Clowning for Improvisers 8 Week Course - Playface x Hoopla
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There are so many wonderful, clowns, comedians, organisations and resources out there. Here are some of our favourite. We are primarily based out of London, UK so we’re biased in that direction (last updated 9th August 2024). If any of this information is outdated or contains broken links please get in contact and we’ll change that.
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- Playface - Hey that’s us! Improv and clown workshops and courses as well as play and mindful classes for non-performers (London, UK)
- Hoopla Impro - Improv school and comedy club, they also run clown, stand-up and sketch courses as well (London, UK)
- Free Association - Improv school and comedy club, they also run clown and sketch courses as well (London, UK)
- Mick Barnfather - Runs clown workshops (UK)
- Jon Davison - Runs clown workshops (UK)
- Lucy Hopkins - Runs clown workshops (UK)
- Ecole Phillipe Gaulier - Most infamous clown school in the world, we’ve been and recommend it, but prepare yourself. Update: as of summer 2024 Gaulier is no longer teaching (he's over 80!) but his assistants will be running the classes (Paris, UK)
- Garry Starr - Runs occasional clown courses, check socials for when / where (UK)
- Elf Lyons - Fantastic performer and clown, runs workshops frequently (UK)
- Stumble Trip Theatre - Movement and physical theatre (UK)
- Zack Zucker - Clown and host of Stamptown, runs courses every now and then (UK / USA)
- Why Not Institute - Clown school based (London, UK)
- Viggo Venn - Clown, winner of Britains got Talent and runs periodic courses (UK)
- Julia Masli - Clown and runs workshops (UK)
- Spy Monkey - Clown school (Europe / UK)
- Peta Lily - Clown teacher (UK)
- Marny Godden - Clown teacher (UK)
- Dan Lees - Clown teacher (UK)
- There's a lot of individual performers who run courses and stuff semi randomly, we often share them on our socials when we spot them. So give us a follow!
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- Why is that so funny - Great book on clowning games and exercises
- The Clowning Workbook - Jon Davison
- Hoopla Resources - An improv comedy encylopedia
- London Improv Calendar - Add and view London improv events
- Get Started in Stand-Up Comedy - Logan Murray
- The Art of Clowning: More Paths to Your Inner Clown - Eli Simon
- Impro: Improvisation and the Theatre - Keith Johnstone
- The NEW Comedy Bible: The Ultimate Guide to Writing and Performing Stand-Up Comedy - Judy Carter
- Clown and Improv, differences, similarities, and how they can help each other - Blog post by Steve Roe
- Playface Blog - On clown, alternative comedy and more
- UCB Manual - Great improv comedy guide for game of the scene
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Clown and Characters
We could go on and on and on to list out all the incredible acts we know so here are just a few. The best way to discover new comedians is to head to some variety nights so you can see a sample of a few different folk.
- Charlie Jackson - Clown, improviser, runs Playface (London, UK)
- Viki Jackson - Improviser, character stand-up, clown and runs Playface! (London, UK)
- David Hoskin - Comic/Writer/Improviser (London, UK)
- Lachlan Werner - Ventriloquist comedian extrordinaire
- Luke Rollason - Amazing clown (London, UK)
- Garry Starr - Clown (London, UK)
- Viggo Venn - Clown, winner of Britains got Talent (often in UK)
- Julia Masli - Clown (often in UK)
- Elf Lyons - Clown (London, UK)
- Josh Glanc - Clown (travels, often in UK)
- Zack Zucker - Clown, runs Stamptown (USA / UK)
- Felipe Ortiz - Clown, Improviser and movement teacher (Bogata / Travels)
- Natalie Palamides - Clown (USA and tours)
- Lorna Rose Treen - Character and improvisor (London, UK)
- Paulina La Noir - Clown (London, UK)
Improv Teams
- Kerfuffle - Super fun improv team (London, UK)
- Improv the Dead - Improvised zombie movie (London, UK)
- RH Experience - Excellent improv team that has a very clowny energy (London, UK)
- The Maydays - Great team, they teach and have amazing improv retreats (Brighton, UK)
- Shoot From The Hip - Internet short form superstars (London, UK)
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See “Where to Gig” for places to gig and apply to. The below our the regular shows we recommend going to watch for alternative comedy.
- Modern Art - Alternative comedy variety night, it's our night and we think it's grrrrreat! (London, UK)
- Stamptown - One of our favourite clowny nights and one of the first nights we got into clown with (London, UK / USA)
- Pinata
- A Show Called Thursday
- Fools Moon
- ACMS
- Siblings and Family Friends
- Knickers Cabaret
- Mom's Room
- Soft Play
- The Dip Comedy
- Scramble Show
- It's Big Head Comedy
- Do Not Resuscitate
- The Normal Formal
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Soho Theatre
The Pleasance
Museum of Comedy
Rosemary Branch Theatre
Leicester Square theatre
Bigger Fringes:
- Edinburgh Fringe
- Camden Fringe
- Brighton Fringe
- Leicester Fringe
Plus look for individually run nights in miscellaneous London venues as well
