The image of clowns usually renders one of two memories: either that of fun childhood birthday parties or terrifying nightmares courtesy of Stephen King’s televised drama, “It.”
But after UCLA alumnus Daisuke Tsuji saw a clown show in Poland, one that he describes as being the best he’s ever seen, he realized that clowns can be multidimensional, and offer a spectrum of human emotions.
“All the shows were in Polish and I couldn’t understand a word,” Tsuji said. “Then I saw this clown show and everybody (in the audience) was on the same page because they understood the physicality of the clown. Their inner child came out while watching the show.”
Tsuji later went on to become a Cirque du Soleil performer after graduating from UCLA in 2003 with a bachelor’s degree in theater arts. Though his concentration was in acting, he said that the show in Poland inspired him to take on a different realm of performing.
His most recent creations, “Death and Giggles” and “Sole Mate,” presented by the Actors’ Gang and currently playing until Oct. 23 at the Ivy Substation, serve as an attempt to dispel the negative connotations associated with clowns and explore their universality ““ a concept that hits close to home.
“I moved to America (from Japan) when I was 9,” Tsuji said. “Japan is very much (about) discipline and America’s more about freedom, and I think it’s important to have both as an artist. I feel that I got the best of both worlds.”
Tsuji’s transcontinental experience growing up is also reflected in his career, as he has traveled all over the world, most predominantly in Japan as part of Cirque du Soleil’s “Dralion.”
“I got to tour Japan, and (be) surrounded by amazing and physically gifted people, like acrobats and contortionists and clowns too,” Tsuji said.
This constant exposure to clowns and the respect he garnered for them is what influenced him to create his show.
“It has clowning, puppetry, and modern dance,” Tsuji said. “There are all these balloons, and when (the main character) pops these balloons, parts of his memories are re-enacted. One of the first things I came up with in my journal entries, in trying to create this, was “˜the journey of death is through the dreams of our loved ones,’ so that’s what I tried to depict.”
The main character is mainly portrayed through physical actions, Tsuji’s specialty.
“I have never met any performer who’s more controlled over his physicality and his body,” said Cristina Bercovitz, co-creator of “Death and Giggles” and “Sole Mate.” “There’s a part of the show where he literally does not move, does not blink for three minutes. That’s an example of him not moving, but when he does move, that same precision is there in every choice that he makes.”
While his physicality is one of the skills he began to learn at UCLA, he has other resonating skills that he claims to have also attained here.
“Simplicity, specificity and sincerity. That’s something I definitely started to learn at UCLA,” Tsuji said. It is a mantra that has helped him evolve as a performer while still maintaining the elements that make him unique.
“He actually takes you so clearly though the journey he’s created. It’s pretty incredible. (“˜Death and Giggles’ has) a little flavor to it that has that Cirque du Soleil feeling ““ the clowning that goes on there and activeness. But he has brought his own specific flavor to that world,” said Shana Sosin, Actors’ Gang member and producer of an upcoming festival which will feature Tsuji’s work.
Tsuji’s show not only incorporates his broad set of skills but also includes themes that, though disparate at times, have the finality of providing the audience with a journey and a moment to reflect on their own lives.
“It’s also about death. I really want people to think about the person they have lost,” Tsuji said. “This show is for a friend of mine who died earlier than he should have. If there is somebody that the audience has lost in his/her life, I want them to simply remember them.”
Tsuji’s friends and collaborators also hold special memories of him and hope to add more as time goes by.
“Eventually he will be too successful to work with us,” Bercovitz said. “He’s just an extremely talented performer. I’m sure he will go on to do great, fabulous things; Cirque is just the tip of the iceberg for him. For selfish reasons I hope it takes a little while before he’s too busy to play with us.”