Free Your Clown and the Rest Will Follow: a weekend-long clown devising workshop with Julia VanderVeen & Hannah Mitchell.

Are you an improviser whose friends won't stop talking about clowning who has finally decided that if you can't beat them, maybe it's time to join them? Are you an experienced clown who would like some feedback on a number or character you've been working on? Or maybe you're someone who is looking for more connection in your life and in your work, hoping to cultivate a little bit more pleasure or sparkle? Then this workshop is for you!

Hannah and Julia are NYC- and Amsterdam-based clowns who have performed internationally and nationally with original solo shows as well as in ensembles. Drawing from the pedagogy of Aitor Basauri, Chris Bayes, and Philippe Gaulier (among others), Hannah and Julia bring a sensitive and rigorous approach to guiding students to find more play with their audience.

Expect to generate new material or hone already existing material in this workshop, with the optional possibility of a public showing on the evening of Sunday, November 22nd. Get some play in before the holidays!

Sat + Sun, Nov 21–22, 10 AM–4 PM at React Theatre, 572 Edgewood Ave SE.
Capped at 12 participants. Questions? Just ask.

"Thank you, Julia, for creating such a thoughtful, playful, and supportive space and for bringing me joy. I haven't laughed like that in what feels like ages." — Carlos V.

"Hannah has observational skills that sometimes seem superhuman. She built a classroom that was welcoming, challenging, and most of all FUN. Hannah's class brought me many steps closer to being a more honest, genuine performer, and human." — Michael G.

Hannah Mitchell leads clown workshops regularly in NYC as a faculty member of the Clown Program at The Brooklyn Comedy Collective. In addition, she is a visiting professor in clown at The New School, has led workshops for organizations such as Target Margin Theater, and teaches independent workshops in collaboration with the producer Local Grandma. Hannah completed her Teacher Training certification with Christopher Bayes in 2020, and continues pedagogical development with international clown and physical theater teachers; most recently with Anne Astolfe from the renowned École Jacques Lecoq.

Julia VanderVeen apprenticed under clown guru Christopher Bayes at Yale and Juilliard and has taught workshops in NYC, Los Angeles, Chicago and Atlanta to professional actors and novices alike. From a former student: "You made failure feel inevitable and fun/funny, and I found that very freeing. I truly did not know I could be so unhinged on stage and it was transformative to meet that part of me. Thank you for creating a safe space where that could happen!" — PW

Workshop students get free tickets to both Friday shows, TRAD and DENTATA (Nov 20).