The second annual online summit for Clowns, Clownvergence, is nearly upon us. Clownvergence 2026, will run from Thursday April 9 through Sunday, April 12. It will be chockful of clowns as hundreds of clowns of all types- circus performers, theatrical comedians hospital clowns, activist provocateurs, pedagogues, and red nose fans will convene for three days to share tips, tricks, discussions, […]
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Patrick Van den Boom and ClownSchool International are presenting a retreat/workshop in Italy starting next week. The Retreat goes from May 18-25, 2025 and will feature Patrick more as a facilitator than as a teacher as he helps people find their clown and their voice in beautiful southern Italy. Patrick is a Dutch clown who moved to Norway in […]
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TAKE A WALK ON THE FUNNY SIDE: CLOWN SKILLS 101 I’m teaching Clown Skills 101 an intro to clowning class at the Comedy Clubhouse twice in the next couple of months. The classes are on Sunday May 14 and Sunday June 14 from 12pm-4pm at the Comedy Clubhouse in Barcelona. (Each class is a separate class) It’s a beginner’s level […]
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UPDATE: due to a suitcase malfunction (didn’t arrive on time) the show will be on Friday at 8:30 pm, and the class will be SATURDAY only. Prices for the class are less, and if you already purchased tickets, you will get a refund. Links should still be valid At Espai Piluso, a small space in Barcelona’s Poble Sec neighborhood, Swiss […]
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I was going through some old stuff I’d written, and came across this “Advice For the Director” that I’d written in 2002 on a discussion list for theatre about somebody tackling a commedia project for the first time with newbie actors as well. I think it sums up my take on acting in physical comedy and commedia dell’arte plays very […]
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I’m teaching my first physical comedy workshop in Spain! I’m teaching at the Comedy Clubhouse, a venue that has in a very short time become the premier center for English language comedy and improv in Barcelona. Located in the historic Born district, they have open mics and shows every day of the week. I’ve performed there a couple of times […]
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Joe Dieffenbacher, former director of the Clown Conservatory in San Francisco and the former clown teacher at the Dell’arte School, is teaching some workshops in Spain. And I’m attending some of them! I’ve written about Joe before multiple times, see here to see the list, and I’ve known Joe a long time, but I don’t think I’ve ever taken a […]
Read moreThere is a surprisingly robust English speaking comedy scene here in Barcelona, and I’ve been dabbling my toes in it. I hope to write a few more posts about it, but in the meantime, it’s interesting that there’s such a divide between clown and standup in people’s eyes (including mine) Thinking about it, I feel like the difference between standup […]
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Barry Friedman was one of the most successful jugglers in the world. His group, the Raspyni Brothers, performed all over television (Tonight Show, Circus of the Stars, Regis & Kathy, etc), stages (opening for Robin Williams, Howie Mandel, Tom Jones, Steve Martin, Billy Crystal, Dean Martin, Bob Hope, and many others), and corporate gigs (over 100 of the Fortune 500 […]
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February isn’t actually Commedia Month (although it does contain international Commedia Day). But in Chicago, Laughing Stock Theatre is doing its darnedest to celebrate Commedia month anyway. They are bringing Antonio Fava, a world-renowned performer, teacher, director and maskmaker from Italy, to Chicago during the month of February. He’ll be conducting a 2 day master class 2/15-2/16 at Links Hall […]
Read moreI was at a conference the other day and somebody did an exercise that reminded me of this clown game, which is one of my favorite ones to teach. It teaches rhythm, and focus, and split focus, and being a giver and a taker all at once– in short, everything a clown needs to do his job. I think I […]
Read more“Clowning Around: InterPlay and Sacred Clown,†a workshop facilitated by Jean Carlos Claudio and Agnotti on Wednesday, will take place on March 28th from 6:30pm-9pm at Cup & Spoon 2415 W North Ave. This is a community event that happens monthly. Admission is priced on a sliding scale. This month, the event is a lighthearted evening of spontaneous connection and […]
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For over 30 years, Clown Camp has been an intensive training ground for newcomer clowns and for seasoned clowns to hone their skills. Clown Camp was founded and directed by Dr. Richard Snowberg, a clown for over 35 years and an inductee into the International Clown Hall of Fame. Since 1981, over 6000 people from over 25 different countries have […]
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I have been fascinated by American/Australian clown and performer Ira Seidenstein‘s Four Articulations Method for some time. While I haven’t had any direct interaction with the method, it seems to be a creative method using tools and exercises to become more physically articulate with your body, and thus allow yourself to use your full capabilities to express yourself. Michelle Cajolet-Couture, […]
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Stanley Allan Sherman will teach another one of his Roving Classical Commedia University workshops Dec 26-30, 2016. Stanley is a well-known commedia mask maker and expert on commedia.  We’ve featured Stanley a number of times here on clownlink, and he wrote a great guest post about what makes a great commedia mask. He’s been teaching workshops like this one since 2001, […]
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I had the chance to see a great production recently at the Chicago Shakespeare Theatre. The show is called The Complete Deaths by Spymonkey, a British troupe of clowns/physical comedians. Â If you’ve been to Las Vegas, you may have seen their work, as they created all of the comedy numbers in the Cirque du Soleil show Zumanity. Â They are known […]
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