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NEW YORK, Sep 3, 2006 (UPI via COMTEX) -- A new generation of clowns that use fear as motivation presented their version of the medium at this weekend's New York Clown Theater Festival.
The New York Times said clowns performing at the Brooklyn festival and across town in "Creation: A Clown Show" at Manhattan's 3LD Art & Technology Center represent serious performers who use fear to connect to their audiences.
The modern interpretation of the age-old entertainment medium is based not only on fear of clowns, known as coulrophobia, but also on using art to express the fear and doubts of the world.
"We live in a time of enormous cynicism and we live in a world that is boxed in," said "Creation" clown Lucas Caleb Rooney. "The clown says we're all freaking out and we're all the same under the clown exterior.
With many traditional clown actors retiring, those in the new wave have taken the initiative to reinvent the public's idea of the clown.
"The essence of clowning is that people can recognize themselves in the clown." clown actress Anna Zastrow told the Times. "My clown is a reflection of a person kind of overwhelmed by life and wanting so much to be part of it," she added.
URL: www.upi.com Copyright 2006 by United Press International
