Where the magic is made
“Why do you do what you do with your life?” This was a question that I was asked a number of years ago by an incredible clown who has now become a close friend. This wasn’t idle small talk. She asked it with the utmost sincerity and importance. On the face of it, this seems like an easy question. But the more you think about it, the harder it becomes. Each answer you can think of can be met with a further “But...
Finding the funny spot: instinctive clowning in Cambodia
My first ever clown show cost 20p a ticket. I was 4 years old and I had painted on a red nose, forced the extended family into a living room, told them to pay up, and performed some mindless drivel that my mother still insists was ‘delightful’. Even at the age of 4, something was stirring. There’s something instinctive about clowning. It’s in the blood. And I think it is in all of us from an early age,...
Where have all the Cambodian ‘funny men’ gone?
A few of the guys I’m working with on my Cambodian adventure with Epic Arts are Deaf and speak Cambodian Sign Language. I speak a certain amount of British Sign Language, having got my first qualification a few months ago, and we have had fun finding the similarities and differences between our languages. For me, the most beautiful moment came when I arrived on my first day of work and was greeted by a group of artists all...
Settling into Cambodia: flights, food and hard work
Hello all, I am now in Cambodia. In fact, I have been for three days, but this is the first opportunity I’ve had to sit down and write something to let you know. It’s been quite a whirlwind few days. Let’s cast our minds back to Saturday at Heathrow airport. Imagine how thrilled I was to be lucky enough to get a window seat on the plane and that I would be able to look out at the land below. This was my view from the...
Preparing for Cambodia
As I write this, I have just come back from seeing a nurse who has provided me with the last of three large batches of vaccinations. This is all part of my preparation for travelling to Cambodia on Saturday, where I will be working on clown projects for a month. As someone who has a fear of needles, having a dozen needles poked into my arm makes things feel very real. Here’s an actual picture of my arm right now: It seemed like...
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