A Clown Writes About Intro Classes
How much do classes matter — if at all?
Hey, clowns!
It’s been a criminal amount of time since I’ve posted. A quick update:
I’ve been working a lot this year on creating unique clown shows. Rory Scovel and I did a series of six immersive concepts at the Elysian that culminated with a special appearance by Will Ferrell (pictures below). I put up my first-ever WIP solo show on my birthday. All of these experiences required a lot of writing and thinking about clown differently. It was exhausting and amazing and certainly deserves its own blog.
I’ve also been constructing a new intensive. It’s called DISRUPTOR: VOLUME TWO and it debuts on June 1-2 at UCB LA.
This is not a second level, but a new intro class
I know this is confusing to some people. Clowns, real talk, I am terrible at marketing. Why is it called Volume Two? How can you have four different intro classes? Isn’t that like saying you lost your virginity a dozen times? (I very much believe in this concept as well – why not make every moment as exhilarating as possible?)
I love working with artists over a longer period. It allows me to identify what needs work and guide them towards their strengths. But I don’t believe clown work should be taught in levels. Especially not when people are beginning their journey. That’s just a way to sell classes and give students a sense of accomplishment. Clowning is about committing to being a permanent beginner. You should just keep working on the same fundamentals. That’s how you unlock your own unique style — as opposed to being taught the same tricks and strategies.
I’m also dubious of keeping the same group of students together for too long.
I know people who adore their longtime classmates. That’s the problem. That kind of class environment creates too warm of a room. You are getting laughs based on their affection. They are also reacting to narratives that have developed over the course of time. They know your cheap tricks. They respond to longstanding patterns. Clowns need objective feedback to figure out their methodology.
They need to bomb in front of strangers.
If you wanna work with the same people over and over again, create an ensemble. That way, the focus becomes building pieces. You create work, test it at shows and bring it back to the lab. This also reveals the biases of the room, so you can make adjustments and prepare more effectively.
Clowns should always be looking for ways to get in front of real audiences. As a group or solo. As much as I love filling my classes, never forget that. That’s where all the important learning happens.
Intro classes are for everyone
Newcomers. Veterans. Teachers. I love when experienced clowns get outshined by non-performers. It’s a great reminder that skill is never a substitute for naivety. I also love when new clowns get outsmarted by their craftier classmates. This is the balance of clown work. The fool pursues wisdom and the master chases ignorance. A good class or workshop allows every student to work on whatever muscle needs flexing.
Yes, I am still writing that stupid book
Seven years and the same obstacles remain. I want to be technical without feeling wooden and academic. I want to explore the mystery of play without sounding woo-woo and mystical. Perhaps I’m setting myself up for disaster… but isn’t that the most clown thing I can do? I just need to find a way to make the process more joyful.
Currently, I’m trying a different angle. It’s fun to write about clown theory, but clown happens all around us. All of the time. Is social media inherently evil? Sure. But what an amazing resource for clowns in the wild. Millions of bad choices. Idiots we can’t stop watching. The machine of society falling apart in wonderfully unexpected ways.
That’s what makes failure relatable. When we perform, we aren’t creating an otherworldly fiction. We are trying to capture a truthful moment. When real life devolves into absolute nonsense.
I’ve been writing up stories from my past. Epic disappointments. Absurd interactions. Moments of tragedy that I now look at with great fondness. My hope is that these moments can bring more humanity to the discussion. And force me to take more risks.
A clown book might be like a clown show. It has to do more than explore what universally connects us.
It must contain elements of ourselves that we don’t always like the world to see.
I’ll be sharing a story next week.
Your feedback is always greatly appreciated!
CLOWN BUSINESS
Here are links to my two upcoming intensives. The original DISRUPTOR and DISRUPTOR: VOLUME TWO. You can take them in any order.
5/25-26 DISRUPTOR: VOLUME 1: https://tinyurl.com/5enan776
6/01-02 DISRUPTOR: VOLUME 2: https://tinyurl.com/muew6ctz
STAND UP AND CLOWN HAS A MASSIVE MEMORIAL DAY SHOW!
We are going to be exploring America in a very clown way. We have a ridiculous lineup of talent for this one — including Learnmore Jonasi, Demi Adejuyigbe, Addie Weyrich, Justine Marino and more:
5/27 SHOW: https://shorturl.at/tY9re
FIND EVERYTHING ME AT MY LINKTREE:
https://linktr.ee/chad.damiani
The more we learn, the more we learn how learning across disciplines is essential to connecting new ideas. The clown class I took with you was more helpful to my work as a film editor than taking a "film editing" class would have been.