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Your Physical Comedy Christmas Stocking Stuffer

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[post 344]

There's no big present this year, but here are a few items for your Christmas stocking. They're small, but if you click on them they get bigger!














A Hallmark card by way of Karen Gersch:












By way of Pat Cashin's clownalley.net.












And one corny joke:

A juggler, driving to his next performance, is stopped by the police. “What are these matches and lighter fluid doing in your car?” asks the cop.
“I`m a juggler and I juggle flaming torches in my act.”
“Oh yeah?” says the doubtful cop. “Let's see you do it.” The juggler gets out and starts juggling the blazing torches masterfully.

A couple driving by slows down to watch. “Wow,” says the driver to his wife. “I`m glad I quit drinking. Look at the test they`re giving nowadays!”
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Merry merry ho ho ho!  —jt


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Upcoming Workshop:  Chicago Contemporary Circus Festival, January 8, 9 and 10.  Click here for complete information.

My Excellent European Circus Weekend

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[post 345]

To us Americans, Europe can seem the Promised Land for all things circus, clown, and variety theatre. Some of my quests there for the holy grail of physical comedy have ended in disappointment, but this fall I managed to put together, between teaching engagements, a long weekend encompassing Paris, Budapest, and Vienna that was as marvelously circus-rific as you can get. A few notes, photos, and videos:

Cirque Gruss (Paris)

I've been to Paris at least fifteen times, even lived there once for nine months, but somehow never in the fall, which is why I had until now missed the Cirque National Alexis Gruss, currently celebrating its 40th season. This cirque à l'ancienne is dedicated to preserving the traditions of the classical European one-ring spectacle. Gruss senior comes from a family of horse people, and this year's show — presented in a handsome tent in the Bois de Boulogne — certainly embodies that tradition, harkening back 245 years to Philip Astley and the circus's equine roots.

There's pretty much every horse act imaginable, my favorites being two jugglers passing six clubs while standing on separate horses galloping around the ring, and the show-stopping Maud Florees atop two steeds leading seventeen others around and around at breakneck speed, each horse having entered the fray between her legs as she grabs its reins. Beautiful and amazing.

Maud Florees
The clowning, not surprisingly, sticks to classic gags and is on the tame side, but the material is handled more than ably by Francesco Fratellini (yes, a descendent of the legendary trio) and Tony Florees. Another "clownesque" act is an ensemble hat juggling numéro, performed to a medley of tunes from the Broadway musical, Barnum. Very sweet and delightful, though it could have been wilder, and I was disappointed by the absence of (long-distance) hat tossing.


The show is framed as a bit of a history lesson, beginning with Alexis Gruss explaining the old traditions to his grandson, and one leaves the tent feeling both entertained and educated. From the horses to the clowns to the slack wire to the elephant act to the acrobats to the Wild West act, everything here is top-notch and a must-see. An American couple I met there, who had stumbled upon the circus while biking through the Bois, thought it was the best they had ever seen (and they'd seen quite a few). I'm not sure what "best" means, but it's damn good! Here's a short French promo video clip which, unfortunately, doesn't show all that much...






Cirque D'Hiver (Bouglione)




The Cirque d'Hiver is the lone standing permanent circus building in Paris, and it's a beauty. When I first saw a circus presented there by the storied Bouglione family a few years ago, I was blown away and was sure I was going to write a glowing blog post about it, for it was a show that lived up to my fantasies of the classical European circus. But sometimes I run out of time, and it never happened. I think that show was perhaps better than this year's edition, but this one — titled Phénomenal— is very good as well.

Here's a video preview:




This show is less themed and less nostalgic than that of Gruss. There are horses and jugglers and acrobats, but also tigers, a "wheel of death," a magic act, and more time allotted to clowning. The  Fumagalli clowns are a strong presence throughout, and the energetic "burlesque" duo of Bobylev and his wife Olga serve as a good complement. The Fumagalli— in this case Fumagalli and his brother Darix and two other performers — do their delicious "Fumaboys" parody of a teeterboard act, though as physical comedy I think it could go a lot further.


Here's a video of one version of "Fumaboys" from the French television show, Le Plus Grand Cabaret du Monde.



The brothers also do the classic "haunted house" entrée, which I must admit did not really work for me. IMHO, the more that clowns stick to stuff that can plausibly take place in the circus ring, the more effective they are, rather than enacting a story that takes us out of the immediate experience.







