The Heart of Play &
Uprising of the Ridiculous

The Bristol Clown School is delighted to host humanitarian clown, storyteller and performer Sabine Choucair for two-days, and two-workshops that deep dive into the world of humanitarian clowning.

Playful, light and deep all at the same time!"

The Heart of Play

Join Sabine Choucair for The Heart of Play, a joyful and deeply human workshop that explores how clowning can connect us to ourselves and to others, even in the most unexpected places.

Rooted in Sabine’s work in refugee camps and communities affected by crisis, this workshop invites you to discover the power of play, empathy, and imagination as tools for meaningful expression and connection. It’s not about performing for applause. It’s about being fully present, honest, and open to those we perform with and for.

Through laughter, improvisation, and guided exercises, you’ll explore how clowning helps us meet people where they are, with lightness, care, and curiosity. We’ll tap into our own emotional landscapes while creating playful, compassionate moments that can reach across language, culture, and experience.

Whether you’re a performer, facilitator, teacher, or simply someone who believes in the power of joy, this masterclass will offer you tools to listen more deeply, laugh more freely, and engage more truthfully. Discover how clowning can turn vulnerability into connection, and how empathy can become the most powerful part of your performance.

Come play with us, and reconnect to the heart of why we do what we do.

Uprising of the Ridiculous

What do we do when we’re angry, heartbroken, and feeling utterly powerless in the face of political absurdity? We turn up in red noses and gold capes. We march in slow motion. We cry glitter. We reclaim the streets with joy louder than sirens.

The Uprising of the Ridiculous is a wild, playful, and delightfully subversive workshop for those who want to respond to the world, not just with anger, but with imagination. Whether it’s a protest, a public square, or a quiet street corner, clowning gives us the tools to reclaim space, challenge power, and spark connection through satire, absurdity, and a whole lot of glitter.

This workshop is for clowns, artists, performers, and everyday humans who are feeling frustrated, stuck, or silenced, and who know there’s power in laughter that bites and beauty that disrupts. Together, we’ll explore:

★ How to turn helplessness into humour
★ How to create bold, poetic interventions in public space
★ How to be seen, heard, and felt without shouting
★ And how to use clowning to ask big questions, poke at injustice, and invite people to imagine something better

Who's this for?

These workshops are for clowns, activists, theatre practitioners, circus and physical performers, socially engaged practitioners and artists of all kinds, enthusiasts and the curious!

Anyone interested in exploring new forms of activism or expanding their understanding of clowning as a form of political expression.

And anyone who wants to use humour and laughter to change the world.

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How it works

★ The Heart of Play
Tuesday 31 March 10am - 5pm
The Spark Space, Redfield, Bristol, BS5 9HH

★ The Uprising of the Ridiculous 
 Wednesday 1 April 10am - 5pm
The Spark Space, Redfield, Bristol, BS5 9HH

★  Investment:
1 day workshop
£100 - Supporter/ High earner
£90 - Full Price
£80 - Concession (low/no income, student)
EARLYBIRD £77 if you book before 28 February

Book both workshops save 10%
£180 - Supporter/ High earner
£162 - Full Price
£144 - Concession (low/no income, student)
EARLYBIRD £140 if you book before 28 February

Contact Robyn directly to arrange booking and payment [email protected]

★ " As a performer I have tools I can take away and apply to my performances. As a teacher I have some helpful tips and strategies to support my students."
Participant, Clowning in Dystopia 2024

★ "A new angle on the terrifying directions that the world of today seem to be aiming for. So much information! As well as teaching his class with great mastery Bim also takes the time to coach each individual student in the right direction."
Participant, Clowning in Dystopia 2024

★ "I feel a strong sense of empowerment after the course. I feel ready to take action with some of the more bigger topics we covered over the workshop."
Participant, Clowning in Dystopia 2024

About the facilitator

Sabine Choucair is a Lebanese humanitarian clown, storyteller and performer. A Lebanese-American humanitarian clown and performer. The first female clown to receive the “Premio Clown Nel Cuore” award in Italy. With qualifications in performing arts from London and social therapy from New York, she has been working with different communities around the world.

She co-founded Clown Me In in Lebanon and Mexico, a group using the art of clowning to fight social injustice. She is a member of Clowns Without Borders USA spreading joy and laughter among disadvantaged communities. She’s the artistic director of the International Institute for Very Very Serious Studies a performance training program in Beirut focusing on social street theatre as well as the Caravan street theatre productions that take refugee and human rights stories to more than 100 communities in Lebanon and Tunisia and Europe.

Sabine was among the 40 cultural leaders chosen to share their work at the World Economic Forum in Jan17.

Her theatre and therapy projects led her to work in Lebanon, The UK, The US, Brazil, Mexico, India, Canada, Cyprus, Tunisia, Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, France, Cameroon, Morocco, Jordan and Dubai.
https://clownmein.com/