This class is limited to 14 students.

Level 1: Welcome to Clown Town

Clown. The Great Equalizer.

"It's you, of course, the clown. And that's important." -Nader Farman

Clown trains us to be fully present. Class curriculum includes exercises from Jacques Lecoq, Jean Taylor, Merry Conway, Nader Farman, Keith Johnstone and more, aiming to move us past ego and toward our shared humanity. Winter is coming. But class is joyful and warm! Come on out, try on the red nose.

Recognize the universal shared experience that is clowning.

This class culminates in a class show at the Eris MainStage.

7-Week Class: Sundays, 6:00p - 9:00 PM, January 12th - February 23rd

• Note: Class may end between 8:30 - 9:00 PM depending on the number of enrollments.

Where: The BCC Dog House, Studio #2 (137 Montrose Ave, Brooklyn, NY, 11206)

Class Show: Wednesday, February 26th. 2025. 7:00pm. BCC Pig Pen (144 Boerum Street)

Teacher: Riley Soloner

Bio:

Riley Soloner (he/him) is an actor, writer and clown living in Queens. As his character Vacation Jason, Riley has performed in venues across the country, on television (TruTV's The Chris Gethard Show) and for five days straight aboard The Norwegian Pearl on a cruise that he was not booked to perform.

Riley has performed in and produced comedy shows in New York City since 2008 for shows like Harold Night and Cage Match (UCB Theater), Xtremely Serious Wrestling (People’s Improv Theater) and C.L.O.N., (Manhattan Public Access TV). Riley grew up spending summers as a camper, counselor and teacher at Camp Winnarainbow, a Northern California circus arts summer camp for children of groovy hippies. Riley is excited to bring his eclectic mix of theatrical, circus, and humanitarian clown experience to the students of BCC!

Testimonials:

Riley's class offers an exciting and dare I say groovy introduction to clown. Classmates came in with zero performance experience and left with literal crowns on their heads. This definitely started a long term interest in clown for me.

I've never laughed or cried so much in a comedy class. This is a fantastic introductory clown class with a lot of substance and heart. Class with Riley is fun, funny, and deeply moving. You'll find a class environment where you can try new things, be vulnerable, and connect with your fellow clowns in clown town!

I think Riley is one of the funniest humans around and I am happy to have taken his class. I wish he taught all the levels. Of course no offense to the other great teachers at Brooklyn Comedy Collective.

He's incredibly funny, warm, and authentic. Really great vibes all around. It's hard to name just one strength, but he did an awesome job of creating a low-pressure, welcoming environment for people to have fun and learn about clown and take risks. He's also really good at karaoke. I laughed so much in class. I also appreciated that he put a lot of focus on getting us to understand the spirit of clown.

I learned that I really enjoy clown, and I want to do more of it. It really changed my life. I love that the class was focused on being vulnerable and authentic.

If this class is sold out, sign-up for the wait list here.