The Budapest Circus

I had to fly from Paris to Vienna for work, and the air fare wasn't cheap, so I figured I might as well land in Budapest instead and throw myself into a whirlwind 18-hour visit before heading up the Danube. After all, I was curious to see if anything had changed since my only other time there — in 1968! Lovely city, lovely visit, but I was especially excited about squeezing in a visit to the Nagy Cirkusz ("Great Circus") in City Park. In Latvia last year I skipped out of a meeting early so I could see the Riga Circus, hoping it had preserved some of the high quality of the Soviet Circus, but was pretty disappointed. Not so in Budapest, whose circus was indeed international and came close to matching the best Paris had to offer — at half the price. As the English-language program proclaims, "Everything is in harmony, ovation is inevitable!" You can see a summary of all the acts here.


What stood out for me, though, was the strong role the clowns were given throughout the production.
It's not just that they had a lot of time for their numéros, but that they were constantly in and out, bouncing off the ringmaster and serving as the audience's representatives in the ring. They are "Steve & Jones" from Italy, and as you can see from this photo, their look is modern. Their clowning, however, is a nice blend of classical entrées and parodies of the latest fads (e.g., Gangnam style).This photo, for example, shows them doing the very familiar bit of one clown interrupting the other's attempt at a musical solo.  Steve is  in the auguste role and Jones is his "whiteface" partner, just without the makeup.

And here's a video of them doing a pseudo-acrobatic act, though I'm not sure where this was shot.




As a bonus, the corridors of the Nagy Cirkusz are lined with paintings on circus themes, not to be missed. Here are a few low-rez examples, shot through glass from my phone's camera...






The Vienna Circus & Clown Museum


Sunday I was on a train to Vienna and Monday I got a personalized tour of the Vienna Circus Museum, led by two of its directors, Robert Kaidy and Michael Swatosch, all arranged by famed Snitzel clown Anne Netti (thank you very much!). This is a small museum, but it has a stage where performances are held regularly and it is of course jam-packed with some great circus artifacts and posters. It also houses an impressive library and is expanding a lower level that will be its magic wing. They are not open every day, so if you're just visiting Vienna as a tourist you might want to contact them in advance to make sure it will be open when you're there.

A few photos:


Charlie Rivel display



The Francescos


Life-size statue of Jango Edwards (heh heh)
Bed of Nails  (The things I do for this blog!)


With Michael Swatosch (left) and Robert Kaidy

John Cleese on Creativity

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[post 346]

Food for thought for the new year: two versions of a lecture on creativity by John Cleese, the silly-walking Monty Python and Fawlty Towers star. The first (and stronger) video is a full-length 1991 talk. The second is from the 2009 Creativity World Forum and may just be an excerpt of a longer presentation.



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“You cannot be playful if you’re frightened that moving in some direction will be wrong, something you shouldn’t have done. You’re either free to play or you’re not. As Alan Watts puts it, you can’t be spontaneous within reason. So you’ve got to risk saying things that are silly and illogical and wrong. And the best way to get the confidence to do that is to know that while you’re being creative, nothing is wrong. There is no such thing as a mistake, and any drivel may lead to the breakthrough.” — John Cleese
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You also might want to check out this Slate article, which picks up on one of Cleese's points, that a lot of people — e.g., bosses and teachers — don't actually like or encourage creativity.

Book Report: Scapa's Clowns

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[post 347]

Clowns make great subjects for paintings, but what I like about the clown cartoons of Scapa is that you get the clown in action — perfect for a physical comedy blog. I discovered these over thirty years ago, at the time in the form of a coffee-table book, which has long since gone missing. I hadn't been able to find a copy since then, but was thrilled when my sweetheart Riley surprised me with a new (smaller format) edition of it for Christmas.

Here are a few of my favorites...









This last one Fred Yockers and I used in one of our publicity brochures.


There are 12 days to Christmas, so it's not too late to get this for a gift! You can find this on the various Amazon national sites and elsewhere, so shop around for the best price. 

Les Salvadori

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[post 348]

This clip of the Italian "Les Salvadori" clowns is from a Hollywood Palace broadcast dated January 4, 1964 and, yes, that is Bing Crosby introducing them. Lots of physical comedy moves, mostly involving costumes, and I suspect they had tons more in their repertoire than they got to show in the 3½-minutes allotted them. Thanks to Raffaele De Ritis for the link, and be sure to visit his Novelties & Wonders blog right here!



You can see the entire hour-long Hollywood Palace show here.

Superman 100th Birthday Salute

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[post 349]

We are of course talking about my childhood hero, the original television Superman, George Reeves.

Reeves was no physical comedian, but he couldn't "fly" without knowing how to do a tiger leap through a window!


But since this is a physical comedy blogopedia, check out Reeves in a lighter vein as Superman in an episode of I Love Lucy (January 14, 1957), where he makes an athletic entrance to little Ricky's birthday party:


You can watch the entire episode via Hulu, free but with a few commercials at the beginning. Just click here. (If you don't have time for the whole thing, just fast forward to 19:30, where Superman first comes to the rescue.)


