Jim Williams and Anka Wojtkowiak-Williams are interviewed here. They traveled from Poland for the NY Clown Theater Festival and we had a chance to speak with them about their work and their life in Poland being clowns.
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Tag: NY Clown Theater Festival
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Tuesday Sept 18th @7 pm – Last NY performance
For more information and/or tickets to their last NY performance.
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Trapped
September 14 – 16, 2018
Performed, created and directed by Inda Pereda.
Inda Pereda‘s hilarious one-man show uses physical comedy, sound and mime to build a wild, imaginary dreamscape bound up in exciting, ridiculous and grotesque situations -*ahem* emergency operations, unusual body musicals, the happy birth of mutant beings – and populated by a host of crazy universal characters – *err* annoyed Japanese samurais and happy cows.
Through sheer spectacle and audience particiption, TRAPPED unlocks a place where surreal worlds converge with nonsense, where irreverent moments lead to transcendent beauty.
“Inda Pereda made me giggle, snort, guffaw and squirm around in my seat. What a fun show. Go!” RED BASTARD – Eric Davis
Friday, September 14 @ 7pm
Saturday, September 15 @ 2pm
Sunday, September 16, @ 5pm
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“Amazing talent” — La Stampa (Torino, Italy)
Angela begins the show by ‘explaining it all’ to the audience.
Her ‘alter-ego’ has some issues with the ‘theory’ of ‘explain it all’.
Utilizing her skills in acrobatics, dance, clown and aerial Angela performed an amazing show for the audience.
Angela created a myriad of characters on stage.
Resorting to reading a book on “Clowns‘ she begins another episode in the show.
Angela brings a real moment to her performance.
A show definitely worth seeing! Angela has so many wonderful skills and her acting is terrific!
Tuesday, September 11 @ 7pm
Sunday, September 23 @ 2pm
Here is a link to an interview Vaudevisuals did a week ago with Angela.
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579 Metropolitan Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11211
(between Union Avenue and Lorimer Street)
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A Terrible Show for Terrible People is a raunchy and rambunctious solo clown performance that is both boner- and vomit-inducing.
In her East Coast premiere at the NY Clown Theatre Festival, physical comedian Bonnie He takes the audience on an flirtatious journey from death to rebirth, opening a voyeuristic window into personal tragedy, triumph, and titillation. Mostly titillation. TIT-illation.
The show is nonverbal, but fiercely interactive. The audience is complicit, and that’s what makes A Terrible Show so riveting: you’re not just watching a show – you’re participating in the destruction of common decency.
30 minutes
Saturday, September 8 @ 5pm
Monday, September 10 @ 9pm
Wednesday, September 12 @ 7pm
Appropriate for ages 13 and older
Bonnie He is a native of Los Angeles. Her favorite acting credits include “The New Empress,” a short film with
Maggie Gyllenhaal, and “Darla Wang, Dick Whisperer,” a self-described “really dumb web series” Bonnie created, produced and starred in. Both
works can be found on her YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/c/
She is a house team member on Excelsior!, her Long Form
Ensemble at The Second City Hollywood. She’s also a rotating clown act in the monthly main stage show, JETZO & Ithamar.
Follow her on Twitter @BonnieHe and Instagram @abonnielass.
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Jeff and Buttons Entertain an Audience
Bankrukt Productions
September 13 – 17, 2018
~ 43 Minutes ~
Created and performed by Jeff Seal and Chris Manley.
Jeff and Buttons (2 very funny jokesters) will entertain their audience by performing their new show entitled “Jeff and Buttons Entertain An Audience.” Their show consists of lots of new but also some old material which will be performed for an audience with the express purpose of entertaining said audience. It should be an entertaining night of performing!
“Jeff and Buttons had me laughing so hard that I was literally wheezing.” – The Happiest Medium
“Their material is so stupid it becomes profound and refreshing” – MaskedArts.com
For more information and/or tickets go here!
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“Angela Delfini Explains It All For You”
Met with Angela Delfini and her director John Towsen at rehearsal today in Williamsburg. Had a great time. John Towsen was kind enough to do the interview. Great hearing all about the show and it’s beginnings along with some history of Angela’s schooling.
Stage manager – Andrea Rossi
Lighting designer – Miguel Suero
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The NY Clown Theatre Festival 2018
September 3 – 23, 2018
The NY Clown Theatre Festival returns to celebrate 12 years in Brooklyn!
The NY Clown Theatre Festival is New York’s preeminent biennial, international Clown Theatre festival since its inception in 2006.
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More interviews coming soon!
Kaitlin Kaufman sat down with Vaudevisuals to talk about her show and her life as a ‘clown’. How she started and a little about discovering her character ‘Penelope’.
