Gertrude Berg-one of the first women to create, write, produce, and star in a long-running hit comedy
Berg’s radio show was 15-minutes per episode. The show ran for 20 years. The show was possibly the first ‘sit-com” which I propose is a genre of Clown. Sit-com is very often great clowning. As has been some of the best of sketch-comedy.
“Gertrude Berg was an American actress, screenwriter, and producer. A pioneer of classic radio, she was one of the first women to create, write, produce, and star in a long-running hit when she premiered her serial comedy-drama The Rise of the Goldbergs (1929), later known as The Goldbergs. Berg became inextricably identified as Molly Goldberg, the big-hearted matriarch of her fictional Bronx family… She wrote nearly all the show’s radio episodes (more than 5,000) plus a Broadway adaptation, Me and Molly (1948). … In 1951, Berg won the first ever Emmy Award for Lead Actress in a Television Series in her twentieth year of playing the role. The show would stay in production for five more years”. (online source)
CLOWN CODE – PART 3 – CLOWN THINKING
“Stańczyk during a ball at the court of Queen Bona in the face of the loss of Smolensk” by Jan Stańczyk
Part 1 and Part 2 of CLOWN CODE present the Foundation Principles. The Foundation Principles of CLOWN CODE in PRACTICE are integrated within the exercises of The Four Articulations for Performance.
CLOWN CODE Foundation Principles illuminate The Inner World of A Clown.
Essential to that inner world is the Clown’s Awareness.
The clown’s awareness foremost is in and of the Clown’s body and awareness; of their body in Space and in Time.
Another aspect of the Inner World of A Clown is how the Clown thinks.
How Does A Clown Think?
The Foundation Principles of CLOWN CODE focus on awareness in the Body, in Space and in Time. That is thinking about, being conscious of what one is actually doing and how one is moving in space.
Additionally, in The Four Articulations the 4th Articulation is Space-Time Continuum i.e. How A Clown Thinks in Action. The same template, The Four Articulations, WILL assist a Classical Actor, Director, and Teacher; and, will work with and enhance any other performance method.
Thinking has two key aspects: 1) as mentioned one’s awareness consciously of how one is moving and what one is doing; and 2) I am referring to one’s Imagination. The imagination involves active creativity and spontaneity as well as one’s subconscious integrated with one’s physicality along with fellow players and the audience.
The Foundation Principles of CLOWN CODE as per blogs Part 1 & 2, as well as CLOWN SECRET assist the performer – veteran or novice – to concentrate on the exercise’s instructions first and foremost.
Soon, with just a little bit of REGULAR practice via – concentrating on the technical aspects of any of the physical-creative exercise’s listed – the awareness adjusts to incorporate one’s imagination and spontaneity.
NOTE: Each exercise in The Four Articulations has clear, explicit, simple instructions.
Yet there is an open possibility for one’s creativity to flow directly towards endless possibilities.
The system teaches one to trigger the imagination either immediately or within seconds. For example via The a-b-c-d-e Principle. That is presented in CLOWN CODE parts 1 & 2 and in CLOWN SECRET.
In The Four Articulations the first three Articulations – Body, Space, Time – provide the Foundation and grounding for one’s spontaneous Imagination. The spontaneous imagination begins particularly after the two physical sections as mentioned in Part 1 and 2 of CLOWN CODE and in the book CLOWN SECRET. The two physical sections are: The Three Loosening; and, Core Mechanics.
In professional performance work the Imagination needs to be embodied.
Only when the Imagination is embodied can material be created in a practical and useful way to thus enable one to later be able to rehearse, hone, edit and polish performance material known as Acts, gags, routines, choreography, or shows.
I think that the inner world of a Clown is a mystery. One which many people have tried to conceptualize via artworks such as: paintings, literature, theatre and films.
Just a few examples include the mountebank and commedia paintings by Picasso; and the book by Diane Keaton Clown Paintings; and films such as: The Greatest Show on Earth (Cecil B. DeMille); La Strada (Federico Fellini); Gycklarens Afton (Ingmar Bergman) – and 1000s of other examples in Arts and Literature. That includes the Opera – I Pagliacci; and plays such as A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Many years ago I created a variety of experimental clown theatre pieces which explored different aspects of the inner world of Clowns. Some of those works include: A Clown’s House; Passing Time; Absurd Moods; Reflextions; The Battler, and Chaplin’s Eye, etc.
For decades as a Director and Teacher often some of the most valuable things I ‘say’ are the things that I don’t say.
That is referring to a non-verbal way that a teacher or director can support the actor/clown to forge their own inner world.
OFTEN in rehearsal in particular when an actor is doing great or discovering something I won’t say anything about what they just did. Why? If it was good enough to use or try again the actor has to be able and willing to REPEAT what they just did. Many times. Note that in French a rehearsal is a “repetition”.
There is a world of difference between ‘just doing’ an improvisation versus working to create material for performance. Improvisation is a great tool in the working process. But improvisation without an objective to create clear bits, gags, acts etc. usually general improvisation will not create a show.
Naturally some people video their improvisations and review the videos seeking possible usable bits or ideas.
