By Merle Exit
Next week audiences will have the chance to travel to The City of Lights circa 1930 without ever leaving Queens.
“The Secret Paris Project,” which focuses on eight clowns as they explore the queer world of Paris, has been called by its creator as an evening of “long shadows, hungry desires, sad clowns and devastating dreams,” begins its run at the Secret Theatre in Long Island City.
For his inspiration, director Clare Hammoor studied the works of Brassaï, the pseudonym of Gyula Halász, who compiled what is arguably the definitive photographic record of Paris between the wars.
“These photographs would best be described as underground dirty Paris where there is a section entitled ‘Sodom and Gomorrah,’” Hammoor said. “In particular there is the lesbian bar, or as it is called in those days, queer bar. We see butch women in their tuxes and slicked hair and the femme counterpart dressed in high glam Paris (style).”
Because Hammoor considers himself a creator of post-modern and physical theater, he opted to device a production that plays like a sort of vaudevillian piece but with traces of more poignant vignettes.
Consider it a silent mime show with each of the performers having a specific iconic clown figure plus additional ones they inhabit throughout the evening.
He also decided to cast an ensemble of eight women: Johana Barral, Corrie Blissit, Marjorie Conn, Lauren Durdach, Jamie Law, Jessica Ranville, Dana Scurlock and Kamaria Williams to tell the story.
Each one of these woman comes at the performance challenges from a different angle.
“Everyone has their own clown within them,” Conn said. “We are exploring the facets of the various emotions of clowns. I’m the only ‘old one’ of the cast of what appears to be three decades. Rather than my thinking of a circus clown my mind turns once more toward the characters in Rigoletto and Pagliacci.”
Scurlock sees this project as “a lot of experimentation versus a script with characters that are ever-developing.”
Blissit considers her role less as that of an actor and more of a choreographer, who creates the dance as the show goes along.
“The challenging part is that we all have to decide the persona of our clowns as if we are coming into the room with a blank canvas,” Blissit said.
One thing in common with the cast is that they are certainly having fun.
Several post-show discussions are being planned, including Circus Amok founder and performer Jennifer Miller April 19, a post-show workshop discussion of devised theater making with the ensemble and Hammoor April 24, and French singer-songwriter Marine Futin April 25.
If You Go
The Secret Paris Project
When: April 17-26
Where: The Secret Theatre, 44-02 23rd St., Long Island City
Cost: $18
Contact: (718) 392-0722
Website: www.SecretTheatre.com
