TORONTO, January 18, 2008 -- Toronto stage director, actor and clown extraordinaire Leah Cherniak teams up with twelve up-and-coming young actors in York University’s theatre program to create a true original: The Clown Show: A Tragedy. The Lecoq-trained Cherniak leads the company through the process of creative collaboration and shares the result on stage in this unique Theatre @ York production. Prepare to laugh and cry with The Clown Show, opening January 29 and running to Feburary 2 in the Robert & Julia Foster Acting Studio in the Accolade East Building at York’s Keele campus.
Steeped in the spirit of play, invention and physical expressiveness that define the art of clown, this one-of-a-kind collective creation was shaped with minimal external props.
“We began creating this show with nothing at all. There was no script, no characters, no costumes,” said Cherniak.
The cast members – each equipped with little more than a red nose, a favourite pair of shoes and a hat – draw from deep inside themselves to search out, discover and transform into their own clowns. Vulnerable, inventive, generous, dynamic, rough-and-ready – these clowns concoct a show, or cabaret, or even a tragedy of sorts, reflecting the world around us.
From the medieval court jester to the Native Trickster, the Fratellini Brothers to Samuel Becketts’ Vladimir and Estragon, Charlie Chaplin to Mr. Bean – some form of clown has existed in every culture and throughout history.
“There are as many ways to be funny as there are people willing to try it,” said Cherniak. “Finding your own clown is a very personal journey. The process can be difficult, but the rewards are great. When we find what is funny about us, it can show us – and our audience – a new way of looking at our world.”
Cherniak is co-artistic director with Martha Ross of Theatre Columbus. The company has created over 25 new plays as well as mounting innovative productions of classics. Cherniak has directed most of Theatre Columbus’ repertoire, including Hotel Loopy, Gynty (adapted from Ibsen’s Peer Gynt), The Barber of Seville, Paranoia, Lonely Nights and Other Stories, The Betrayal (which won a Chalmers Award for Playwriting), The Cherry Orchard, and Twelfth Night. She co-created and directed the multi-award winning play, The Anger in Ernest and Ernestine, which has been produced all over the world, from Labrador to Cuba and from Prague to Los Angeles. She also created and played the role of Jelly in The Attic, The Pearls and 3 Fine Girls for Theatre Columbus.
Cherniak also directs for other theatres such as Tarragon Theatre, Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People, Blyth Festival, Thousand Islands Playhouse and many others. Last year, she directed the Theatre Columbus/Soulpepper production of Ibsen’s John Gabriel Borkman and the Nepture Theatre/National Arts Centre co-production of John Mighton’s The Little Years.
Theatre @ York, the production company of the Department of Theatre at York University, has been entertaining audiences for more than 35 years. The company’s playbill features contemporary and classical repertoire, including Toronto and Canadian premieres, showcasing some of Canada's most promising stage talent.
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What: The Clown Show: A Tragedy
Performances:
Previews: Jan. 27 & 28 at 7:30pm
Opening Tues. Jan. 29 at 7:30pm
Runs Jan. 30 to Feb. 2 at 7:30pm nightly, plus matinees Jan 30 and Feb 1 at 1pm
Where: Robert & Julia Foster Acting Studio, Accolade East Building, York University, 4700 Keele St. [Map]
Admission: Previews: Jan 27 Pay-What-You-Can and Jan 28 $5; Regular run: $15, Students/Seniors: $10
Box Office: 416.736.5888 | www.yorku.ca/perform/boxoffice
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Media Contact:
Amy Stewart, Communications, Faculty of Fine Arts, York University
416.736.2100 ext. 20421 | amy.stewart@yorku.ca
