photo: courtesy of Canestrelli
Ottavio Canestrelli's childhood was peculiar by almost any standards. With an eight-generation-long tradition of circus performance in his family, Canestrelli, along with his many siblings, was destined to grow up as part of the family act. He toured with his parents and siblings across North America and around the world, attending school in Florida only during slower winter months.
But when Canestrelli took a break from performances to pursue traditional theater, he missed the physical comedy of the circus. Now living in Chicago, Canestrelli is currently performing a one-man show, "Clown Without A Circus," at Actors Gymnasium. The show combines physical acts with autobiographical stories, to reveal the real life under the big top.
Do you remember the first time you performed in the circus?
My twin brother and I were three years old. We went in an acrobatic act that our older siblings did. They put us in a toy box and then they [timed] it so they'd bring us out toward the end of the act and we'd do a double-roll together. I held onto his ankles and he held onto mine and we just rolled forward. And we got into a fight when we were in there. We started pushing each other and knocking each other about. When they pulled us out our hair was all messed up and our faces were red. It was a disaster.
Was there a time you didn't want to perform?
There was once we had a long time off. We had work but it fell through so I wound up going to school for like six months [instead of three months]. And there was a field trip to the Medieval Fair. I really wanted to go and it was all planned to go but we got a gig that Saturday so I had to work. That was the first time I was really upset about having to work on a weekend and not being able to go with the class somewhere. But I always felt like [school] was this outside word that I wasn't a part of but everybody else was.
You and your family performed on the Bozo show a few times. What was that like? My family did teeterboard, kind of like a teeter-totter act. My parents did unsupported ladder, the act that I do now, and my brother and sisters did a tightwire act. I remember seeing in the corner of my eye them rehearsing, you know, these middle-aged men rehearsing these clown gags and they didn't have their make-up on. I actually really liked Cookie because he was super-nice.
How did "Clown Without a Circus" develop?
My initial plan was to make a show so I could do cruise ships, oddly enough. But I did a production of the Tempest and got to know the director [Felicity HunzekerHesed]. When I asked her to direct me in a one-man show she said, 'Well you have such interesting stories. Just write these stories.' So I started writing the stories and they're not real sugar-coated, like what you would expect in a more commercialized show.
Was it difficult to share your life onstage?
It's really scary to put your own life out there. I left some things out and didn't go into some things, as far as the details. My dad went through World War II and I left some of the real gory stuff out, because he saw friends and relatives get blown apart and things like that. My daughter came to see the show. She's 12 years old. She thought some parts were weird. I told her the monkey story.
What's the monkey story?
It's about when I was seven. My dad set this trap because one of the little monkeys escaped. It was a stick attached to a rope so when the monkey went in the cage you pulled the rope and the cage went down and supposedly you would catch the monkey.
Did it work?
You'd have to see the show [laughs]. I don't want to give it away.
What does it mean to be a clown for you?
I think of myself as a clown. Some people have a weird idea that you're not a clown unless you have a red nose. And it's like, what about Charlie Chaplin or Buster Keaton—none of them had red noses. People try to categorize clowns—like, you're a German or a white-faced clown and I think it's really open to interpretation. Every culture has had its clown.
Ottavio Canestrelli performs his one-man show "Clown Without a Circus" at Actors Gymnasium through February 25. Showtimes are 4:30 & 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $16.
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