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Terms of use

ATTENTION: This legal notice applies to the entire contents of the Website under the domain name broadwaybaby.com (Website) and to any correspondence by e-mail between us and you. Please read these terms carefully before using the Website. Using the Website indicates that you accept these terms regardless of whether or not you choose to register with us. If you do not accept these terms, do not use the Website. This notice is issued by the publishers of Broadway Baby ("the Company").

1.1 - By accessing any part of the Website, you shall be deemed to have accepted this legal notice in full. If you do not accept this legal notice in full, you must leave the Website immediately.
1.2 - The Company may revise this legal notice at any time by updating this posting. You should check the Website from time to time to review the then current legal notice, because it is binding on you. Certain provisions of this legal notice may be superseded by expressly designated legal notices or terms located on particular pages at the Website.

2.1 - You are permitted to print and download extracts from the Website for your own use on the following basis:
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2.2 - Unless otherwise stated, the copyright and other intellectual property rights in all material on the Website (excluding promotional images of shows provided by their producers) are owned by the Company or its licensors. For the purposes of this legal notice, any use of extracts from the Website other than in accordance with clause 2.1 for any purpose is prohibited. If you breach any of the terms in this legal notice, your permission to use the Website automatically terminates and you must immediately destroy any downloaded or printed extracts from the Website.

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3.2 - Access to the Website may be suspended temporarily and without notice in the case of system failure, maintenance or repair or for reasons beyond the Company's control.

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4.2 - You are not permitted to use the commenting system to engage in ad hominem attacks on a Broadway Baby writer or use 'sock puppet' accounts to support an argument. You are welcome to use the commenting system to submit your own opinion about a show, but it is not provided as a platform to criticise the Company or its staff.

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This legal notice shall be governed by and construed in accordance with English law. Disputes arising in connection with this legal notice shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.

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Why clowning is the Edinburgh Fringe's strangest joy – and six shows you shouldn't miss

Clown is one of those tricky mediums that you can find in bucketfuls at any Fringe festival but would be hard to come by anywhere else, partly because clowning thrives in small, live rooms. It is not obviously scalable in the same way that a dramatic monologue such as Fleabag, or a more scripted affair such as standup comedy is.

The medium has long ditched the uniform costume of a red nose and whiteface.

Consequently, a first-time Fringe-goer might not know what to expect from a clown show. What follows is a brief guide to the art form and some recommended shows at this year's Edinburgh Fringe. I have attempted to pick work from across the whole spectrum of the ginormous, gloriously overstuffed Fringe programme. There are many more, so seek out some shows yourself.

The medium has long ditched the uniform costume of a red nose and whiteface. Clowns can come in all shapes and sizes, and represent anything from a ping-pong player to a businessman to a slug. The great clown teacher Philippe Gaulier had three pillars of pedagogy that are also pretty good principles of what to expect from a clown show: complicité, play and humanity.

Complicité, because clown builds routines from and thrives on audience interaction. Play, because a clown show is light and fun, but can also playfully take us to new extremes. Humanity, the true content of clown: an experience where aspects of ourselves we might find too awkward to share in polite conversation can be exposed in the irreverent, slightly sublime, totally hilarious room of a clown show.

Now, here are six clown shows I am really excited about at this Edinburgh Fringe. Some I've seen, others have been recommended to me, and some just look brilliant.

Don Toberman: Ping Pong Champ

I caught Chase Brantley's show last Fringe, and I think he's found a great clown here. Don Toberman is a ping-pong champion who always wins, and over the course of the hour the audience plays along with him, clacking their tongues to invent the imaginary ball.

It is a brilliant piece of clowning that serves as the most assured distillation of what makes the medium hilarious and beautiful. He takes the show to some pretty wild places on the right sort of night – you might see a ginormous ping-pong ball, a striptease, or have to eat a marshmallow out of Don Toberman's mouth. Who knows? But this is thoroughly recommended.

Gutter

Billed as London's first and only Bouffon collective, Gutter seems to be an excellent opportunity to catch an element of clown training that is hard to come by. Bouffon, championed by the maestros Gaulier and Lecoq, is a darker, more biting form of performance that could be considered clown's evil younger cousin. It's hilarious, but in an excruciating way.

Trust me, though, it's a great night out – grab a few pints beforehand. You might be slightly upset, but you will be thoroughly entertained.

The Passion of Mr Cardboard

Miles Calderon of Stamptown, an EdFringe staple, presents this solo show. It comes highly recommended to me and sounds utterly bonkers. Mr Cardboard will fly us to the Land of Cardboard and battle with a higher power for the pleasure of the audience? Sure.

This sounds like it will be a great hour, and I am intrigued by the prospect of it.

Teatro Fisico

Located at the Fruitmarket Gallery right next to Waverley station, Teatro Fisico promises an eclectic programme "dedicated to Lecoq-inspired physical theatre, presenting Italian productions at the Fringe. Movement, clown, and contemporary theatre".

I'm most intrigued by Hamlet: Prince of Sweden, which seems like a riotous take on the tragedy, and Shaolin Clown, where Tom Corradini will "relive his childish and clownish soul in his Zen practice". It's great to see such a delightful Fringe space dedicated to this sort of alternative performance. It seems to be worth a visit.

& taxes

This is one of only a handful of clown shows at The SpaceUK, but it looks like it could be brilliant. Performed by Michael Thomas Kennedy: "What started with [him] doing 5 minutes of standup about being a ghost has turned into a full-length clown spectacular."

The prospect of Jasper the Ghost sounds ripe with clowning potential, and the title is glorious. I would be intrigued to catch this one in August.

Edith Alibec: The Void

Part of PBH's Free Fringe programme, Banshee Labyrinth is home to some of the kookiest stuff you can watch at the Fringe, so it seems only natural that it's hosting Edith Alibec: The Void – billed as a debut clown hour in which nothing gets resolved.

Alibec describes the void as "the thing most people carry inside themselves". An interesting thought, and one that I think might create a beautifully human hour of clown at the PBH Free Fringe.

There are 108 clown shows in the Fringe programme, and many more at the Free Fringe that are not listed there, so go seek out new artists yourself, have a drink in the sun and enjoy the wonderfully weird world of clown in Edinburgh this August.

Salvador Kent

Salvador Kent is an aspiring Director and Playwright in Edinburgh. He is especially drawn to experimental theatres including Clown, Postdramatic, Political and Ritual theatres - especially when formally playful. He is co-producer of Edinburgh experimental performance night @theatrelaboratory.