Her show ‘Yay America‘ will be presented at The New York Clown Theater Festival Sept 8, 11, and 16th.
For more information/tickets go here.
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For schedule and tickets go here!
Featuring the following shows:
FREE PREVIEW CABARET SHOW!
September 5, 2018
See a free preview of upcoming festival shows and more!
60 minutes
Wednesday, September 5 @ 7pm
Free!
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Free Participatory Indoor Pie Fight
September 3, 2018
Join the pie fight! And remember: it is better to give than to receive!
Monday, September 3rd @ 3pm
Free!
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Dynamics of Clown
September 4, 2018
A free lecture by Jon Davison from London Clown School.
60 minutes
Tuesday, September 4 @ 7pm
Free!
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CLOWN CABARET – Sept 20th
Short works of clown artists and more!
Participants include:
Drifting Off, created & performed by Beth Leonard & Sarah Pope aka SarahBesque & Bethford
Curios by Phyllis Chen, performed by Margaret Leng Tan
Clown Band, performed by Becca Bernard, Alex Orthweinand Julia
The NY Office of the Professions is Trying to Kill Me, created by Amanda Erin Miller, directed by Carol Lee Sirugo.
and more!!
60 minutes
September 20, @ 7pm
$20.
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Angela Delfini Explains It All For You: A ¾-Woman Show
September 8 – 23, 2018
Created by Angela Delfini & John Towsen
Straight from Barcelona, Toronto, and La Spezia, meet Italy’s greatest export, personality pioneer Dr. Angela Delfini, and her nervous but brave subject, Estrella. Join them on a clownesque five-step recovery program full of unique challenges and you-can’t-go-home-again transformations. Can the maniacally confident Delfini get the stuck-in-beta Estrella to dance and laugh her way to version 2.0 and beyond?? Probably, but not without your help!
“Amazing talent” — La Stampa (Torino, Italy)
60 minutes
Saturday, September 8 @ 7pm
Tuesday, September 11 @ 7pm
Sunday, September 23 @ 2pm
$20
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Cheeks
September 6 – 23, 2018
Written and performed by Lee Minora
Directed by Scott Sheppard
Lady Elizabeth Edwards has been making art in solitude. You are the first people she’s seen in a decade- and you are a complete disappointment! This is CHEEKS: a brutal clown show that melds contemporary stand-up bouffon clown and hands-on audience play. Laugh through your fear while this one-woman beast sucks the marrow from your funny bone all while taking on the tropes of our most revered female artists. No one is safe in this weapons-grade comedy, where everything is up for grabs – except her p*ssy. CHEEKS is Jane Austen with a handgun.
leeminora.wixsite.com/leeminora
60 minutes
Thursday, September 6 @ 7pm
Friday, September 21 @ 7pm
Saturday, September 22 @ 5pm
$20
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Is Dead
September 17 – 19, 2018
Created & performed by Anka Wojtkowiak-Williams (Poland) and Jim Williams (USA)
Liquidmime is Polish clown duo Jim Williams and Anka Wojtkowiak-Williams, whose characters exist in a live-action comic world. Liquidmime combines mime, clown, sound effects, puppetry, improvisation, and a healthy dose of “black and red” humor into hilarious, thought-provoking sketches.
‘Is dead’ (in Polish: “Nie zyje”) dives boldly headfirst into the topic of death, from overprotective mothers to modern work-a-day life, to the true hazards of smoking, touching on situations everyone can relate to but few dare to speak of.
Winner of the grand prize and audience choice award at the 27th edition of PAKA and the 32nd edition of Lidzbark Evening of Humor and Satire, and the 5th edition of SZPAK comedy festival, ‘Is Dead’ will make its premiere in the United States at the New York Clown Theater Festival.
Anka Wojtkowiak-Williams is a trained pantomime actress, clown, and performer. She began her career with Teatr Formy, performing in Poland and abroad. She is also a member of IMPROKRACJA, one of the premier improv groups in Poland. When she is not performing on stage, Anka is Artistic Director and works as a professional Medical Clown as part of Czerwone Noski – Klown w Szpitalu (Polish branch of Red Noses International).
Jim Williams is a professional performer, actor, writer, clown, mime, and stand-up comedian. He began performing internationally when he was 21 and has worked with such groups as KAPOOT (Chicago, IL, USA), Chicago Clown Care Unit of the Big Apple Circus, and Interkunst (Berlin, Germany). As a stand-up comedian, Jim performs across Poland and Europe both in English and in Polish. He is also the national trainer and works as a professional Medical Clown as part of Czerwone Noski – Klown w Szpitalu.
