Andrea Barello’s show Tonight! a Clown who wanted to be loved? has opened at Adelaide Fringe this week, confronting one of the most classic challenges faced by every clown, and probably by every human: the urge to find love. With audience interaction in abundance, slow motion boxing, and wild pizza dancing, there’s plenty to talk about in Andrea’s show. So we caught up for a pixelated pint to dive into his clowning quest about love.

You can catch Tonight! a Clown who wanted to be loved? as part of Adelaide Fringe at the Lab @ Fool’s Paradise every day at 5:30pm until Sunday 2nd March, then at The Warehouse Theatre at 6pm from Wednesday 5th March until Sunday 9th March. Tickets are available through the Adelaide Fringe Online Box Office.

Jake: Ciao Andrea! We first met at last year’s Catania Fringe Festival. Tell us about the journey you’ve been on since then and how your show Tonight has ended up at Adelaide Fringe.

Andrea: Hey Jake, it’s nice to talk to you again! Well, after Catania Fringe I brought the show to Genoa and London, then back to Los Angeles – where it was born. I took some time there to take a breath, and started working on material for a new show.

Why Adelaide? Well, this show went to Edinburgh, Toronto, London, Mexico, and Italy – where I was born. An exciting festival like Adelaide Fringe seemed to be the right next step for both of us (my show and me), and also a great excuse to come to Australia for the first time!

Jake: Tonight explores an Italian clown’s quest to find love through comic absurdity. Tell us a bit about your creative process and what the audience can expect to see in the show.

Andrea: The creative process for me, and maybe for clowns in general, is full of surprises… You begin with an idea, a story you want to tell, and then suddenly you find yourself in a very different place, and you realize how much fun you had in the process. At that point you forget about that original idea, and keep all the good things that you discovered on your way.

In my show the audience will be able to enjoy absurd vignettes, from slow-motion boxing to pizza dancing, and also have a moment to reflect on life, and what matters in it. All this using very few words. It’s a show that can be equally enjoyed by audiences of different ages and cultures.

Jake: What are you hoping the audience might take away from the experience, if anything?

Andrea: That we are never too old to play and be silly. And that the opportunities to play are in every aspect of our life, we just need to be open to see them, and be ready to jump in!

Jake: Jake: Now we’re in the throes of Adelaide Fringe, what are you most excited for?

Andrea: Oh man, EVERYTHING! I’m 58 years old and I’m in Australia for the first time, I’m going to perform for the Adelaide audience, meet other artists from all over the world, is there anything not to be excited about?

Jake: Given the themes of Binge Fringe, if your show was a beverage of any kind (alcoholic, non-alcoholic – be as creative as you like!), what would it be and why?

Andrea: I think it would be a Campari Spritz: joyful, refreshing, and bubbly, with a hint of bitterness from the red bitter liqueur. We need the bitter to enjoy the bubbles more!

You can catch Tonight! a Clown who wanted to be loved? as part of Adelaide Fringe at the Lab @ Fool’s Paradise every day at 5:30pm until Sunday 2nd March, then at The Warehouse Theatre at 6pm from Wednesday 5th March until Sunday 9th March. Tickets are available through the Adelaide Fringe Online Box Office.