I'm one of the captains of a karate demo team. We need to change our rutine. Can you guys give me some ideas?

Question

The rutine that we have now is getting kinda boring. We need new ideas to put together as a new rutine.

Answer 1

Add weapons and use them in your traditional kata. Check with your instructor. We have found this works well with all the TKD pomise. Some weapons will work better than others. This is a good attention getter for the public.

Answer 2

Not sure what your current routine is, nor what kind of Karate you practice, so this is a difficult question.

In most demos I have seen, there is a lot of punching, striking, some gymnastic flips, board breaking, and light sparring.  It gets repetitive.

With the surge in MMA, you may want to consider showing a series of submissions and transitions between moves - show a smaller person using these techniques against a larger "opponent".

Some comedy which has actual application makes routines more entertaining - the small martial artist defeating a large "thug" always works.  Or have a skit where a student scares off an attacker by breaking boards with the thug's face drawn on them.

A "Matrix" type slow-motion series could be engaging as well especially if you do weapon demos.

Answer 3

We had three black belts take two series of self-defense moves (20 total) and tie them together into a skit involving two boys trying to steal a third boy's wallet.  They did a great job because it's very entertaining to watch (they do ham it up a little) but it's also educational for other students.

Answer 4

It's a good idea in demos to show how your art can be applied to real situations. So, for example re-enact some common self defence scenarios. People love seeing the little guy beating up the big lout guy. Also, girls beating boys tends to go down well, especially if you add in a bit of comedy. It's important to remember that most people watching a demo will have no real idea of what your martial art is about so it's up to you to effectively "sell" it in a way that can be easily perceived by the public. In addition, it may not always be realistic, but some Hollywood style stuff generates interest and makes the demo more memorable.