It was shortly after 8pm on Sunday, June 30, when I arrived at Purgatory, a queer owned-and-operated dive bar and music venue in Bushwick, Brooklyn. I put on my costume (a red foam nose) and found myself face-to-face with other similar, though more elaborately dressed, individuals wearing white face paint and drawn-on smiles. As I climbed up a narrow staircase bathed in red light, a towering clown in a thong fishnet suit and whiteout contact lenses descended past me, and at the top, I was greeted by a giddy clown with golden ram horns protruding from their head who handed me a party hat and a noisemaker.
This is the Clown Cult — a bi-monthly immersive variety show dedicated to celebrating the art of clowning. Founded last June by Charlotte Chauvin, who is better known by her stage name Chuckie Sleaze, the recurring event gathers dozens of clowns, including both newcomers and veterans of the craft, for a humorous night of frivolity and revelry, chock-full of rubber chickens, confetti, balloons, and whip-cream pies. “It’s all about becoming more and more clown,” Sleaze told Hyperallergic , explaining in an interview that the event aims to help participants discover “the power in cringe” and the joy that comes with embarrassment.
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