Giovanni Fusetti
| Il bambino che non gioca non è un bambino, ma l'adulto che non gioca ha perso per sempre il bambino che ha dentro di sé.Pablo Neruda (1904-1973) |
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Boulder International Clown Training 2018: THE RED NOSE
23 Giugno, 2018 → 20 Luglio, 2018 - Boulder, Colorado, USA
Welcome to the 13th edition of THE RED NOSE training in Boulder !
A unique opportunity to study and practice
the essence of Theatre Clown
and the roots of Physical Comedy
Boulder, Red Nose 2014
Join us to explore the Sublime Stupidity of Clown,
with the gentle and powerful support of the Colorado Rocky Mountains.
Clown is about comic poetry : funny and touching, essential and rigorous. It's a dive into the mystery of laughter.
Deeply rooted in movement-based theater, this workshop proposes an intensive training in Red Nose Theater Clown - a specific theatrical and poetical genre. The pedagogy focuses in particular on the analysis, amplification and play of the physical and emotional world of each actor, as revealed by her or his body in space. This will lead to the discovery of a unique individual clown, with a specific body, tempo, voice, costume, attitudes, emotions, and poetic world.
The journey begins with the exploration and analysis of the body within the theatrical space. In terms of movement, no body is neutral - every body carries profoundly expressive themes, embodied in everyday movement. Within each person's movement and physical presence there is a web of "non-neutral attitudes" and physical and emotional “background sounds".
If an actor is observed with an eye to movement, using the reference point of the Neutral State, this web appears like a structure of dynamic patterns, or markings on a white sheet. They are “dramatic” in the etymological sense: they contain a drama - an action.
The use of the smallest mask in the world, the RED NOSE and the amplification and articulation of these very personal movement patterns, allows the actor to enter the Clown State. Before being a chracter, the clow is a state of playing, i everyone has access to the key question: what is so funny about me ?
To discover one's own clown is to reveal one's own unique comic persona and turn it into a universal comic form.
For the theater artist as a poetical human being, there is something fundamental about the discovery of her or his individual Clown: it's raw, pure, personal, emotional, unique, challenging, empowering, revealing, and extremely rewarding... It's the exquisite pleasure of touching the empty space of complete comedy.
As a theatre territory, Clown has a unique poetic potential because it allows the performer to explore and play with the naiveté and the vulnerability of the child and with the rigor and the technique of the adult, thus revealing the poetry of the ridiculous, and a unique personal poetic power and folly.
As a personal journey it's an ecstatic way to get in touch with one's unique humanity and play with it in a space of openness, vulnerability and poetical fun.
The sublime stupidity of the clown is her/his enduring openness to life and to the present moment, despite her/his radical imperfection.
International Red Nose Training 2008, Kristiansand, Norway
There are as many clowns as there are human beings.
There is one way to stand while there are infinite ways to fall.
Intelligence is limited. Stupidity is infinite.
Giovanni Fusetti
THE PEDAGOGY
The pedagogical approach integrates the Pedagogy of movement-based theatre of Jacques Lecoq with different principles and practices of physical and emotional awareness. In particular: Gestalt, Reichian Analysis, Bionergetics, Taoism and Process Work. The result is a deep artistic and emotional work, involving the body in a dynamic of play, technical training, awareness and performing folly.
This workshop is simultaneously an artistic process and a personal process.
The personal process within the pedagogy is based on the combination of three fundamental principles. The first two come from the bio-energetics field, first expressed in the West by Wilhelm Reich and then explored by many different approaches.
The first principle says that what is not expressed by the body remains impressed in the body in the form of a structure, or a "character".
The second principle states that the expression of all emotions brings fluidity (flow) to the body and this fluidity brings physical pleasure.
The third principle is related to the archetypal nature of theatre as a ritual of connection and exploration of the different aspects of human nature: the parts of ourselves that we don't play with, will play us.
As a way of getting in touch with, and integrating different parts of the self, seen as a process, theatre becomes a powerful space of knowledge, awareness and personal and collective empowerment. Through the playful unfolding of the energies impressed in the body, a clown will appear, and through playing this form with the rigorous support of theatre technique, a unique poetic world will emerge, as well as a fundamental process of personal evolution. And deep fun.
The Way (Tao) of clown brings powerful and highly poetical insights, witnessed by the audience and celebrated with laughter, and generates the ecstatic joy of being who we are in a unique experience of letting go of all intentions (Wu-Wei).
Boulder, Red Nose 2015
THE PROGRAM
First Week: THE CLOWN “STATE”
- Play, action/reaction and fun
- From the neutral state to the comic state: movement analysis of the body in space
- The Red Nose as a mask: amplification and articulation of movement
- The clown as a state of being on stage
- The empty space and the non-intentional mind
- Emotional presence and awareness and contact with the emotional body of the actor
- Awareness of awareness
- Contact and play with the audience
- Playing with space and with objects
Second Week: THE PLAY (le jeu)
- The relationship among clowns: hierarchy, masters and servants, levels of stupidity
- The Circus Clown Archetypes: Augustus, White Clown, Monsieur Loyal
- The Clown's Voice
- Clown acts and le bide (fiasco)
- Rhythmical space and time: entrance, crescendo, development of themes, climax and exit
- The actor's skills in service to the clown: playing with music, singing, acrobatics, juggling, dance and unusual or unique skills.
