International Clowns

Today must be the day of the clown. I read the paper - and see this photo of Lars Lottrup's leg sticking out of a giant balloon. I love that image. I don't why - but it really appeals to me. It's like people being reduced to a large sphere - the person as a planet - or something.

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Apparently there is an International Clown Festival in Copenhagen

Annual clown festival with artistes from all over the world, notably Italy, Armenia, Belgium, Spain and UK.

08-10 / 2006 - 08-20 / 2006 - Daily shows and parades – from refined to slapstick comedy - great fun for children and adults alike.

I can't imagine anything better right now. (The problem would be in getting there - Trading lipstick for security.)

An article about the festival on Yahoo suggests that nobody is laughing - people have been taught to fear clowns, etc. We partly have Stephen King to thank for that. But unfortunately some clowns who think that they are being funny for kids - just aren't.

"Some clowns still use acts from 100 years ago, but some clowns today have simplified the concept, hardly dressing up," said Schumann, 61. "The main point is creating a character who is funny."

While there is something timeless about clowns - it's good to see some modern clown looks. And another good thing is - that the languge of clowns is universal. For instance: Clowns without Borders.

These clowns go to Afghanistan, Moldavia, Sierra Leone, Bosnia, Palestine, Namibia, Haïti and many other places in need of laughter. How cool it that?
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And then I scanned the New York Times and saw this theater review - For those near New York City:

"God Speaks, and a Clown Answers, in 'Creation: A Clown Show!'"



Two things could but shouldn’t hold adults back from seeing “Creation: A Clown Show!,” which opened last night at Theater Five. While the events take place during the seven days in which the Bible says God created the world, there is nothing narrowly religious about it. Evolutionists who welcome metaphor will be amused....

Mr. Rooney plays a little boy named Timmy who stumbles into a situation in which he has to act out the Creation as instructed by the booming offstage voice of God. It’s tough. How do you divide the light from the darkness? And what the heck is a firmament?

...But his childlike post-Creation persona is all his own, especially when he puts his message in perspective with a poignant final visual. However it got here, he demonstrates, life on earth was a swell idea. It would be the crime of all crimes to destroy it.

“Creation: A Clown Show!” continues through Sept. 10 at Theater Five, 311 West 43rd Street, Clinton, (212) 868-4444.