New York Clown Theatre Festival Review - Friday, September 19th

After spending my Thursday night at the Clown Cabaret, there was one show that I was more excited to see than any other.

A Few of My Favorite Things

Jeroen Bouwhuis is one of the most skilled modern day mimes that I have seen. In his performance, he makes use of only a few props, but through a litany of music and self-created sound effects, he brings to life an entire universe around him. Jeoen's ability goes far beyond comic timing, as every move he makes is accompanied by a perfectly timed sound cue. With this level of specificity you would imagine that there is no way that Jeroen could spend equal time engaging with the audience. However, more than many other shows I have seen in the festival, Jeroen is super conscious of the crowd around him, and appears to have an ongoing conversation with them throughout, sharing how he feels about the events of the show, as well as checking in with the audience's response to the material.

There was no clear plot to A Few of My Favorite Things, which did not bother me, but it did create the occasional wandering moments, where it seemed Jeroen was just killing time between bits. As the sequences unfolded though. the show consistently came to life in new and unexpected ways. The opening scene, where Jeroen shoots his imaginary gun at every one and thing in his make believe universe could have been seen as dark if not for the sheer joy he takes and shares with the audience throughout. Another section which I had seen in the previous night's cabaret was even more engaging and funny within the context of the emotional life he had endowed on the silverware in the earlier scene. And his universe's capabilities grew even funnier in a section where he brought up an unsuspecting audience member for a date. She, being a clown as well, knew how to play along and add even more details. I almost expected to hear sound effects partnered up with her made up gesture of clicking her seat belt.

This was a fantastic show, and should it come back to New York, I would highly recommend it for anyone interested in expanding their definition of mime beyond the white faced, black clothed standard.