Clownin' around!

I found it interesting in the readings to find "the value of clown work for the contemporary actor." Well I think if anything, clowning is an inherent way of expressing oneself. If I could mesh all the readings together and say I had one thought in particular, I would say that clowning is a physical caricature that everyone can identify with; making fun of human predicaments and problems in an exaggerated manner is something to be enjoyed by all. Because I missed class last week, I found the videos to be helpful in preparing me for understanding the different types of clowning. I thought the video with Rowan Atkinson was awesome, and I kept thinking how effortlessly he made what must have been very difficult miming seem. Also, the difference in style between Atkinson and Marcel Marceau was outstanding. Marcel seemed sad almost, but it was hard to get an overall sense of emotion from him when he started mixing his emotions with his "masks." I thought the very end of his performance must have been incredibly difficult because he kept his face in a smiling "mask" while the rest of his body was struggling and panicking while trying to take the mask off his face. The Bill Irwin video make me think of Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin tricks, he was definitely the most physical with his comedy and very flawless at that. I can't imaging how long it took him to get those hat tricks down so effortlessly. It seems to me that clowning requires great skill and coordination to effortlessly seem bumbling. It is a very impressive art indeed.