The Playful and Paper-full World of Mimirichi

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[post 350]




The prize-winning Mimirichi clown troupe from Kiev is best known for the amazing visual effects they create with large sheets of white paper, but everything they do combines acrobatics and slapstick with a joyful playfulness. Three examples:












Thanks to Angela Delfini for the link!

Cut to the Chase: The Police vs. Rémi Gaillard

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[post 351]

Just over 100 years ago ago, Mack Sennett hit cinema pay dirt and spawned American silent film comedy when he introduced audiences to the hapless Keystone Cops, forever the butt of the joke. Chaplin and Keaton and their fellow silent film comedians likewise mocked police incompetence and, more politically, condemned at least implicitly their treatment of the underdog. Nowadays such attitudes are rarer in film comedy, but certainly not in the work of French prankster and provocateur Rémi Gaillard, whose YouTube videos have had over a billion hits.

Here's one of his most popular compilations, showing his joy at taunting the police in segments reminiscent of those early chase scenes where the cops were doing all the chasing. "I do it for France!" Gaillard is fond of shouting. Ha!



You can see many, many more videos at his web site, and of course buy tons of anarchistic merchandise.

Sibling RIvalry

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[post 352]

When I use the term "physical comedy," I'm usually thinking full-body involvement, and I often cite not only comedians such as Buster Keaton and Bill Irwin, but dance troupes such as Pilobolus and Momix. Lately I've taken to calling it "(Very) Physical Comedy" to distinguish it from certain clown work that, though mostly non-verbal and often making very imaginative use of objects, is relatively stationary.

Here's another example from the dance world, "Brothers," choreographed and performed by David Parsons and Daniel Ezralow, and still in the repertoire of the Parsons Dance Company. The partnering is brilliant and full of little comic moments, though the Stravinsky music tends to bring out the drama more than the humor.



Thanks to Riley Kellogg for the link!

Contemporary Eric's Contemporary Dance Tutorial

Eccentric Dance: Jack Stanford (and Hal Sherman)

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[post 354]

Another scrumptious treat from our resident eccentric dance expert, Betsy Baytos. I don't know much about Jack Stanford, but the Pathé site where this 1935 clip comes from at least explains that he is dancing to the Hungarian Rhapsody (Franz Liszt)... but the web version is just a "preview" without the audio.
(Click image to play.)




Here's a much shorter clip of Stanford, but you do get the music, and he's even singing.




Comments on the Pathé site feature this pointed exchange between descendants of Stanford and of American eccentric dancer Hal Sherman:
  • Well, it certainly looks like Hal Sherman's dance routine to me! It's almost step-for-Moonwalk-step.

    Alice (Sherman) Simpson
    DramaQueenLA 3rd Jun 2012
  • In response to the above comment, can I quote the review from The Brighton and Hove Herald circa 1928 of the show at The Brighton Hippodrome with The Houston Sisters.
    "Jack Stanford is surely the greatest eccentric dancer of the day. He is at one time amazing and uproariously funny. If you have seen Ben Blue, you have seen good eccentric dancing. If you have seen Hal Sherman, you have seen eccentric dancing almost as good as it can be. But not until you have seen Jack Stanford have you seen eccentric dancing at its amazing best.
    The original cutting of this is in his personal scrapbook, along with his reviews from The Folies Bergere in 1927 with Josephine Baker, The Scala Berlin, The Royal Variety Performance at The London Palladium in 1931 and so many more.
    Jill Stanford 10th Jan 2014
And who is Hal Sherman? Here's another (silent) Pathé clip, this one from 1926. Sherman appears just before the 5-minute mark. (Click image to play.)

Christian Spuck: Le Grand Pas de Deux

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[post 355]

This very funny parody of a ballet pas de deux, choreographed by Christian Spuck of the Stuttgarter Ballet, has apparently become a repertoire favorite. Here are two versions. The first, from the year 2000, features Julia Krämer and Robert Tewsley
, and is performed in front of a live audience. The second, with ballerina Alicia Amatriain (male dancer not identified), has no audience but better lighting and tighter camerawork. Spoiler Alert: Neither has a dancing cow, much to my disappointment.





Thanks to Ira Seidenstein for the link!

Sid Caesar (1922–2014)

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[post 356]

The king is dead. You can read the whole NY Times obituary here and my personal reminiscences and tribute here. Long live the king — on DVD, streaming video, and technologies yet to be invented!


Your Valentine's Day Physical Comedy "Chocolates"

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[post 357]

It was fun throwing some of my favorite physical comedy visuals at you in my Christmas Stocking post back in December, so here are 14 (get it?) more recent goodies that I've exclusively licensed from the finest internet vendors for your Valentine's Day gift. (Click on any image to enlarge.)






























Thanks to all my FB friends I stole from, and bisous bisous to everyone!

