Clowns may be funny, but clowning is no joke – at least according to Circus Vegas’ resident clown, Edy.
“The clown is a little bit of a hard job because you need to be involved with the people,” reveals Edy, who has spent 40 weeks per year touring with travelling Circus Vegas for the past five years.
“If you have an act, you just do your act and people like it – or don’t like it, right?” he continues.
“But clowns, you interact with the people, you need to wait for the response of the people. It’s a bit more high-stakes!”
Edy, who hails from Mexico City – and is ageless, since “clowns have no years” – has been a professional clown for the last seven years.
But he knew from childhood that he wanted to grow up and be in the circus.
“I loved the circus as a kid,” beams Edy, his real smile matching the cartoonish, painted-on one.
“I have extended family from the circus, and I always liked it. And so I thought: ‘Maybe one day I could do that’. And I tried and tried, and bam! Here I am.”
From age 14, Edy trained as an acrobat and that got him into circuses across the Atlantic in America.
But it wasn’t long before he discovered his true passion.
“I started getting more involved in the clown stuff and I really enjoyed those times. So I decided to carry on and be just a clown.
“Then I got the opportunity in France, so I just took it! That’s how I ended up in Europe.”
‘Teenagers are all afraid of clowns’
From France, he came to the UK, and since he started travelling with “Vegas on wheels” Circus Vegas, he hasn’t looked back.
However, Edy carries his native culture with him, donning a Mariachi-themed clown suit and building his act around his Mexican heritage.
“The stuff I use in my performance is all about Mexico, because I want to show a little bit of my culture,” he explains.
And since so many people – “especially teenagers” – suffer from coulrophobia (a fear of clowns), Edy has reinvented the the traditional clown into something more modern.
Unlike the stereotypical red-nosed, big-shoed clowns, Edy’s clown persona is more subdued.
“The clown is like a persona for the person behind it,” he explains. “Before, the clown make up was more aggressive – the big white eyes and big huge mouth. But with my make up, I try to make it a little more cartoon, a little more friendly.”
And far from the water-squirting corsage or honking horns of traditional clowns, Edy’s act is a little more sophisticated in its silliness.
“I always see the kids laughing at the clown because the clown is dumb, he’ll fall down or something like that,” he observes.
“I try to make it something different, I try to be not so classic and silly.
“I don’t want to have to fall down to make people laugh. I want to make them laugh with intelligent things.”
‘Being in the circus is like holidays’
And although he admits there are some less glamorous aspects of circus life – such as travelling in the night – he says they simply “don’t compare to the good things that happen”.
“For me, being in the circus like holidays,” laughs Edy.
“I’m doing stuff I like, and I have a salary for that. Imagine how good that is!”
When he’s not delighting the circus crowds, Edy loves exploring the towns and cities that the Big Top stops in.
And he admits he has a real soft spot for anywhere with a castle, which meant his first ever visit to Dundee this week didn’t disappoint.
“I love the castles here in the UK!” he effuses. “This week I went to the castle at the beach, Broughty Ferry – not as a clown obviously! It was really nice.”
For Edy, clowning is a passion but it’s also a job – and he admits that even the cheeriest clowns have bad days.
“It’s funny because not everybody’s happy all day,” says Edy candidly as he pops on his rubber nose. “Sometimes you can be a little bit bleh.
“But when I feel the spotlight on me, it’s like ‘boom!’ – total change. If I have pain in my back, or anger, when I’m working I forget about it.” He smiles and winks.
“Then when I finish work, back to the mood!”
Circus Vegas is at Dundee’s Riverside Park until Monday July 26. For tickets and showtimes, please see the Circus Vegas website.