60 minutes
Monday, September 17 @ 7 pm
Wednesday, September 19 @ 7 pm
$20
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Jeff and Buttons Entertain an Audience
Bankrukt Productions
September 13 – 17, 2018
Created and performed by Jeff Seal and Chris Manley.
Jeff and Buttons will entertain their audience by performing their new show entitled J“eff and Buttons Entertain An Audience. ” Their show consists of lots of new but also some old material which will be performed for an audience with the express purpose of entertaining said audience. It should be an entertaining night of performing!
“Jeff and Buttons had me laughing so hard that I was literally wheezing.” – The Happiest Medium
“Their material is so stupid it becomes profound and refreshing” – MaskedArts.com
60 minutes
Thursday, September 13 @ 7pm
Sunday, September 15 @ 4pm
Monday, September 17 @ 9pm
$20
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Look at What We Found
September 5 – 8, 2018
Created & performed by Tommy Galan, Kasey Pearl-Lee, Christina Perry, Amber Largent & Lauren Flynn
Look At What We Found is a theatrical improvised clown performance that invites the audience into a world where they can let go of their rigid adult lives, surrender to play, and find the joy and magic they left behind as children. The clowns begin with the stage and theater as their blank canvas, and with one brush stroke of stupidity at a time they build a tapestry of games, play, interaction and fun. Together, clowns and audience will Look At What We Found!
www.LookAtWhatWeFound.com
60 minutes
Wednesday, September 5 @ 9 pm
Saturday, September 8 @ 3 pm
$20
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Melon Head
Unkonscious Kollectiv
September 10 – 12, 2018
Created & performed by Helen Gutowski
This is a performance in which the clown, named Melon Head, does indeed have a melon on her head. She tries to get it off in hilariously bizarre ways, eventually succeeding with a prat-fall. Later, she encounters 2 other fruits and uses these items in unusual and silly ways, ultimately exemplifying the joy of play, the fun of fruits and veggies, and that love is really awesome.
30 minutes
Monday, September 10 @ 7pm
Wednesday, September 12 @ 8pm
$15
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The Mysterious Magical Brandishers of Magic!
Monkey Do International
September 15 – 18, 2018
Primary Artist: Written/Created/Performed by Pratik Motwani (India), James Peck (UK), Sarah Peters (USA).
The Mysterious Magical Brandishers of Magic! is a Daredevil Style Freak Show performed by a hilariously mystical, intercontinental and intergalactic clown trio. This dangerously funny clown show is packed with mysteriously hilarious physical comedy that uses the ancient art of sorcery as means to tickle your funny bones. A magical world in which the spectacular successes and epic failure’s serve only one purpose – Laughter and Entertainment of the audience. The show involves amusingly bemusing mass hypnosis and precariously hilarious audience participation in acts such as The Board of Doom, The Bed of Nail and The Balls of Steel!
www.brandishersofmagic.com
60 minutes
Saturday, September 15 @ 6pm
Sunday, September 16 @ 1pm
Tuesday, September 18 @ 7pm
$20
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A Terrible Show for Terrible People
September 8 – 12, 2018
Created & performed by Bonnie He.
A Terrible Show for Terrible People is a raunchy and rambunctious solo clown performance that is both boner- and vomit-inducing.
In her East Coast premiere at the NY Clown Theatre Festival, physical comedian Bonnie He takes the audience on a flirtatious journey from death to rebirth, opening a voyeuristic window into personal tragedy, triumph, and titillation. Mostly titillation. TIT-illation.
The show is nonverbal but fiercely interactive. The audience is complicit, and that’s what makes A Terrible Show so riveting: you’re not just watching a show – you’re participating in the destruction of common decency.
30 minutes
Saturday, September 8 @ 5 pm
Monday, September 10 @ 9 pm
Wednesday, September 12 @ 7 pm
$15
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Trapped
September 14 – 16, 2018
Performed, created and directed by Inda Pereda.
Inda Pereda’s hilarious one-man show uses physical comedy, sound, and mime to build a wild, imaginary dreamscape bound up in exciting, ridiculous and grotesque situations -*ahem* emergency operations, unusual body musicals, the happy birth of mutant beings – and populated by a host of crazy universal characters – *err* annoyed Japanese samurais and happy cows.
Through sheer spectacle and audience participation, TRAPPED unlocks a place where surreal worlds converge with nonsense, where irreverent moments lead to transcendent beauty.
www.indapereda.com
“Inda Pereda made me giggle, snort, guffaw and squirm around in my seat. What a fun show. Go!” RED BASTARD
60 minutes
Friday, September 14 @ 7pm
Saturday, September 15 @ 2pm
Sunday, September 16, @ 5pm
$20
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Yay, America!
