Clowning around Brazil: an overview of the teaching of Brazilian clowns

Abstract

Rooted in modern culture and strongly linked to the circus, the art of the clown and of clowning reveals itself as a fruitful space for the reflection on artistic training. This article aims to provide a critical look at the processes that trainers of clowns had received in their artistic training. From the data resulting from an online questionnaire carried out in 2019 and disseminated on social networks, we found 110 professionals in the teaching of clowning spread across the five regions of Brazil. By analyzing the obtained responses, we can have a first understanding of the various processes of clown formation currently taking place in the country. A critical look at what has been and is being done allows improving what can be done in the future.