Fred Garver, better known as Fred Garbo, is an acrobat, juggler, actor and all-around entertainer who tours the country with the Fred Garbo Inflatable Theater Co. The show includes huge, inflatable props, dance, acrobatics and Garbo himself in an inflatable suit as the character “Fred Zeplin.” The Fred Garbo Inflatable Theater Co. is a collaboration between Garbo and ballerina Daielma Santos, with inflatable props built by George York. They’ve performed across the United States and in Morocco, Scotland, Japan, Chile and Canada.

Garbo, a Norway resident, has been in the entertainment industry for decades. In the ’80s, he was on “Sesame Street” inside Barkley The Dog. On Broadway, he was the chief juggler in the musical “Barnum.”

On Saturday, April 21, Garbo will perform a solo show at the Halldale High School Theater in Farmingdale.

Name: Fred “Garbo” Garver

Age: 57

Hometown: Born in Buffalo, N.Y., but been in Norway 35 years. Built my own house and studio on North Pond in Norway

Occupation: Entertainer

How’d you get to Maine? Moved to Maine to study and tour with master mime Tony Montanaro.

How did you get into entertainment? On your website, it says you started with card trick. I did gymnastics as one of my sports all through high school. My coach was also a magician and I studied with him. I attended and performed juggling, illusions and acrobatics at “magic conventions” and finally got a fee for working my routines there.

I grew up surrounded by family and friends who watched cartoons and Marx Brothers movies. I remember the action and slapstick humor making us laugh until we cried and fell on the floor rolling around. The gags, the animation, the surprises — I loved it all! And that’s what got me thinking about performing surprising illusions on stage. As I got older, I started to develop I guess what you would call a wide repertoire of skills useful to new vaudevillians or “popular entertainers.” Mostly, I learned by watching and, ultimately, studying with performers who had developed their sense of physical action and comic timing.

How did the inflatable theater come about? One fateful day in 1988, I took a breather from show biz with a bit of skydiving. While packing my parachute, I was struck by its qualities: bright colors, strong material and, most important to a traveling performer (who spends a ton of time flying in airplanes to theaters), so much of it could pack into a really small space! Bingo! The parachute material inflates into a huge, big prop and then deflates down to nearly nothing. No excess luggage charges! I took this idea to my friend and hot air balloon artist, George York. Between us, we devised what would be the first in a long line of strange new props: a stage set that turns into a couch and a self-inflating body suit, sealed at the neck, wrists and ankles. Fred Zeplin, the inflatable man, was born!

I met ballerina Daielma Santos on a flight to Brazil. Daielma is originally from Brazil and I was flying there to appear with the dance company MOMIX. When she saw the show, she wanted to try on the inflatable suit and, since then, her athletic grace and radiant charm have been an integral part of the company’s success. Actually, the “Co.” in Fred Garbo Inflatable Theater Co. refers to Daielma — she’s the “company.”

Has the process of adding new inflatables changed the show over time? Yes of course, we are our own boss! Always tinkering with new props.

You’ve lived in Norway even when you were working in New York on “Sesame Street”. Why was it important to keep living here? Quality of life for sure. I work in cities, but live and play in Maine. When I was the muppet Barkley The Dog on “Sesame Street” for eight seasons I would just commute to NYC for the 25-30 shows I was in.

What was it like working for Jim Henson? The cast and crew of “Sesame Street” were great. For me it was really just “part time dog work.” I was still working out of the Celebration Barn for the rest of the year. “Sesame Street” only filmed for four months in NYC and often Jim Henson would only come in for “Muppet Inserts”. . . so I did not have much contact with him because I was just a big shaggy dog on the street that interacted with the actors there. We did some very meaningful stories where Barkley was a good friend to Linda Bove, the deaf lady on Sesame Street. I was her ears in many pieces that showed how animals can help us have a full and wonderful life.

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