George Campo, the Continental Eccentric Dancer

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[post 358]

If you've ever taken a class with me, you know I'm fond of physical comedy involving chairs, tables, doors, stairs, etc., so you can imagine how happy I was to see this comedy chair piece featuring eccentric dancer George Campo. The clip is from a 1932 film, which Pathé lists as La Boite a Matalots, which I take to be a triple misspelling of La Boîte à Matelots ("Sailor's Club"). I don't know anything about Campo, but he does appear (if it's the same performer) as a lead actor in the 1938 film Murder with Reservations and — 35 years after this clip! — doing a "vaudeville style act" on the Ed Sullivan Show (season 20, episode 25; Feb. 26, 1967).

In terms of acrobatics and flexibility, Campo reminds me a lot of Lupino Lane. Some of Campo's moves — such as stealing the newspaper while diving over the chair —are now "standard," but who knows if that was the case in 1932. The no-hands back roll to a free headstand is something I first saw Tony Azito do in this clip, but that's from the 1980s — and Azito "cheated" by pushing off the ground with one hand. What is impressive here is the number of moves, the smooth flow, and the musical accompaniment. Campo's woman partner has a negligible role, so the comedy is not as strong as it could be, but all-in-all top notch and very delightful.

The intertitle reads: "Life is full of ups and downs for George Campo, the Continental Eccentric dancer."


Here's a question: why is it that they release all these Ed Sullivan Show themed compilations (rock 'n' roll; Broadway musicals; Muppets; etc.) but no DVD with all of the incredible vaudeville acts that he showcased??

Finally, you will not be surprised to learn that the Campo clip comes by way of this blogopedia's resident eccentric dance expert, Betsy Baytos, whose documentary film on the subject is nearing completion. Thank you, and yahoo!


Parents Urge Son To Invest In Improv Comedy Education

James Thiérrée: On the Difficulty of Sitting Down

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[post 360]

After my post on eccentric dancer George Campo's incredible chair routine, which came by way of Betsy Baytos, I got a link by way of Ted Shapiro to a chair piece performed by James Thiérrée. Well, sort of a chair piece, because it's about his near-futile efforts to get his rag-doll body to somehow ooze into a proper seated position on a chair. Turns out all he really needed was for a strong woman to administer a swift kick to the seat of his pants.

For those of you unfamiliar with Thiérrée, he is a grandson of Charlie Chaplin and sister of Aurélia Thiérrée, and both of them have (separately) created and starred in numerous full-length pieces of visual theatre that are all rich in original physical comedy. See links below....



Links:
• Articles about Thiérrée reproduced on Pat Cashin's clownalley.net blog.
• My blog post: James Thiérrée in Raoul
• My blog post:  Aurélia's Oratorio at the Berkeley Rep

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The (Very) Physical Comedy Institute

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[post 361]

This is a project I'm producing this summer. It will involve nine or ten top teachers and a maximum of 20 students (10 in any class), and I think it will be excellent, exciting, and a lot of fun. It's got its own web site at veryphysicalcomedy.blogspot.com, but here are the basics...
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If you want to make your physicality funnier or your comedy more physical, then you’ve come to the right place. This institute is an intensive two-week laboratory, a unique opportunity to dive into the physical comedian’s tool chest, and have a whole lot of fun in the process.

What You Get:
Thirteen very full days of physical comedy training with eight to ten of the top teachers in the field, in classes with a maximum of ten students each. Work morning, noon, and night and for two weeks live in a community of people you are bound to fall for!

When:
Arrive Sunday afternoon, June 8th; leave Sunday morning, June 22nd. Four classes a day plus evening activities. We even work on the weekend! Never a dull moment....

Where:
Photo: Jim Moore (VaudeVisuals.com)

At the legendary Celebration Barn Theater in beautiful South Paris, Maine — that's Maine, USA, not France! — about 45 minutes from the Portland  airport (Portland, Maine — not Oregon!). Lodging and meals available at the Barn.

Classes:
We are able to confirm the following teachers and classes and expect to be adding a couple more before long.

Leonard Pitt (Berkeley):  Bringing the Mask to Life

John Towsen (New York):  Physical Comedy: Old Techniques, New Applications

Leland Faulkner (Maine):   Physicality and Comedy in Magic

Joseph Herscher (New Zealand / Brooklyn):  Kinetic Scenography: Human Rube Goldberg Machines

Karen Gersch (New York):  Acrobatic Comedy Partnering

Sigfrido Aguilar (Mexico):  Comic/Dramatic Movement or Teatro Corpóreo Cómico

Don Rieder (Canada):  Give & Receive — a Performance Lab

Drew Richardson (Virginia) & Leland Faulkner:  DIY Silent Movies

For more information:









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