Here are some things people have said about my courses:
Meeting you and being immersed in your class was a very unexpected pleasure. It’s totally changed my perception of clowning and I now feel it’s an important but overlooked aspect of life. I think this practice could offer a broad range of mental, emotional and health benefits for many people. I strongly believe that people should clown around, if only to notice and become more grateful for the smaller things in life. This is because the potential for happiness is more abundant in the present. It is the most powerful position to be in. I can see how offering playful options to an otherwise destructive or negative emotional self can be very liberating and invoke better, more positive outcomes. So – I think your class is amazing and I’m buzzing about it.
Chris, workshop participant 2021
I think your teaching is a perfect blend of articulation, professionalism and wacky energy. It allows a safe and grounded space in which people can let go of themselves. There was real change and challenges amongst the other students in the classes, it was fascinating to watch.
Angie’s clowning classes were great fun, so far removed from my expectations of what clowning is about! I love that actually it’s not about big gestures but about revealing ones authenticity and the hilarity that can come from that exploring that place with curiosity.
Stephen, workshop participant 2021
I couldn’t stop smiling for days after the session. My cheeks ached! It made me feel free to be me and not apologise for it. Thanks Angie!
Workshop participant 2021
It was amazing to see everyone come together and be comfortable doing the activities. We felt like we had this connection afterwards that wasn’t there previously, a shared experience.
Workshop participant 2021
Angie was amazing at understanding the needs of the group, and knowing when to push different ideas and adapt her course to fit those in the room.
Workshop participant 2021
Last week, I had an astonishing experience, all thanks to the enigma that is Angie Wakeman. I simply don’t have the words to describe it, but fortunately my extraordinary friend does. Read on… “Imagine turning up with some colleagues who are also friends, with some strangers too, and three hours later you are going to be cavorting across the room, all eyes on you and your clowning partner, twisting comically, distorting your body to the music of the Pink Panther? Oh yes, and you’ll be wearing a red nose and a ridiculous hat. The more ridiculous, the better. Welcome to the magical, crazy world of clowning coach, Angie Wakeman. A playful, chuckling and delightful woman who reassures you – you’re among friends. All clowns together. Clowning is simple, permissive, spontaneous and deceptivelypowerful. In one exercise, Angie placed a small piece of green fabric in the space and instructed each of us to take the stage and see what happened. I want you to let go of any planning, she said. If you’ve worked something out beforehand, I’ll know, she added with feigned threat. Empty your mind. It’s so powerful because clowning is essentially about being in the moment. Rite large. Clowning switches off the big lever in our heads that tells us to present ourselves to the world as capable, confident, right and clever. And opens up our senses – be here now – see, listen, touch, smell (we didn’t venture into taste, we only had a morning). A clown never puts their nose on in view of others, nor do they fiddle with it, and no clown ever says, I am a clown. They just are. They were born that way. Putting on the mask of the red nose is an invitation to let go of other masks we probably don’t even know we wear. It is liberating to ‘dis-cover’ who we are beneath the grown-up seriousness of our everyday existence. And with our clown friends, we can be courageous together. There is nothing to fear, but if you do, that’s okay too. Angie would say, show us that fear, be however you are feeling. More than anything though, what I witnessed, was so much joy and laughter and love. An abundance of the stuff, shared, and grown exponentially. Thank you Angie for your loving care of our baby clowns and thank you Jo for herding us together and trusting the magic. Vive le clown!
Di, workshop participant 2023
Angie it was the BEST day – my heart (and voice) is still singing! It takes a very special person to bring people together and free them to make magic like we did today! Thank you beyond words.
Jo, workshop participant 2023