CLOWN WORKSHOPS
Fraser is a popular clown teacher at Circus Schools and Theatre Festivals worldwide and for twelve years was the regular clown tutor at The National School for Circus Arts in London. Now resident in New Zealand he juggles his year performing and teaching around the world. He concentrates on rhythm and play and specialises in teaching effective methods of how to give great feedback. Fraser has a huge library of clown books and clown related films which provide an invaluable resource for every class.
“Helpful, fun, funny, inventive and silly, just what I needed.” Amy Saunders Miss Behave UK
“Me and my friends very much enjoyed your show, it was full of great comedy and we found it very entertaining! It was especially useful for me to see post workshop seeing you putting your methods into practice, which also was a brilliant workshop, I got a lot from it so thank you for that.” Jose Tarouca
“In Fraser’s workshop I finally felt comfortable failing, I’m funny when I fail AND I enjoy it.” Jessica Arpin Switzerland
“A master teacher in workshop. Simple action visual stories. He gets you to do, not talk about. Great at it, and such joy” Paul Morocco
“I did Fraser Hooper’s clown workshop over the past weekend. It was a really amazing experience. Not only did I learn more about the physical side of comedy but I also felt that I learned more about the rhythm of comedy.” Joshua Samuels, New Zealand
“I did a course with Fraser many moons ago in London. Twas the best two hours of the week! Learned so much and laughed so much. Everyone go!” Leonie McDonagh, Ireland
“I really enjoyed the three days that I got to participate in your Clown Workshop in Toronto. It was really great to shake things up a bit, think about everything a bit differently and have you push me past my ‘little self’ and into the domain where I was thinking less and clowning more.” David Aitkin The Checkerboard Guy, Canada
“Still have strong memories of this workshop. One of the best I have experienced by far.” Nikki Ciotola Australia
“Fraser is an excellent teacher! I too have taken a few workshops and enjoyed all the fun and what I learned. Highly recommended!” Kelsey Gunn, Ireland
“I really appreciated the workshop. Was a real eye opener, looking at performance from a totally different way… Its gunna make a big difference to the way we work. Thank you… also now wanna do more clowny work…” Meredith Colchester, Cat & Mouse Theatre UK
“Your workshop was one of my highlights of 2023, considering how awesome my 2023 was, that is very high praise. Thank you for all the laughter.” Rupert Appleyard, UK
“I learnt more about stage craft in his workshop than I’d learnt in years of training, Fraser Hooper is brilliant.” Suzanne Andrade 1927 UK
“Dear Fraser thank you so much for the really fabulous master class you took on Saturday. I really can’t thank you enough for everything you did.” Alexandra Jones Program Manager Actors Equity Foundation Australia
“Fraser delivers clearly and with much joy, the principles and practices that make his own work as a clown so brilliant. I came away with solid tools for creation and performance that will have a positive impact on my own work for years to come.” Pete Sweet USA
“If you get the chance to do his workshop I highly recommend it. Not only was it fun and learning, I haven’t laughed that hard in years.” Grace Hammersley-Myers New Zealand
“If you are a performer, you will pick up some great ideas from Fraser, I went to his course last year. It was amazing.”
SCHOOLS WORKSHOPS
All his workshops are based on rhythm and play and he teaches how to craft improvisations into comic routines. For younger school students he uses lots of simple physical games that are about connecting, responding and listening to each other. He encourages playful strategies that embrace failure as much as success and the students quickly learn how to make room for their friends to succeed.
“With our year 6 and 7 tamariki, Fraser led a series of workshops designed to cater for all children and also be loads of fun. Through interactive drama games, comedy gags, and physical theatre, children became more confident about expressing themselves non- verbally, and also interacting with each other. We were especially pleased to see children on the margins stepping up and wanting to get in amongst the action.” Charles Bisley Associate Principal Kelburn Normal School, Wellington, New Zealand.
“I have been teaching for a long time and can not recommend Fraser Hooper’s clown class for kids highly enough. Fraser has the rare ability to truly captivate children as he is highly knowledgeable, clear in his teaching, funny and calm. With very few props he breaks down complex clowning concepts into manageable steps and then gives ample opportunity for the children to practise these skills. His workshops are hands-on from beginning to end and my class loved every minute!” Ruth Cooper Deputy, Principal & Year 7 – 8 Teacher, Kahurangi School, Wellington
“With the support of my amazing school Rāroa Normal Intermediate School in Wellington, I approached Fraser to combine our areas of expertise to develop a skills/confidence group for intermediate age students, which he embraced! The groups have run in 2020 and 2021 for six consecutive weeks. Fraser is talented and brilliant to work with. The wide variety of theatre skill based activities Fraser facilitated, enabled students to build or find strengths, push themselves, be challenged, make new connections, build social skills, build confidence and most importantly have a truck load of fun! I hope to collaborate with Fraser again in the future.” Viv Dalrymple School Counsellor/Kaiwhakamahereora, Rāroa Normal Intermediate School, Wellington