In 2,500 BC the pharaohs and ancient Chinese emperors were entertained by people disguised as clowns. In Greece, during the rites dedicated to the god Dionysus, poets wore masks with deformed smiles and expressions. In ancient Rome there were the archimimi, who funny imitated the deceased during funeral ceremonies. In the Middle Ages, jesters performed at court and could joke on anyone, including kings and nobles.
Within the world of anime, the clown is an evil character, ready to do anything to achieve his goal and feels no remorse for his actions.
We can remember Ciosa in Bia the challenge of magic which has the task of making the life of Bia, the protagonist, complicated; or Mad Pierrot in Cowboy Bebop who, once out of the laboratory in which he was created, kills several people; you can not forget Bagy in One Piece, the captain of the pirates, one of the most dangerous pirates in the eastern sea and can disassemble and reassemble his body without problems…
But are clowns as bad as anime wants us to believe?
With the help of Raffaele Pecoraro, aka Lello the clown, let’s try to better understand the figure of the clown and what leads to interpreting such a mysterious character.
How long have you been a clown and what prompted you to pursue this career?
I don’t know if clowns are born or made, as a phrase of the great Totò Antonio De Curtis said, perhaps I feel like saying that I was born a clown… Ever since I was in diapers, I have always had a predisposition for having fun, for being in among people, people but also getting excited about the simplest things in life. I have always been struck by the fact that the clown was not only associated with entertainment and this prompted me to undertake the “career” of the clown, a character seen as a figure who lives on all emotions and not just on entertainment.
What is the thing you love most about your job?
What I love most about my job is the freedom, travelling, getting to know more and more people, but above all the possibility of simply being myself: when on stage I am convinced that you shouldn’t pretend because, if you are real, if you sincerely express what you feel, the audience gets excited with you.
What are the biggest challenges you encounter in your job?
The biggest challenge is to entertain the public and beyond. With my art I try to make those who look at me spend carefree moments, especially in an era where it is increasingly difficult to make viewers smile and move.
How do you prepare for a performance?
Many routines are prepared and rehearsed but it is often necessary to live “the here and now”, to be ready for all the inconveniences that can happen during the show, just as you have to be good at capturing funny moments to share with the audience and then making them participate in your show.
Have you ever had a funny moment during a performance?
I would say that there are funny moments during every show, the audience feels involved and the laughter is contagious.
How do you involve the audience during your performances?
It is necessary that the public feels important, the first impact is fundamental, as soon as the curtain opens and the lights come on, that imaginary wall that divides us must fall. As? By looking the spectators in the eye and involving them by making them an active part of the show, for example by giving some of them the role of assistants, these figures are important during a performance, you have to choose well!
Do you have any particular trick or technique to make them laugh and have fun?
Sometimes the simplest things are the ones that make you laugh the most, perhaps with the help of some tools such as small brushes, toilet brushes, plungers. The clown can transform a tool and use it in a different and fun way.
What is the main message or goal you want to convey through your work?
I say that I do the most beautiful job in the world, even one of the most difficult because making audiences of different ages laugh and move is not easy. One of the messages that the clown often brings to the stage is to experience failure and make it a success. We often laugh when the clown makes a mistake… that mistake becomes a success for him.
Do you have any advice for those who would like to pursue this career?
Advice? Being yourself and going, going without ever stopping, to make yourself known, to gain experience; live the beauty of freedom at all times without being a “slave” to a “permanent” job which ensures you stability but which does not always make you live on emotions. However, it is necessary to be aware of the fact that many sacrifices have to be made, such as often being away from home, studying continuously, taking courses with professionals in the sector in order to combine study with improvisation, so as to have fun bringing oneself on stage!
What do you think of the figure of the clown associated with a bad or scary character?
Surely I don’t like this approach, especially to IT, perhaps the meanest and scariest clown in the history of horror movies, but also compared to anime clowns.
The adults should guide the children in understanding the role of the characters within the various stories and elaborate that in reality the clown is the one who, even in the darkest moments, manages to find a positive note for which to smile.
By Valeria Turino