AUTUMN CLOWN COURSES 2011

THESE ARE THE NEW COURSES WE ARE OFFERING THIS AUTUMN 2011.

WE’VE PROGRAMMED SOME SHORTER COURSES, SO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY! HAPPY AUTUMN!!!

(All prices include: course tuition, from 6 to 9 hours per day, 6 days a week; accommodation in bedrooms of maximum 4 persons; 3 vegetarian meals per day plus mid-morning and afternoon snacks; transport to shows and to Figueres station on free days; wi-fi internet and the use of all of Cal Clown’s facilities, the house, tent and land, day and night.)

23^rd October – 18th December

Professional 2-Month Clown Course

€3,000

This course offers a broad training ranging from the pleasure of play, of life, which is the driving force of Clown, to the creation of Clown numbers to be performed in various shows throughout the course. This is a course that offers the possibility of understanding the Clown from the initial stages up to what is the aim of all clowns who wish to work independently: the creation of one’s own numbers, which will provide a basis for beginning and continuing to work professionally, whether in the street, a bar, a theatre, for children or adults.

23^rd October – 20th November

Professional Clown Course – Level 1

€1,500

An ideal course for those who know they are serious about clown but who have little or no experience. A chance to explore your clown in depth, including performing in the street, in a bar and in a hospital or prison.

21^st November – 18th December

Professional Clown Course – Level 2

€1,500

This course is designed for those with some experience of clown, either in their training or professionally, and focuses on creating and performing numbers, and on the widening of the expressive possibilities of your clown and of types and styles of clown numbers.

24^th – 28^th October

Introduction to Clown

Teacher:  Jon Davison

€400

We will explore the fundamentals of clowning: the pleasure of play, finding and accepting our failure; and how to use our own ridiculousness in our favour. In other words, laugh at yourself and you will make others laugh. Jon is a master in teaching how to enjoy your ridiculousness and turn it into an art.

31^st Oct – 4^th November

Being Clown

Teacher:  Clara Cenoz

€400

We will put on a red nose in order to remove our masks, to be re-born as clowns. We will admire each other for our stupidity and together will make fools of ourselves, enjoying the healthy craziness and inner connection of the clown. A workshop aimed at those who want to discover or continue searching for their clown, for those who want to be freer, to accept themselves completely and to take full responsibility for their whole being, in order to be better Clowns (includes one day in the street).

11^th – 13^th November

Therapeutic Clowning

€300

It is scientifically proven that laughter has a therapeutic effect. This course includes visits to a hospital, a childcare centre, or a prison.

14^th – 18^th November

Clown Devising Methods

Teacher:  Jon Davison

€400

We will look at “1001 ways” to devise gags and numbers. As sources of inspiration we shall draw on the knowledge of gag construction that we have inherited from past and present masters of clowning. We will compile an encyclopaedia of how to create clown numbers, a veritable joy for any clown (or comedian).

21^st – 25^th November

Creating Personal Clown Numbers

Teacher:  Clara Cenoz

€400

Have you begun to discover clown and want to start making your own material? Or have you been working on numbers for a while, but would like to improve your creative process? Do you want to create your own clown material that works for you and your audience? How to create numbers starting from the observation of who we are and what we like/don’t like to do. How clown can combine text and other elements in a number.

3^rd – 4^th December

Clown and Music

Teacher:  Jon Davison

€200

A workshop aimed at those who want to explore the relationship between clown and music. This will be of interest to those with either clowning or musical skills, or both. We will look at the coincidences between the two art forms, and how each can inspire and inform the other, as well as various ways of constructing a musical clown number.

Why study at Cal Clown?

-          Discovery of clown in depth. Every person, every student is unique and we make sure each student has the maximum opportunity to discover, understand and take advantage of what clown is for them.

-          Devising methods. There are few opportunities to learn in detail how to construct clown numbers. Our course is unique in its range and depth, combining theories of how clown and comedy work with a realistic and practical approach, seeking the personal comedy in each student.

-          Complete Training. We pride ourselves on having developed a training that is able to combine the intensely personal internal work of finding your own clown, with the practical business of making material that really works for audiences in a variety of contexts.

-          Performance Practice. We give students the maximum opportunities to try out their clowns in front of real audiences in different contexts. Combining work in class with real-life practice is the best way to learn to a professional standard.

-          Professional Training. Our aim is to prepare students for professional life. We expect you to leave the course with enough material to be able to begin to work professionally with your clown, and with your own criteria and the ability to keep creating independently in the future.  

-          Resources. A spacious tent, designed with clowns in mind in its dimensions (14m diameter, 9m high); props and costumes; a specialised library of books and DVDs, including many rare or difficult to find items.   

-          A unique life experience. The fact of living together with people that initially do not know each other but who have shared interests is, we believe, both an enriching experience and a challenge for the student, a challenge that we think is positive for anyone who wishes to live and know Clown.