Upcoming!
Clown
Your clown is the regretless and enthusiastic expression of your comic nature, and cannot be crafted but must be discovered. Once discovered your clown will weasel its way into every performance you give, bringing newfound specificity and playfulness.
Through physically oriented exercises, games and improvisations we will use the whole body to find a grand expressiveness, and strengthen the emotional and physical muscles necessary to discover the clown. Once we get a gander at that rascal, we’ll plant a signpost for you to follow, by determining a clown name, costume and some proprietary games unique to you.
What you'll walk away with: a clown name, costume and a short clown routine (game); an understanding of the fundamental physical, emotional and playful articulation of your clown (yourself), the experience of having been deeply encouraged to share all of yourself with the audience and the freedom and generosity that goes along with that; and an understanding of game and how to balance high stakes with the ridiculous to create hilarity.
Mon-Fri, July 10th - 21st, 10am - 3pm @ Brooklyn College (that's 2 weeks!)
Price: $650
Produced through Movement Theater Studio
Physical Comedy
Sometimes people use clown and physical comedy interchangeably but they are quite different. While clown perhaps gives life to your comic spirit, physical comedy is the structure. Clown is a nice foundation for physical comedy but not a prerequisite.
In this class you’ll learn how to design and execute an array of physical comedy events which you can put into the service of characters/situations you portray in plays/film/video (they can tell you what to say but you have more license over your action). Or use these skills to create your own routines as a clown, stand up, improviser, variety performer, tiktok star, etc. Comedians (including physical ones) sometimes say, “you can’t teach someone to be funny.” You might detect how this statement could be just a tad self-serving. Of course if you are deeply committed to being boring there is little to be done. But that is surely not you! Truth is, design and execution of physical comedy are skills you can learn, and then use to augment your artistic expression (and have a blast!). Wanna have some fun acting again?! Make a playground for yourself so you can play upon it!
Over the pandemic, Virginia Scott developed at MTS a new physical comedy curriculum. It includes a handy dandy handbook! In this class, you'll analyze some classic physical comedy turns and then you'll build some of your own. You will have the opportunity to try out a variety of categories of physical comedy such as problems with objects, takes, distraction and flights of fancy, and we’ll investigate how to develop these games using rhythm, repetition, sequencing successes and failures, escalation, and of course sharing with the audience. Plus we’ll look at physically comic characters and their vocal and physical gestures. Develop the necessary timing to go on this particular kind of hilarious joy ride and you'll never be boring (even when the writing or directing is!). You'll leave with a shiny new routine to take home for your very own.
July 24th - 28th, 10am - 3pm @ Brooklyn College (that's 1 week!)
Price: $375
Produced through Movement Theater Studio
Some Clowns are proud to announce that we will be performing again this summer in the NYC Open Streets program.
Next Show:
Saturday, April 22 @ 10am and 12pm
@ Beach 21st Plaza in Far Rockaway NY.
Watch this space for more details and to see where we'll be popping up next!
Some Clowns are a group of artists from the Northeast of the USA who came together during the pandemic to keep the comic world alive while the clowns were separated from their most fundamental compatriots, the audience. They've been upstate at The Visionary being visionaries and making a crazy show, Some Clowns. Some Place. And now they can hardly wait to get see you once again.