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This Month's ClownX

5-Star Treatment for the STARS (humans with dementia)

How is it to be greeted like a king or queen? What is it like to stay in a 5-star hotel? How would it feel to be treated like a star? Is it too much? Or is it delicious?

When we are clowning for people with dementia, our aim is always to work TOGETHER to create a custom-made art moment. ‘Together’ means we must work with the ‘butlers’ (the healthcare workers) who are the key to meeting the ‘kings’ and ‘queens’ (the seniors) and their 'entourage' (the relatives).

This masterclass will shine a light on the concept of the 5-star treatment, a method developed and taught all over Europe by Patrick van den Boom. While it was developed specifically for clowning for seniors, this approach is relevant and vital for any clowning in any context. 

In the masterclass Patrick will reflect on his own practice, share tools, and lead practical exercises to help us understand key ideas and concepts in the art of clowning and of ‘treating’ seniors:

• How we know what fits the wishes and needs of our stars
• What it means to do our "homework" and arrive prepared
• How good it is to make someone more than just “seem” happy, but to actually be happy
• How to travel together into a moment of transformation, open your heart and dive all in.

WHAT YOU’LL GET FROM THE CLASS...

• 2.5 hours of Zoom-based instruction with Patrick van den Boom
• Introduction to his greatest passion: Clowning for the Stars (the seniors)

• Practical tools to deepen our clown practice, in particular when clowning with seniors
• Interactive, embodied learning about what it means to give 5-Star treatment to another human.
• Opportunity to ask questions and discuss these topics with the passionate Patrick Van Den Boom.
• Access to recordings of past ClownX masterclasses, including Joe Dieffenbacher, Robyn Hambrook, Shannan Calcutt, Jef Johnson, Avner Eisenberg, Moshe Cohen, and Olivier-Hugues Terreault.

ABOUT PATRICK...

Hi, I'm Patrick. Clowning is in my bloodstream. I wanted to be a clown since I was two years old. Sometimes it is clear from the start! After a period of theater and dance I decided at the end of the nineties to go to a Dutch Clown School. This was the start of a lot of clowning! I started clowning in hospitals, elderly homes and also became a teacher/trainer.

In 2009 I moved from the Netherlands to Norway. There I started working at the Sykehusklovnene (hospital clowns) in Oslo. And a bit later I created Klokkeklovnene, a new group for clowning in elderly homes in Norway. The Dutch Clown school I founded in the Netherlands became Clownschool International! Now I give training and workshops all around Europe. It makes me very happy.

My approach to clowning
A basic principle of clowning is that the clown lives and exists in the ‘here and now’. The grandiosity of Nothing is the beginning of the magic. The presence of the clown is not-knowing anything, yet feeling at ease with that. I see many similarities between nature and the clown. Nature is of course always here and now.

The clown says ‘yes’ to every situation. He finds his way even when there is no way. He is honest and transparent. A clown is not funny by definition. The audience will be the judge of that! Contact with the audience is very important and one could say that you have to earn it time and time again. Because situations are always new, you are constantly exploring: Am I welcome? Do I get permission to take it a bit further? When playing in front of an audience I see the audience as the director of the meeting.

Our body is always honest and present. Mimics and body language speak for itself. Because it has been proven that more than 90% of all communication is non-verbal, I love to be speechless when I’m at work.

WHAT IS ClownX?

ClownX brings the very best clown teachers from around the world right into your living room. Once a month, a new Xpert and a new theme to be Xplored.

Think of it as a portal to a diverse range of approaches and methods or simply an opportunity for fresh stimulus and inspiration built into your routine.

Over the next few months we have Moshe Cohen, Patrick van den Boom, Olivier-Hughues Therrault and Michelle Matlock.

Plus, when you sign up for the monthly subscription you get access to all the past ClownX Masterclasses, which includes Joe Dieffenbacher, Jef Johnson, Shannan Calcutt and Robyn Hambrook.