What happens when a circus and a classical play combine? 500 Clown theater group.
Tonight, "500 Clown Frankenstein" comes to Pickard Theater. Hailing from Chicago, the group 500 Clown currently has four shows in its repertoire; along with "500 Clown Frankenstein," its shows include "500 Clown Macbeth," "500 Clown Christmas," and "500 Clown and the Elephant Deal." A fifth, "500 Clown A Man's a Man," is in the works.
The group's version of "Frankenstein" is anything but a traditional take on the almost 200-year-old classic. In this adaptation, three clowns go on a chaotic journey to construct Dr. Frankenstein's laboratory. Hindered by detailed and exaggerated period costumes, the clowns are propelled into a number of acrobatic feats. According to 500 Clown's Web site, "Comic mayhem takes a sharp turn to a devastating climax when one clown is forced to play the creature and suffer abuse and abandonment."
500 Clown uses circus arts, improvisation, and action-based performance in productions that require performers to undergo extreme physical and emotional risk. The work shifts the audience from passive to active observers, which "creates a charged environment that celebrates the unpredictable power of the moment," the Web site said.
According to director Leslie Buxbaum Danzig, she and the three cast members all started as "straight up theater majors" and were each inspired by elements of clown in different ways. One aspect about which they all agree is the idea of investigating "rigorous play" as demonstrated through clowning.
As the director, Danzig is the keeper of dramatic tension. She notices what the audience is responding to, what went well, and when a clowning tangent has gone too far.
Danzig is also concerned with "what can be unleashed by a commitment to playing or having people interact." Each actor is him or herself on stage, but a "specific version" of themselves, according to her.
The all-encompassing aspects of clowning differentiates it from other kinds of theater.
"It has liveliness and immediacy. We use the audience, the architecture, whatever is happening is acknowledged," Danzig said.
The company 500 Clown was started in 2000, and "500 Clown Frankenstein" premiered in 2003. In order to create these pieces, the cast takes time to think about the chosen text. They then clown around—literally—over many months and constantly change, reinvent, and reflect on their performance. The show changes from audience to audience and from theater to theater.
Danzig endeavors to take advantage of the space in which the cast performs, and is excited about performing in Pickard Theater and incorporating the balconies into the acting space.
Danzig also welcomed the opportunity to use an open space rather than a black box theater.
"A proscenium gives formality to the stage," she said. "There is a fourth wall to break."
The cast enjoys meeting audience members after performances, according to Danzig. Not only does it help cultivate a relationship between the actors and the audience, but the troupe continues to develop shows based on audience feedback.
"500 Clown is committed to cultivating a relationship with our audience members. It deepens the principle of the work. Inevitably we have to ask, 'How do you interact with the audience without making them feel uncomfortable and putting them on the spot? How do you involve them without thrusting it upon them? How do you create community at these events?'" Danzig said.
"500 Clown Frankenstein" will be performed at 8 p.m. today in Pickard Theater. Tickets are free and are available at the Smith Union info desk or at the door.