Cry, clown, yes, cry! This time, you deserve a full mental breakdown – but please, do it with a giggling good pratfall, okay?
Creepy clowny-like faces in Britland terrorizing the public. Some ride motorbikes; others stalk home windows, brandishing, so go tabloid ticklers, knives and even guns ... Which only ads another layer of fear onto an already Old Circus-traumatized public. First, the abused animals; now, the abusing clowns. The fear of them alone , here comes that creepy word --- COULTROPHOBIA -- seen as the motivator in this latest assault on Bozo and his like. Oddballs, outcasts, and perverted performance artists slapping on gory greasepaint to swell the ranks of the “anti-social clown.”
An epidemic on their hands? Most perplexing, nobody knows for sure who lurks behind the grotesque makeup, the story closely followed on Douglas McPherson's Circus Mania blog.. "This is doing clowning no favors and is harming society," says Tony Eldridge, secretary of Clowns Int'l. Police bombarded with complaints of people being creeped-out.
Looks furiously fit for a a Stanley Kubrick sequel: Clockwork Clown?
Wardrobe under attack. "I'd like to stress that it isn't against the law to dress up as a clown," opined one police chief.
Kinky to Thinky
Another reason to abandon sawdust for stage? More and more, younger circus performers are seeking a saner asylum in theatre venues. So many festivals out there in a country, mine, that rarely ever produces a top rate circus act, but — hold your hula hoops! — they are stirring up major festival buzz in the city of Chicago. This could be the Big One.
Heck, if the weather wasn't so damn Damtrak, I’d be tempted to rail back and check out the scene. Some of the experimental troupes (they all are) sound at least intriguing. Event is aptly titled Chicago Contemporary Circus Festival, and it wraps tomorrow (the 12th).
Here are a few of the quirky offerings: Smoke and Mirrors is a company, per reports, "that combines acrobatics, contemporary dance, contortion and 'some serious heart-string tugging to examine the current state of America in the pursuit of happiness.'" Said to contain partial nudity Oh, yes, if all else fails, give them a flesh show.
A few others aiming for Windy City acclaim, their respective Big Themes, just for fun:
* “A mad cocktail of aerial feats, Cyr Wheel and clowning.”
* “Eight strangers who find themselves in a room with no exit.” Can you imagine them all being hula hoopers --- or Peterson Peanut vendors? (Yes, Sir Harry, I couldn't resist)
* “A Scenographic composition that explores the duality of eternity and death, and the human desire to survive.” Sounds like Cirque du Soleil on One-Drop steroids. Let me look closer, to see if this troupe is from Up There (as in Montreal, Kids). The "composition" is being essayed by one Andreane Leclerc. That French?
Next year, if the festival continues, I suggest stage space for the rampaging Crime Clowns of London Town -- partial nudity not included, thank you.
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So, I'm going to try to post this; photos may follow if I make it this far. Moving from one PC to another owing to Blogger problems. Hey, sounds like the perfect theme for a new circus troupe?
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