THE ROTTEN PLANTAINS presents FRENCH CONNECTION (via Texas & Brazil)
ONE NIGHT ONLY
45 Bleecker: Bleecker Street Theatre
Recommended for 18 +
Children under the age of 4 are not permitted in the theatre.
Fred Blin, Claudio Carneiro, Julie Ferrier, Patrick de Valette, and Wayne Wilson are THE ROTTEN PLANTAINS…
Never before have you seen such a gathering of clowns, comedians, and a Brazilian alcoholic (who happens to be our roommate) take the stage. A mix of clowns and circus, cultures and experiences, together, form this new comedy show. Here, they will meet on the stage together for the first time.
From Cirque du Soleil’s Varekai/ Love/Banana Shpeel/Dralion, Jean Pierre Jeunet’s Micmacs, Franco Dragone’s Le Reve, and the Betty Ford Clinic – comes this flawlessly rehearsed production of beautiful idiots attempting to make you laugh.
This is the beginning of their collaboration together, this one night only show, will plan their world tour – from NYC, London, Paris, Rio, Calcutta, Nigeria, Osasco (SP), Australia, Beirut, and the Netherlands. Come join in on this ground-breaking event.
For me, experience of a fourth distinct style of clowning in one week. Kendall Cornell’s Clowns Ex Machina experimental studies of women and riffing off cultural images. Jef Johnson’s esoteric deconstruction of the performers exploration of an object in front of an audience. The New York Goofs with Jay Stewart and Joel Jeske perpetuating the stylized movement of circus clowns and silent movie comedians and finally Patrick de Vallette and his French compatriots from street performance, cabaret and Cirque du Soleil.
My head is spinning as I sort out from all of this what is familiar and comfortable for me. A colleague at a bar told me she that piece I did about a mother waiting for a subway train resonated with her enough that she still remembers it years later after hundreds of pieces she has seen. I would like to work on that again. Puppeteer friend is coming into town this week for an audition and we will have a chance to talk and brainstorm if not actually work together. Some friends and I are putting together a proposal for a low-stakes evening of clown at Theaterlab later this fall. I hope to use my nervous energy to advantage by approaching the performance as hosting a party. I want to generate an energy in the room akin to the memories I have giddy slumber party excitement practicing trust falls and playing games like “Light as a feather, Stiff as a board”. I don’t know if I can make that happen but that is my intent after this exciting week of many clown styles and time now to process what I have experienced and to distill from all that what is mine to own.