The Stickman Dances: Remembering Minshall’s Tall Boy at a High School Game

Tall Boy (Stickman) — echo of Peter Minshall’s vision
A Tall Boy in motion — an echo of Minshall’s vision.

In its simplicity, the spectacle was so profound.

At a high school football game, just off the edge of a basketball court, I stood entranced by a ballooned vertical figure — a Tall Boy. These inflatable stickmen, now familiar fixtures at dealerships, markets, and street corners, flail and bend in the wind, dancing to a rhythm of air and breeze.

But as I watched the school mascot version rise and bow, I felt something more. I felt the presence of a Mas Connoisseur — the Michelangelo of Mas, our Trinidad & Tobago Caribeing, Peter Minshall.

Even in the glow of a moonlit evening, behind a chain-link fence, I was awestruck. Reverence welled up in me for the man whose genius birthed these structures: the choreographer of conscience who turned inflatable fabric into kinetic theatre.

The world remains largely unaware of the prolific artist, the master of Mas design, whose unequaled talent fused costume with story and ingenuity with movement. And though legal disputes over patents placed the “AirDancer” name in other hands, I believe Minshall deserved enduring recognition — and tangible enrichment — for the legacy he originated.

That night, I captured my own short video. It may look like just another inflatable dancing figure, but to me, it was a reminder: even in the most ordinary spaces, Minshall’s vision echoes, towering and alive.

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Even in the most ordinary spaces, Minshall’s vision echoes, towering and alive.

The Verified Story of the Stickman

The inflatable dancing figure often called the AirDancer traces back to Peter Minshall’s concept for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics opening ceremony. Working with inflatable artist Doron Gazit, Minshall envisioned “Tall Boys” that would sway like living puppets. After the Games, Gazit patented the underlying apparatus and later commercialized the design. While the two reportedly settled their dispute privately, the form went global — often without the wider public recognizing Minshall’s original spark of artistry.

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🖊️ Grace Caroline Walker
Grace Notes in Context

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