Boulder, Red Nose 2009
Third Week: DEVISING CLOWN ACTS
- Devising of Clown Acts based on the previous weeks' improvisations
- Accidents and comic routines
- Devising a clown variety show
- Staging and directing clowns: each clown will work and rework on some acts /routines to be presented in 3 public performances
- Rehearsing the Clown Variety Show
Fourth week : PERFORMING
- Public presentation of a Clown Variety Show, devised by the participants under the direction of Giovanni Fusetti.
- Feedback on the performance and re-work for a second and a third performance.
- Feedback on the whole process and final celebration of the clowns and their world.
- How to continue the work
Rehearsals of the final performance. Boulder, Red Nose 2015
SCHEDULE
June 23rd to July 20th, 2018
Saturday June 23rd: 1pm Registration; 2 to 6 class
;
8 to 10: public lecture-demonstration by Giovanni
Sunday June 24th:1 to 7pm
Monday June 25th: 12 to 6pm
Tuesday June 26th: 3 to 9pm
Wednesday June 27th: 3:30 to 9:30pm
Thursday June 28th, Friday June 29th: 3 to 9pm
Saturday 30th and July 1st: DAYS OFF
Monday July 2nd: 12 to 6pm
Tuesday July 3rd to Friday July 6th: 3 to 9pm
Saturday July 7th: 10 to 5
Sunday July 8th: DAY OFF
Monday July 9th: 12 to 6
Tuesday July 10th to Friday July 13th: 3 to 9pm
Saturday July 14th: DAY OFF
Sunday July 15th: 10 to 8
Monday July 16th, Tuesday July 17th , Wednesday July 18th, at the Nomad Theatre, 11am to 10 pm, with three Public Performances at 7:30 pm.
Thursday July 19th: 2 to 9pm
Friday July 20th: 12:30 to 6 pm.
Please note that the workshop is a pedagogic continuum so it is not possible to attend it only in parts.
LOCATION
The Boulder Circus Center
4747 26th St, Boulder, CO 80301, USA
http://bouldercircuscenter.net/directions-to-bcc/
International Red Nose Training 2008, Kristiansand, Norway
ADMISSION
The aim of this course is to give participants professional theatre tools and emotional poetical awareness, in order to play and create within their own clown world. It is addressed to people with previous experiences in performamce (theatre, circus, dance, music, etc.) who feel a strong poetic urgency to be on stage, as well as a strong desire to create art from a space of emotional openness and vulnerability. It is a training based on generosity, support, and the commitment to turning one's own most genuine humanity into play. It requires the participants a strong and bold curiosity about self-discovery through the healing power of humor.
The emotional work will be intense and ecstatic: the body will reveal what it needs to experience and express, in a dynamic of amplification, play, letting go, insights and theatrical transposition.
Shadows, archetypes, physical symptoms, dreambody processes will appear and will be welcomed in the alchemical space of the stage. All will nurture the sublime human poetry of each clown.
This is not just a theatre workshop. If you are only interested in the technical/theatrical aspect of clown and physical comedy, this might not be the work you are looking for. On the other hand, if you are only interested in the therapeutic or healing power of clown, you also might find the rigor of the artistic process frustrating.
Please read the attached document by Giovanni, as well as Giovanni's bio and the page THE ROOTS, to learn more about the ingredients of his approach to clown and theatre.
Helikos School. Florence, 2013
HOW TO APPLY
There is no application form.
To apply to THE RED NOSE, please email
- a short bio, including a recent photograph
- a letter of motivation sharing the essence of your story, vision, dream, desire, fear or un-explicable intuition that leads you to this training.
Please include in your letter these themes:
-how did you come to know about this work;
-your experience with movement-based theatre;
-your previous experience with clown;
-for what purpose you apply for this program;
-some notes about your personal journey in terms of healing or therapeutical practices, or other relevant inner experiences.
Please send your application to giovanni.fusetti@helikos.com
Giovanni will choose students from the applications received, forming the group. In some cases Giovanni will ask the applicant to have a skype conversation.
Once accepted, to confirm the enrollment, a deposit of US$ 500 is due.
Please note that the deposit is non-refundable.
Once the application is accepted, spots in the class will be given in the order the application was received. Once Giovanni has selected 12 students, the workshop is full, and a waiting list will be created. Please note that this workshop tends to fill up fairly quickly so if you intend to participate, we encourage you to apply as soon as possible.
Enrolments on MAY 1st: two spots are still available.
TUITION
The Early Bird Rate is not available any more.
Full Rate: US$ 2.100
Please note that tuition does not include accommodation and that participants will be responsible for organizing their staying in Boulder. After the enrollment, we will provide a list of useful information and contacts on how to organize your staying in the beautiful city of Boulder.
Helikos School 2012
LANGUAGE
The workshop will be taught in ENGLISH and a basic understanding of this language is required.
Backstage, Boulder Red Nose 2015
INFORMATION AND APPLICATIONS
For any question regarding the pedagogical content of the workshop and if you are interested in attending the workshop, please send your application to
For any practical information about enrolement, payment and your staying in Boulder, please contact
See you in Boulder !
Boulder, Red Nose 2017 Photo Credits
Jen Hyde, Jonhatan Young, Stefano Borghi, Giovanni Fusetti