September 8 – 16, 2018
Directed by Elizabeth Baron
Performed by Kaitlin Kaufman.
When the country feels like it’s going to shit, politicians are corrupt out of their butts and everything on our newsfeed makes us feel nauseous and/or constipated, it’s time we turn to poets like Penelope for answers. Penelope is a naive, vibrant, affable, surprisingly aggressive, toe-tapping clown who is in intense love and extremely angry at her country. She’s over the ol’ U.S. of A and its veiled promises and pledges. In a surprisingly loving patriotic foray, Penelope delivers an imaginative, universal spectacle about levity through anger, forgiveness through pain, pride through shame, connection through fear that straight-up defibrillates our human hearts.
40 minutes
Saturday, September 8 @ 1pm
Tuesday, September 11 @ 9pm
Sunday, September 16 @ 3pm
$20
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WORKSHOPS
(Very) Physical Comedy Workshop
September 15 – 16, 2018
Taught by John Towsen!
For all those who want to make their comedy more physical or their physicality funnier, a crash course in physical comedy vocabulary and its application for clowns, actors, mimes, dancers, and circus & variety artists. You will be introduced to a wide variety of slapstick skills centered around your own physicality, playing with partners, and reimagining the world of objects, as chairs, tables, hats, coats, plates, and doors take on new life in your comedic hands. We’ll combine these techniques with character, gag structure, and story to create new comedy material. Rare archival video footage will be screened, and resources for further exploration of physical comedy will be provided. Some performance experience and a reasonably sound body highly recommended, but all ages, body types, and levels of experience welcome.
JOHN TOWSEN is the founder and director of the New York City Physical Comedy Lab and was a founder and artistic director of the first NY Clown-Theatre Festival. He is widely recognized as an author, director, producer, performer, and teacher in clown, physical comedy, and allied arts. He has toured shows nationally and internationally and has taught full-length courses at Princeton, Juilliard, and NYU, and workshops in over a dozen countries. His 1976 book, Clowns: A Panoramic History, is still considered to be the standard work on the subject, and his blog All Fall Down: The Art & Craft of Physical Comedy (physicalcomedy.blogspot.com), is widely read by practitioners in the field.
Saturday & Sunday, Sept. 15 and 16
10am-4pm each day
$180
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Devising and Creating Clown
September 8 – 9, 2018
London Clown School teacher Jon Davison teaches a 2-day workshop, culminating in a performance Sunday night at 6 pm!
JON DAVISON has been a clown performer, teacher, director and writer for the last 30 years. He taught clown, improvisation and acting at the Institut del Teatre de Barcelona from 1996-2006 when he became a co-founder of the Escola de Clown de Barcelona.
From 2007-2010 he was an AHRC-funded Creative Fellow investigating contemporary clown/actor training at Central School of Speech and Drama, where he obtained his Ph.D. in Clown Performance Practice and is now Visiting Lecturer.
He has performed at festivals, theatres, tents, streets and bars throughout Europe, and is currently artistic director of the clown/circus/pantomime company Stupididity.
He has published two books, Clown: Readings in Theatre Practice (2013) and Clown Training – a practical guide (2015), both with Palgrave Macmillan. He runs the London Clown School, the only provider of regular clown workshops in the UK currently.
Saturday, September 8 from 10 am to 4 pm
Sunday, September 9 from 10 am to 4 pm
$180
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Clown Funeral
September 23, 2018
Mourn the passing of the clown festival. Bear it if you can. It died too young. Will any eulogy suffice?
60 minutes
Sunday, September 23 @ 3pm
Free!
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2016 NY Clown Theater Festival
September 2 through 18th, 2016 at The Brick Theater
“Clown Cabaret”
Hosted by Tanya Solomon
Tanya Solomon hosted the evening’s variety clown cabaret and opened with some magic.
Rich Potter performing an excerpt from his show “God! The One-Man Show“.
Penelope the Clown performs a cute and very silly ROFL Flowers.
One Lonely Chunk (Kim Kaiser) performs a routine that ‘read the future’ and could change the future.
Joe Galan performed a ‘dark’ and comical take on pill popping and suicide.
SarahBesque’s show “SarahNDipity” excerpt involved 2 audience members helping in the antics.
Bill Shannon performed an excerpt from his show “Just Clowning Around”.
Becca Bernard performing an excerpt from her show “The Fainting Room”.
Clown Cabaret performing an excerpt from their show “The Heist”.
Les Bunheads (From Montreal) combined the grace of ballet with the slapstick of professional wrestlers.
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For tickets and information about the 2016 NY Clown Theater Festival go HERE!
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