CLOWN
A clown today is one of various types of comedic performers, on stage, television, in the circus, rodeo, children's & birthday party entertainers and buskers. Though not every clown is readily identifiable by appearance alone, clowns frequently appear in makeup and costume, as well as typically unusually large footwear, oversized or otherwise outlandish clothing, big or otherwise unusual nose, and enacting humorous sketches, usually in the interludes between circus acts. The clown's humor today is often visual and includes many elements of physical comedy or slapstick humor but not exclusively. For instance, Wavy Gravy's comedy is often cerebral, spiritual, or even political in nature.
The word clown comes from words meaning "clot" or "clod" which came also to mean "clumsy fellow", according to the Oxford English Dictionary. Some general fears of clowns can be classified under Meierphobia Bret.
Clown is both a noun and a verb, and can also be an adjective (clown bike, clown shoes, clown white, clown gag and so on). Clown is also used to refer to anyone who provides entertainment in a clownish manner. Among professional clowns, "clown" often refers to the character portrayed, rather than the performer. This usage is somewhat rare outside of the professional clown and/or theatrical community. In anthropology, the word clown refers to a person who wears an outrageous costume while functioning as an entertaining social critic.
Clowning is a form of entertainment which has appeared in some manner in virtually every culture. In most cultures the clown is a ritual character associated with festival or rites of passage and is often very different from the most popular western form. In Europe, up until as late as the 19th century the clown was a typical everyday character, and often appeared in carnivals. The performance is symbolic of liminality - being outside the rules of regular society the clown is able to subvert the normal order, and this basic premise is contemporarily used by many activists to point out social absurdity.
A popular early form of clown was the fool, a role that can be traced back as far as ancient Egypt and appears as the first card in the tarot deck. Most fools suffered from some physical or mental deformity, and were given to the local landlord as a charge, because their families were unable to look after them, and the surrounding communities often feared them. They were the butt of jokes, and their masters had the power to inflict violence upon them and even take their lives. However, being perceived 'idiots' they were often the only people in court who enjoyed free speech, and during the 16th century, especially in France, actors began to train as fools often in order to have the ability to make satirical comment. This is mainly where we get the contemporary idea of the court jester, immortalised and romanticised by actors such as Danny Kaye in The Court Jester. There is evidence of the 'wise fool' similar in function to the jester in many other cultures.
Clowns of this era and eras previous to it were also associated with jugglers, who were seen as pariahs of society alongside actors, prostitutes and lepers, and thus (at least in Europe) wore stripes, or motley - cloth associated with marginalised people such as the condemned, with strong associations with the devil. Jugglers often used clowning techniques, and the later court jesters often danced, performed acrobatics and juggled.
During the 16th century the Commedia dell'arte also became a huge influence on perceptions of the clown in Europe, and influence which passed through pantomime, into vaudeville and on to the touring circuses of the 19th and 20th centuries. The Commedia took influences from the grotesque masked clowns of carnivals and mysteries, and began in market places as a way to sell vegetables. It became incredibly popular throughout Europe amongst both the general public and the courts. The stock characters of the commedia originally included the Zanni - peasant clowns, Pantalone, the old Miser, Il Dottore - The Banal Doctor, and then grew from there to incorporate the Lovers, Arlecchino, Pedrolino, and Brighella, who have survived into the twentieth century in one form or another.
There are three basic traditional types of clowns, The whiteface, the auguste and the character. In addition, there is also a character-type called the contra-auguste. In circus, each of these types can wear a makeup that is either neat (slightly exaggerated) or grotesque (wildly exaggerated). There is no single absolute definition of what constitutes each clown type, with international performers encompassing an extremely wide range of styles, not to mention the classical and modern variants of each type.
Whiteface
Classic Appearance
Traditionally, the whiteface clown uses "clown white" makeup to cover his or her entire face and neck with none of the underlying flesh color showing. In the European whitefacemakeup, the ears are painted red. Features, in red and black, are delicate. He is traditionally costumed far more extravagantly than the other two clown types, sometimes wearing the ruffled collar and pointed hat which typify the stereotypical "clown suit".
Character
The whiteface character-type is often serious, all-knowing (even if not particularly smart), bossy, and cocky. He is the ultimate authority figure. He serves the role of "straight-man" and sets up situations that can be turned funny.
to be continue....
