The Great Morgani

The Great Morgani (aka Frank Lima) is an American street performer and performance artist from Santa Cruz, California. Although he is an experienced accordionist with 60 years of experience, he is most noted for his spectacular costumes which sometimes take up to 100 hours of work.

The Great Morgani
The Great Morgani performing in his "Leaning Tower of Squeeza" costume.
Background information
Birth nameFrank Lima
Also known asThe Great Morgani
Born (1942-09-08) September 8, 1942
Los Banos, California
OriginSanta Cruz, California, USA
Occupation(s)accordionist
Years active1995–2014
Websitehttp://thegreatmorgani.com/

Life and career

Frank Lima was born in 1942 in Los Banos, California.[1] His family moved to Santa Cruz in 1946.[1] Lima started performing at age 11, mostly in trios at Portuguese events. He enjoyed success in his first career as a stockbroker, but retired when he was 35. Almost two decades later in 1995, he embarked on a second career playing accordion as a street performer.

In the first few years of his street performing, he performed with his face uncovered.[2] Gradually, he developed more elaborate costumes, relying on the sewing skills he learned from his mother, a master seamstress.[3] Although he performs barefaced privately, he currently performs in public with face covered, often by the material used in the rest of his costume.

Current Performances

The Great Morgani has performed a dozen times at the Cotati Accordion Festival[4] and other festivals including the Gilroy Garlic Festival. He regularly performs at farmer's markets throughout Santa Cruz County and Silicon Valley, as well as downtown shopping areas in Santa Cruz and Los Gatos.

He has collected 42 accordions and assembled more than 130 costumes, which he entitles with names such as "Touluse Morgani" and "Glyn-duh", reflecting themes inspired from literature and historical figures.[5] In February 2014 Lima announced his retirement from street performing in downtown Santa Cruz due to city ordinances that regulate artists and vendors.[6]

  • "Toulouse" captivating an audience of one.
  • "Flower Powered"
  • "Catch of the Day"

See also

Purple Mark

References
  1. "Frank Lima, the Great Morgani - Santa Cruz County Stories", Santa Cruz Sentinel, May 23, 2011, retrieved December 23, 2012
  2. "Local Legend 'The Great Morgani' Has 130 Costumes, and He Sews His Own". Santa Cruz Patch, July 25, 2012 retrieved December 23, 2012
  3. "From stockbroker to Santa Cruz street performer". sfgate.com, July 26, 2011, retrieved December 23, 2012
  4. cotatifest.com, Retrieved December 23, 2012
  5. "The Great Morgani Wears Peppers for his 16th Anniversary Weekend", Santa Cruz Patch, November 24, 2012, retrieved December 23, 2012
  6. "'Great Morgani' Retires Due to Downtown Ordinances", SantaCruz.com, February 20, 2014 retrieved February 19, 2014
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