For L.A.'s Jennifer Jonassen, clowning is no laughing matter

Arts and Culture contributor Melissa Kaplan is a longtime musician currently writing and developing her first one-woman musical. She will detail the ups and down of the artistic process in a recurring feature for Annenberg Radio News. Learn more about Melissa's project and hear the first installment of this series here.

When I was ready to embark on my journey from being a performing musician to becoming a performing musical actor, I knew it would help me to talk to other people who went through a similar transition.

My friend Jennifer Jonassen is a trained Shakesperean actor from New York. Now in LA for five years, she performs as a dancer and a clown.

"When I first came to LA I was just a traditional actress," Jonassen explains. "On a whim, I auditioned for Cirque du Soleil. And I did well — not like amazing, but well enough — and decided that I really did want to pursue it. But they really were looking for clowns instead of traditional actors. And so like I started taking clown classes."

Performing in circus and variety shows around the city, Jennifer brings laughs with spandex costumes, loud makeup, outlandish humor, and stage presence. Weighing 330lbs, she tends to stand out from a crowd — and she wasn't always comfortable in spandex.

"You're really showing your vulnerability, moreso than anything — which makes it harder than acting," she admits. "But the funniest thing is for the longest time, I didn't feel like I had the right to call myself a clown."

Jonassen found the new scene helped her reawaken as an artist: "[The] circus scene more than clowns, but there are a lot of clowns. What I like about it is just that — "clown" is undefinable. So, I can get to define myself in whatever way I choose. And obviously like for me, that's like a respite from what Hollywood and traditional entertainment is."

I can relate. I'm using a new medium to redefine what I do. Sometimes, I feel foolish. But, Jennifer plays a fool on stage every week and she looks great doing it — and she looks like she's having fun. That's plenty of motivation for me.