However, importantly, a Clown has to be able to REPEAT material just like a dancer, writer, choreographer, and Actor.
In the tradition of Clowning in the Circus an inexperienced Clown would always learn by repeating a known role within a well-honed well established routine. Through rehearsal, training, then performances in front of the public the novice clown’s character would gradually begin to emerge. Invariably the novice Clown would have been someone with a hard core physicality.
In my teaching, after people are very familiar with The Four Articulations for Performance, I then have several set and established clown routines so that we can replicate the actual traditional way that one learns to clown i.e. by learning established routines.
Although established routines at first seem complete, what we study is how the Clown must enliven the material. For example, with one very short duet routine with a group of 20 actors divided into 10 pairs, it will soon become obvious that the very same routine make the viewers, i.e. other participants laugh even though they know the routine. Such routines really show that the material needs to be executed mechanically but also must be INTERPRETED individually.
“A clown clowns with whatever they are doing” is principle in CLOWN CODE. “A Clown is INTERPRETING whatever they are doing”. INTERPRETING involves the IMAGINATION, the INTELLECT, and one’s SPONTANIETY.
To do the proscribed routine one must be THINKING the whole time. As mention in Parts 1 & 2, and in CLOWN SECRET, the CORE MECHANICS Movement #6 The Twist Choreography, the actor must learn to ANTICIPATE.
Therefore the THINKING that a Clown or Actor must develop is to at once think about what one IS doing as well as ANTICIPATE what one is about to do.
The whole of The Four Articulations gives anyone the chance to PRACTICE those ideas throughout The Four Articulations.
Photo – Liesl Karlstadt and Karl Valentin theatre and film clowns of Munich
In the first hour’s meeting to start our 10-weeks of training in mime and comedy at what was then calledThe Dell’arte School of Mime & Comedy; i.e. clowning, the Founder – Carlo Mazzone-Clementi told our group: that the clowns who we know who are most popular took 10-15 years before their character as we the Public know them became formulated.
In Clown one moves from improvisation to Creation. Cirque du Soleil (CDS) calls their challenging 9 months rehearsal: “Creation”. MANY things change during those 9 months. Even in the CDS acrobatic acts, CDS has quite often created new equipment which means the physics and mathematics need to be recalibrated and continually refined until the magical optimal height, width, thickness etc. of equipment is found via construction and its refinement. The height and distance etc. defines which version of a trick is scientifically possible and probable to be repeated for the proposed CDS ideal of a MINIMUM of 10 years doing about 300 performances per year.
In relation to CLOWN CODE – CLOWN THINKING I say – especially if one is seeking to create material for performance, “Don’t go faster than you can be in control”. That is drastically different than ‘just doing’ an exercise or improvisation.
“Don’t go faster than you can be in control”. That does not mean ‘go slow’!!!
Likewise I have said over the years 1000s of times to actors usually just before they go to start an exercise or a run-through rehearsal – “Take your time”. That does not mean ‘go slow’!!!!
On rare occasions, when necessary I will actually say “go slow”, if that is what I mean.
The Three Loosenings teach:
a) Use your whole body no matter what the exercise is; and,
b) Know at the same time how you are using different parts of the body – particularly the limbs, hands, fingers, eyes; and,
c) TEMPO. The very first exercise of The Four Articulations, that is the first of The Three Loosenings teaches a MAJOR SECRET IN CLOWNING i.e. TEMPO.
In that exercise one is choreographed to move from: normal > fast > slow and slow>normal>fast; and, fast>normal>slow – in that triple pattern non-stop for one minute or so.
That exercise and pattern gives the actor a chance to train themselves HOW to take your time.
Add with that a later exercise #2 of Core Mechanics i.e. The a-b-c-d-e Principle. THEN the TEMPO lesson embodied and practice in the first exercise is to be APPLIED, ADAPTED, USED in each of the Physical-Creative exercises such as in Seven Solos, Duets-Trio-Quartet; and Path of Honor.
Thus while one is improvising within any of my physical-creative exercises the actor/clown/participant is always encouraged to be “thinking on their feet”. Ready to respond, always feeling and sensing, always allowing the spontaneous to arise, yet, being in control. It is like sailing a small yacht. The elements of wind and current are whatever they are. However, one has to make ongoing ADJUSTMENTS thinking your feet.
In workshops and rehearsals I often pause just for a few moments or minutes to propose my main question to a group or a soloist in an exercise: “What did you notice? Anything new, different, or interesting?”. Such simple, even naïve questions are crucial for each person and artist. To notice is to think. Noticing, often, precedes thinking – so to speak.
Just imaging any system of the psyche such as Astrological types or archetypes should remind us that we each think differently one person from the next. Archetypes by the way can and have been defined numerous different ways.
There is much more to say about CLOWN THINKING according to and in relation CLOWN CODE.
As was pointed out in Parts 1 & 2, and here in Part 3 – I am offering the most valuable and most practical points which can be readily grasped by anyone willing to invest a minimal of time towards learning the exercises and THINKING about the Principles involved in each exercise.
Below is CLOWN CODE Part 1 with Part 2 at the end.
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