La Cita (The Date)
The first slot of the evening was filled with a pair of clowns from Bogota, Columbia. Although the piece was created and performed by Felipe Ortiz, I say "pair of clowns" because Mr. Ortiz, was expertly accompanied by Sebastian Sero's use of live piano, guitar and pre-recorded songs and sound effects. In this performance not only was the music a key character in the story, but the duo's interactions had their own comic enjoyment as Mr. Sero shared his responses to the games and jokes both with Mr. Ortiz and with the audience.
As a man preparing for a date, Mr. Ortiz deconstructed the preparation and eventual event, ensuring that the audience followed his every step. Throughout, he showed us that his skills lay beyond just clown, and includes juggling, puppetry, stunts and more. Using these tools, he comically complicated simple tasks ranging from getting dressed, to setting a table, to changing an ordinary lightbulb. Every movement took on the air of a difficult mission, all with the one goal of impressing his date upon her arrival.
I thoroughly enjoyed watching this clown continually get himself in and out of trouble. The sheer joy he got from smashing plates with a hammer had me in hysterics. However while I found the piece fun and entertaining, I believe it could have been served better by a few more changes in its tempo and rhythm. As the piece began, I loved the painstaking time that Mr. Ortiz took in his preparation. As it progressed though, it succeeded most when we were surprised by a change of music or pace (my personal favorite being a slow-motion dream sequence). These moments sent us on a different emotional path and off of the sometimes overly repetitive tune that followed a large portion of the action.
All in all, I felt that La Cita was a fun show that masterfully understands its own style, and plays within that exceptionally well.
NB - Although I was a fan of the puppetry and ball handling that was the eventual date, I had hoped Mr. Ortiz would transform the woman in the front row, with whom he was continually falling in love, into his partner revealing that all of this had been for her and attempting to hide the chaos that he had left strewn all over the stage. Bringing the woman back onstage for an extended sequence may have been a more satisfactory button to the play. Also, it may have forced a change of pace based on the whims of an unprepared audience member.
An Evening with Aitor Basauri
"I am not a clown, I'm an idiot." - Aitor Basauri.
First, let me admit that is not an exact quote from Aitor Basauri's Q&A session on Tuesday night (None of the quotes I contribute to him are exact, as I was listening and laughing not taking detailed notes). However, I believe that sentiment was generally expressed and Aitor would likely stand by it. Second, I would also like to admit that I have some personal bias, as I have taken Aitor's week-long intensive workshop and I believe he is a fantastically supportive teacher who has a mind perfectly balanced between his light and dark personas.
Regretfully, I have yet to see Aitor perform with his famous SpyMonkey troupe, but listening to him describe their history and style, which he refers to as simply "funny theatre," reminds me of my own journey to discover clown. Like many of us, he began with a desire to be a serious actor, but his attempts were met instead with laughter. After taking this abuse for some time, he accepted his place onstage as an idiot and sought out a teacher to help him to become. . .a better idiot. That teacher came in the way of Phillippe Gaulier. Studying with him, Aitor learned the Art of Clown, and with friends he made there, he set out to finally be a Professional Idiot.
I have always enjoyed Aitor's frankness. Rather than putting forth any great philosophical theory (which he probably could bullshit his way through since he once was a philosophy student), he states his goal simply and concisely, "I want to make people laugh." Clowning, specifically where it speaks to playing games, having fun and sharing your pleasure with the audience, is just his tool to make people laugh. Ask him "how do you become a good clown?" and he responds "Get up and try something fun. If people laugh, then it's good. If they don't, it's shit."
While this simplicity may not give you much insight into exactly how to have fun, or break through emotional barriers, or discover your inner clown, it does speak to one of the most important aspects of clowning. Practice. Listening to Aitor describe how he and SpyMonkey build a show, it sounds like great fun, but also great work. Spending weekends locked up struggling through ideas on their feet. Pulling in directors and writers to help craft beauty out of the dark inner workings of their minds (sex and the grotesque are the playground of SpyMonkey). Then spending a month working and polishing material, so that they are sharp and ready for an audience. This is not the description of a group that rehearses once or twice a week, and spends half their time talking. This is a group of do-ers and workers. Most of all, it is a group that seems to know how to play with each other, so that they can share their experiences of fun with their audience.
We often spend so much time in our heads thinking about how to do things perfectly. It's wonderful when an idiot can come along and give you a quick reality check.
"It's not really something you can talk about. You just have to do it." - Aitor Basauri
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