![]() ![]() Kunold, a former stuntman who worked on films such as “Alexander the Great” and “The Medallion” in Asia, led the way, slashing at the air with his glowing purple lightsaber as he inched across the studio repeating kendo moves, flanked on either side by students doing the same. “These are, of course, light …” Cielo said, catching himself, “ultra … light … UltraSabers.” Then it was time to pick up their “weapons.” Their classes begin and end with meditation and deep breathing, with black belt students resting on their knees, lightsabers by their sides. When Kunold lit it up for the first time for Cielo, “I went ‘oooooohhhh.’ “ “At that point, I said I had to have one.” “It doesn’t break,” he said, striking it on the ground. He was skeptical at first that using lightsabers in his studios would work.īut in October, Kunold showed Cielo the lightsabers he had bought for he and his 9-year-old son, Akin, and demonstrated it could take a beating – or a good Jedi-esque battle – and be fine. ![]() The styles they plan to teach range from kendo and samurai to rapier and fencing, Spartan and freestyle parkour to Scottish claymore – each style getting about two months of focus before moving onto the next.Įventually, the pair hopes to license its Saber X curriculum to other martial arts studios, incorporate more stunt work and open dedicated, standalone studios.Ĭielo had thought about offering a sword-skills class before, but his bread and butter for more than 20 years has been taekwondo, hapkido and self-defense.Ĭielo is a fan the original “Star Wars” trilogy, and was used to flimsy toy lightsabers. “It’s really cool but the novelty wears off pretty quickly for an adult.”Ĭielo and Kunold hope it doesn’t wear off for quite some time. “It doesn’t go with the theme of the school. “Our main focus is really practical self-defense,” he said. Jeremiah Bunker, owner of BattleGround, said they offered lightsaber classes to children only during the summer but it’s actually drawn more interest from fellow martial arts studios, not necessarily would-be students. She counted 73 customers with “martial arts” in their name – three in Virginia, including King Tiger, a studio in Elkton and another in Farmville called BattleGround Martial Arts. “It’s more than just swinging a lightsaber around and choreography.” She said business at the 15-year-old company noticeably picked up about a year ago, around the time “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” was released.įicklen said she likes to see martial arts studios getting involved since the movements they teach are rooted in traditional combat: “We have a ton of martial arts groups,” said Marlena Ficklen, a customer service representative with Texas-based UltraSabers. Minnesota-based Saber Legion describes itself as the Ultimate Fighting Championship of saber combat.Īnd martial arts studios have become regular customers of at least one maker of the the replica galactic weapons, UltraSabers. Why so careful about how they tread around the “Star Wars” terminology? Others, including groups in New York and California, have tried to launch their own “Jedi” academies only to face The Walt Disney Co., which bought LucasFilm for $4 billion in 2012, in federal court.Īnd as “Star Wars” has surged in popularity (again), so has the desire to wage combat with lightsabers.ĭisneyland and Walt Disney World both offer official lightsaber Jedi training to “younglings.” Students must bring their own lightsabers. E-Pilot Evening Edition Home Page Close Menu ![]()
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