Peers of a clown
Kelly Apter brings out the inner clown at the heart of the multi-award winning Pig Iron Theatre Company.
‘ here‘s a certain kind of clown nerd. and we really I don‘t want to associate ourselves with them.‘ says Dan Rothenberg. the co-founder of Pig Iron Theatre Company. But as his laughter rings down the long distance line from Philadelphia PA. I suspect that Rothenberg‘s ill-feeling towards the clown fraternity stems from within. Fifteen minutes later he ‘fesses up: ‘I make fun of clown nerds. but in some ways. I am one.‘ Indeed. look at the evidence: Rothenberg studied with the clownmeister himself. Jacques Le Coq. at his influential mime school in Paris. And Pig Iron calls itself a ‘Dance. Clown. Theatre Ensemble‘.
But while there‘s no shying away from the C word. Rothenberg does have a point. Pig Iron has never been hooked on red noses. squirty flowers and over-sized shoes. Instead. it veers towards the more sophisticated approach. using clown techniques to engage an audience and explore narratives. ‘There are lots of different ways in which clown[ing| has made its way into our work. but we‘ve never done a pure clown show,‘ says Rothenberg. ‘Because there‘s a kind of standard clown show that comes out of Le Coq students and we really didn‘t want to do that.‘
Or rather they didn‘t until now. Back at the Fringe. after earlier successes with Gentlemen Volunteers and Shut Eye. Pig Iron has produced a bona tide red nose clown show. Flop promises all the blatant silliness of clowning. but with a twist — the cast are all women. One of Pig Iron‘s raisons d‘étre is collaborating with artists working outside its own remit. Which is where contemporary dancer Nicole Canuso and ex- tap dancer turned performance artist Lee Etzold come in. With no experience of clowning. the two women were empty vessels ready to be filled. Along with Rothenberg and fellow performer Emmanuelle Delpech. Canuso and Etzold travelled to France for two weeks of intensive training with another Le Coq graduate. By the end. Rothenberg had come up with the
idea for ‘a three-woman clown extravaganza about the end of
‘I MAKE FUN 0F CLOWN NERDS, BUT IN SOME WAYS I AM ONE'
the universe — our version of the Powerpuff Girls‘.
Pig lron‘s composer. James Sugg. set about creating an electronic score (‘no accordions!’ insisted Rothenberg). and the company carved out the tale of three girls who accidentally break time. ‘The girls are playing with the clock on their wall. and they realise they can move time forwards and backwards.‘ explains Rothenberg. Cue lots of tomfoolery. as the characters torture each other with their new-found powers until. inevitably. disaster strikes. ‘Suddenly the hands fall off. time completely stops and the world freezes.‘ says Rothenberg. ‘So they have to find a way to restart time.‘ Eventually. with a little help from visiting aliens proffering Stephen Hawking‘s A Brief History of Time. the girls assemble the necessary elements for another Big Bang.
All terribly silly and. if US critics are to be believed. extremely funny. And with only 1 l spoken words in the entire show. the company had its work cut out creating visual gags. Because Flop‘s underlying environmental story about playing around with the universe is wrapped up in what Rothenberg calls ‘a hundred obvious jokes‘. One of which is down to the performers‘ physical attributes — the three women range in height from 5‘1“ to 6‘ I“. each entering the stage through a door cut to their own size.
‘There‘s definitely a small. medium and large.‘ laughs Rothenberg. ‘We introduce the joke at the start. because they‘re all different sizes. but the punchline doesn‘t pay off until minute 47 — and it‘s a great joke.‘ Such comedic strategising has seen the American company win two Total Theatre awards. and endear itself to audiences at home and throughout Europe. with Flop in particular enjoying a cross- generational appeal. ‘lt‘s a show with a lot ofjoy in it.‘ says Rothenberg. ‘And because the people who are performing it are brilliant. but new to the clown world. it‘s still very fresh
and exciting.‘
Pleasance Courtyard, 556 6550, 6—30 Aug (not 10, 17, 24), 4.05pm, SIS-£10.