradition which would have been familiar to audiences in Victorian music halls.
She said that the people who come to their shows or watch on the internet love the element of danger and appreciate that it can't be faked on the night. And while she is the one at the sharp end of the performance, the 36-year-old said that she's more worried about the show falling flat than a misfire.
Rachel said: "Knife-throwing is a dying art, and it comes out of the old vaudeville tradition of theatre. We started off with very basic stuff, but as we've got better we've tried to come up with things that no-one has seen before.
"With YouTube and computer-generated trickery around these days, it can be hard to impress people but audiences like that our act is real, and we do the best we can. And getting knives thrown at you becomes normal after a while. I'm a lot more concerned with the way the act is going that my own safety when we perform."
Knife-throwing takes a steady hand and a steely disposition, and while Charlie is the one pitching the weapons, Rachel has had to master the art of keeping still.
She said: "The most dangerous thing I can do is flinch or move when a knife is coming at me, so I put all my effort into that. It's a lot harder than it looks."
The tour takes in 18 different dates in the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands, with appearances in Glasgow and Aberdeen later this month the only Scottish shows. Rachel said that outside of the shows, some fans are just as interested in their day-to-day lives as they are in their death-defying stunts.
She said: "I am ridiculously proud of what we have done. Outside of a circus environment, there are very, very few people doing this in the world. I feel that we have rescued knife-throwing for the modern age, and for modern audiences. Social media has been a big part of that and people have got to know us through our Instagram, clips and videos.
"It's like we're this really exciting soap opera about a married couple – only with lots and lots of knives."
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