Mark Gindick's "Wingman"

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When I teach workshops for clowns I'm usually surprised how little they know about physical comedy. Same thing goes for what I see at clown festivals, and I'm talking about excellent and experienced clowns. I'm not saying that all clowns should have to do physical comedy, but when I see one capable of mining the old skills of the silent film comedian, I get excited.

Such a performer is Mark Gindick, a clown-dancer-acrobat whose work many of you have seen with Ringling Brothers Circus, Big Apple Circus, and in the ensemble Happy Hour with Ambrose Martos (now featured here in Manhattan in La Soirée) and Matthew Morgan. And now Mark is mounting a full-scale production of Wingman, a show he has been developing in front of live audiences for over two years but is going big-time this coming weekend (March 26–29) in Brooklyn, produced by Michael and Tina Bongar and directed by West Hyler of Jersey Boys fame.

Photo: John Huntington

From the publicity:

Wing-Man, which won BEST ONE-MAN SHOW at the United Solo Theatre Festival, is a live, interactive and modern take on Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times.  While Chaplin’s classic film dealt with the struggle to survive in the rapidly evolving industrialized world of the 1930s, Gindick’s Wing-Man character must navigate the social pitfalls of a fast-paced world where “Likes,” tweets and texts often substitute for real interpersonal communication.  With a ton of laughs and a trace of melancholy, Wing-Man confronts the demands of modern digital technology on our lives.

In fact, audience members are invited to use their cell phones to interact with the performer during the show. Yes, you read that right. Here's a preview:



Click here for complete info and to buy tickets.