Viva Brighton Issue #58 December 2017
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CIRCUS<br />
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Acrobuffos<br />
The lingua franca of clowning<br />
“I call it feeding a dragon,” Christina Gelsone says<br />
fondly of her and husband Seth Bloom’s new project,<br />
Air Play. The pair, otherwise known as the New<br />
York-based clowning troupe Acrobuffos, perform<br />
without words but their stories are dazzlingly<br />
evocative. “You start out with this cute little egg and<br />
then it becomes this massive thing that’s bigger than<br />
you.” The ‘egg’ in question became a whimsical meld<br />
of dance, clowning and circus, underpinned by the<br />
sculptural artistry of Daniel Wurtzel.<br />
“When we saw these beautiful moving air<br />
sculptures, we reached out to Daniel. In circus,<br />
aerialists and jugglers do wonderful things in the<br />
air: clowns are there to ground you, to bring you<br />
back to humanity after these stunning feats. It was<br />
a puzzle to marry this visual high art and popular<br />
entertainment together.” Seth’s laugh echoes his<br />
wife’s. “Years of bashing our heads against the wall,<br />
experimenting, trying to see what would work.”<br />
“So,” I say, sheepishly, warming up to what seems<br />
an inevitable question. “How exactly does someone<br />
become a clown?”<br />
“There’s a huge range of clowns – those who perform<br />
at birthday parties in wigs, Charlie Chaplin<br />
and Harold Lloyd on film, or clowns like David<br />
Shiner and Bill Irwin who don’t wear makeup or<br />
floppy shoes. But we want to make contact with the<br />
public so they can laugh,” Seth explains, “And, we<br />
don’t speak. When you don’t say anything, people<br />
have to pay attention in a different way – to watch<br />
to understand what’s going on. It allows us to create<br />
a different poetic space for the audience.”<br />
“You haven’t answered the question!” It’s a shame<br />
that Christina’s laugh isn’t bottled and used in every<br />
show. “I started as a dancer. Seth started as a juggler.<br />
And then we were clown partners before the<br />
kissing started… We’re lucky; we’re going on tour<br />
for 200 days but not leaving anyone behind. Home<br />
Photo by Florence Montmare<br />
is wherever we are – we can work anywhere and eat<br />
all the world’s great food.”<br />
A worthwhile reason for choosing any profession;<br />
but how does the world today feel about clowns?<br />
“The ‘big stuff’ is funny everywhere – falling<br />
down, getting spit on by water, slapstick, chases.”<br />
Seth muses, “It’s the small jokes that change culturally.<br />
In the US the rhythm of comedy is quick,<br />
but in Germany we can slow down, people are<br />
more patient, and in Spain and Portugal people<br />
love silent clowns.”<br />
“In Korea,” Christina adds, “they’re so effervescent;<br />
the audience giggles at the tiniest things. Air<br />
Play is made for the whole world – but it might<br />
be American at its very roots, like musical theatre.<br />
People put strange food on their bagels here, they<br />
mix everything up; the show is a melting pot of<br />
forms. What’s really exciting,” she enthuses, as if<br />
the prospect of soaring umbrellas, dancing kites and<br />
a giant snow globe weren’t enough, “is that we’re<br />
customising the stage at the Dome, clearing out the<br />
area where people usually sit and building most of<br />
the stage there – so there’s a semi-circle around us.<br />
It’ll feel just like the circus.” Amy Holtz<br />
<strong>Brighton</strong> Dome, 21st-26th <strong>December</strong><br />
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