snake charmers
Flute-playing performers
Snake charmers are street performers who appear to hypnotize snakes—typically cobras—by playing a flute-like instrument while the snake sways from a basket.
The snake actually responds to the instrument's movement rather than its sound, since snakes lack external ears.
The practice is associated with South Asian street entertainment, though animal welfare laws have largely curtailed it: We watched a snake charmer in the market square.
Hooded venomous serpent
- pythonNonvenomous squeezing snake
- viperFanged toxic serpent
- venomousProducing injected toxins
- fangsSharp piercing teeth
coiled · swaying · hooded · scales · reptile · docile · defanged · striking
Public entertainer seeking tips
- buskerPublic-space entertainer seeking donations
- showmanDramatic, attention-grabbing performer
- spectacleVisually striking event
- audienceGathered viewers collectively
basket · turban · crowd · entertainer · act · display · marketplace · square
Tube blown sideways
- melodyPleasing sequence of notes
- swayingRhythmic lateral movement
- hypnoticInducing trance or slumber
- droneUnmanned flying machine
reed · gourd · tune · rhythm · notes · playing · piping · woodwind
Person from either continent
- MoroccanOf a Maghreb nation
- folkRegular common people
- heritageInherited cultural legacy
- casteInherited social division
nomadic · ancestral · livelihood · craft · generational · endangered · cultural · colonial-era
cobra
Hooded venomous serpent
fangs · coiled · swaying · hooded · scales · reptile · docile · defanged · striking · basket
street performer
Public entertainer seeking tips
- buskerPublic-space entertainer seeking donations
- showmanDramatic, attention-grabbing performer
- spectacleVisually striking event
audience · basket · turban · crowd · entertainer · act · display · marketplace · square · tips
flute
Tube blown sideways
drone · reed · gourd · tune · rhythm · notes · playing · piping · woodwind · been
Indian
Person from either continent
caste · nomadic · ancestral · livelihood · craft · generational · endangered · cultural · colonial-era · bazaar
enchantment
Magical influence over someone
- hypnosisInduced trance state
- tranceSemiconscious, unresponsive condition
- spellArrange letters correctly
magic · supernatural · power · control · ancient · secrets · mysterious · legend · folklore · myth
- entertainerssingers, actor, dancers, actress, musicians
- carnivalparade, costume, float, ferris wheel, roller coaster
- Orientalismodalisque, orientalism, Egyptology, harems, Turkish bath
- Maghreb folkloredjinn, jinn, genies, ghoul, evil eye
- deceiversliar, liars, deceiver, fraud, fake
- exotic decorbohemian, tribal art, desert oasis, zen, palm trees
snake charmersexterminators
Professionals who eliminate vermin
animal control officers · zookeepers · veterinarians · herpetologists · wildlife biologists