
Serious Play
Modern Clown Performance
Louise Peacock(Author)
Intellect Books (Publisher)
Published on 15. July 2009
Book
Paperback/Softback
224 pages
978-1-84150-241-0 (ISBN)
Description
Clowns' slapstick is their primary mode of performance and allows them to provoke audiences to laughter wherever they perform. This innovative book, focussing on contemporary practice in the USA and Europe over the last 50 years, investigates the nature and function of clown performance in modern society. Through analysis of clowning in a range of settings - theatre, the circus, hospitals, refugee camps and churches - Peacock establishes a theoretical framework for the evaluation of physical comedy.Peacock explores clowning that takes place outside of conventional venues, and also the therapeutic potential of clowning in clown doctor organisations, refugee camps and war zones. Serious Play: Modern Clown Performance is the first book of its kind to consider clowning performance venues and performance styles in the light of Play Theory, including comparisons of traditional clown comedy with contemporary circuses such as Circus OZ and Cirque du Soleil, and an in-depth look at famous clowns such as Nola Rae and Slava Polunin.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Intellect
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Dimensions
Height: 244 mm
Width: 170 mm
Thickness: 11 mm
Weight
329 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-84150-241-0 (9781841502410)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
09/2009
1st Edition
Intellect Books
€24.49
Available for download
Person
Louise Peacock is a lecturer in drama at the University of Hull.
Content
Introduction - 'Play: Serious and Frivolous' - Page 9 - Louise Peacock Chapter 1: 'Clowns and Clown Play' - Page 19 - Louise Peacock Chapter 2: 'The Development of the Circus Clown: Frame and Content' - Page 41 - Louise Peacock Chapter 3: 'Clowns on Stage' - Page 65 - Louise Peacock Chapter 4: 'Clowns who Act: Actors who Clown' - Page 87 - Louise Peacock Chapter 5: 'The Truth Tellers: Clowns in Religion and Politics' - Page 107 - Louise Peacock Chapter 6: 'Clown Healers' - Page 127 - Louise Peacock Conclusion: 'The Centrality of Play in Clowning' - Page 153 - Louise Peacock