A clown today is one of various types of comedic performers, on stage, television, in the circus, rodeo, children's & birthday party entertainers and buskers. Though not every clown is readily identifiable by appearance alone, clowns frequently appear in makeup and costume, as well as typically unusually large footwear, oversized or otherwise outlandish clothing, big or otherwise unusual nose, and enacting humorous sketches, usually in the interludes between circus acts. The clown's humor today is often visual and includes many elements of physical comedy or slapstick humor but not exclusively. For instance, Wavy Gravy's comedy is often cerebral, spiritual, or even political in nature.
The word clown comes from words meaning "clot" or "clod" which came also to mean "clumsy fellow", according to the Oxford English Dictionary. Some general fears of clowns can be classified under Meierphobia Bret.
Clown is both a noun and a verb, and can also be an adjective (clown bike, clown shoes, clown white, clown gag and so on). Clown is also used to refer to anyone who provides entertainment in a clownish manner. Among professional clowns, "clown" often refers to the character portrayed, rather than the performer. This usage is somewhat rare outside of the professional clown and/or theatrical community. In anthropology, the word clown refers to a person who wears an outrageous costume while functioning as an entertaining social critic.
Clowning is a form of entertainment which has appeared in some manner in virtually every culture. In most cultures the clown is a ritual character associated with festival or rites of passage and is often very different from the most popular western form. In Europe, up until as late as the 19th century the clown was a typical everyday character, and often appeared in carnivals. The performance is symbolic of liminality - being outside the rules of regular society the clown is able to subvert the normal order, and this basic premise is contemporarily used by many activists to point out social absurdity.
A popular early form of clown was the fool, a role that can be traced back as far as ancient Egypt and appears as the first card in the tarot deck. Most fools suffered from some physical or mental deformity, and were given to the local landlord as a charge, because their families were unable to look after them, and the surrounding communities often feared them. They were the butt of jokes, and their masters had the power to inflict violence upon them and even take their lives. However, being perceived 'idiots' they were often the only people in court who enjoyed free speech, and during the 16th century, especially in France, actors began to train as fools often in order to have the ability to make satirical comment. This is mainly where we get the contemporary idea of the court jester, immortalised and romanticised by actors such as Danny Kaye in The Court Jester. There is evidence of the 'wise fool' similar in function to the jester in many other cultures.
Clowns of this era and eras previous to it were also associated with jugglers, who were seen as pariahs of society alongside actors, prostitutes and lepers, and thus (at least in Europe) wore stripes, or motley - cloth associated with marginalised people such as the condemned, with strong associations with the devil. Jugglers often used clowning techniques, and the later court jesters often danced, performed acrobatics and juggled.
During the 16th century the Commedia dell'arte also became a huge influence on perceptions of the clown in Europe, and influence which passed through pantomime, into vaudeville and on to the touring circuses of the 19th and 20th centuries. The Commedia took influences from the grotesque masked clowns of carnivals and mysteries, and began in market places as a way to sell vegetables. It became incredibly popular throughout Europe amongst both the general public and the courts. The stock characters of the commedia originally included the Zanni - peasant clowns, Pantalone, the old Miser, Il Dottore - The Banal Doctor, and then grew from there to incorporate the Lovers, Arlecchino, Pedrolino, and Brighella, who have survived into the twentieth century in one form or another.
There are three basic traditional types of clowns, The whiteface, the auguste and the character. In addition, there is also a character-type called the contra-auguste. In circus, each of these types can wear a makeup that is either neat (slightly exaggerated) or grotesque (wildly exaggerated). There is no single absolute definition of what constitutes each clown type, with international performers encompassing an extremely wide range of styles, not to mention the classical and modern variants of each type.
Whiteface
Classic Appearance
Traditionally, the whiteface clown uses "clown white" makeup to cover his or her entire face and neck with none of the underlying flesh color showing. In the European whitefacemakeup, the ears are painted red. Features, in red and black, are delicate. He is traditionally costumed far more extravagantly than the other two clown types, sometimes wearing the ruffled collar and pointed hat which typify the stereotypical "clown suit".
Character
The whiteface character-type is often serious, all-knowing (even if not particularly smart), bossy, and cocky. He is the ultimate authority figure. He serves the role of "straight-man" and sets up situations that can be turned funny.
to be continue....
posted by creationid at 4:50 AM
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