Course Information

 Enrolment for Teacher’s Perspective 2026 is currently full. If you would like to be added to the list for future dates please reach out here.

Workshops including Mask and Clown Intensive, Boot Camp, Joey and Auguste and many more are currently being offered through One North Clown and Creation (spiritual successor of The Clown Farm and Manitoulin Conservatory for Creation and Performance). Please visit their site directly for more information and how to apply. 

MASK AND CLOWN INTENSIVE (BABY CLOWN)

Prerequisite: None – all are welcome, from all walks of life.

This course is based on the work of Canadian Clown Master Richard Pochinko and has been named many things: From Mask to Clown, Clown Through Mask, or The Baby Clown Workshop (the student’s clown is born at the end).

In this workshop students begin with a focus on listening. The initial exercises are used to awaken and encourage a sense of pleasure, an awareness of the audience, and an honest physical and emotional response to internal impulses and external events. Many exercises are done with eyes closed to help exercise and expand the student’s experience of perception and focus. The body (through specific movement exercises) is approached as a source of visualization for character or story elements through improvisations that include a great deal of work with colors.

Once the color work is done the students are ready for the making and wearing of six masks. This is an involved process of physicalization and visualization, exploring the innocence and experience of each mask and the relationships between them. The masks are guideposts to the student’s creative playground and as such are also the guideposts to his/her clown. With each mask the student prepares a short turn (sketch) to express the essence of the mask without the use of verbal language. Through these turns and the exercises of the entire workshop the rules of clown emerge giving the student a fundamental understanding of clown and a deeper experience of the elements at play in any performance situation. This workshop is an intense blast and furnishes the student with multiple characters and a malleable structure for continued creative exploration with limitless applications. It is not necessary to be a performer to take this course.

BOOT CAMP 1

Prerequisite: Mask and Clown Intensive (Baby Clown)

This workshop is the next stage of exploration after Baby Clown. Using various writing and development techniques and exercises to evoke both left and right brain involvement, the participants explore their own unique approach to the creation of material and performance. The mask and colour work is expanded upon (including the establishment of the gesture work) to deepen the student’s relationship with them as both a source for material and as character for performance. This workshop is perfect for those coming fresh out of The Mask and Clown Intensive (Baby Clown) or for those who seek to reacquaint themselves with the foundations of this style. The 6 days will begin with an emphasis on exploration and creation but will move towards the development of pieces for performance. Students should be aware they will be extremely challenged and while it is not necessary to bring a prepared piece they will be welcome to do so.

JOEY AND AUGUSTE

Prerequisite: Mask and Clown Intensive (Baby Clown) and Boot Camp 1 (or equivalent)

Begin to explore the exquisite dynamics of two and three clown relationships. Also referred to as the manipulator (Joey), the victim (Auguste), and the perfect balance between the two (Ringmaster), this workshop begins with the discovery of each archetype within the individual. Then each student has the opportunity to bring them out to engage with their complimentary counterparts in the external world. This workshop is done primarily working in partnership with another performer. It is not necessary to bring a partner and if you do it is still recommended students work with several different students during the workshop. There will be two public performances at the end of this workshop.

ADVANCED BOOT CAMP

Prerequisite: Mask and Clown Intensive (Baby Clown) and Boot Camp 1 (or equivalent).

This workshop will continue with the work begun in Boot Camp 1 with a stronger emphasis on the development and execution of professional work. Each day will consist of a minimum of 3 hours focused on creation and 3 hours focused on performance. There will be many additional hours for exercises, discussions, and the exploration of themes that arise out of the classes. Students will be able and encouraged to explore a broader application of the clown work including but not limited to spoken text, song, dance, bouffon, Joey & Auguste and a synthesis of any of the above. If students have any specific desires for this workshop they should feel free to begin a conversation on the subject at any point after application. Students should be aware they will be extremely challenged and are to bring 2 short prepared pieces in addition to other work to be discussed after registration.

TEACHER’S PERSPECTIVE

Prerequisite: Mask and Clown Intensive (Baby Clown) and Boot Camp (or equivalent).

This workshop is an ongoing and evolving workshop/seminar seminar exploring the Baby Clown Workshop from John Turner’s 35+ years of experience having taught 1200+ students in 100+ classes, having responded to the questions of 50+ teaching assistants and past Teacher’s Perspective participants. It is intended as an in depth look at all aspects of the work including the experience of both student and teacher and their relationship throughout; adapting constantly to the ever-changing zeitgeist of theatre training.

All of the exercises and games of the workshop will be thoroughly examined and discussed for their underlying principles, philosophies and pedagogy. There will be extensive exploration and discussion of The Clown Rules and their application, as well as discussion of the broader applications of this work and its evolution for students in class, artists in creation/performance, as well as the audience in the theatre.