Pittsburgh sends in the clowns

The world has been rough on clowns. The art form once associated with beloved performers such as Bozo the Clown, Emmett Kelly, and Marcel Marceau has, over the past several decades, become synonymous with more sinister imaginings. Now, people are more likely to think of Stephen King’s sewer-dwelling child murderer, Pennywise, the silent-but-deadly Art from Terrifier , or Bart’s nightmare bed from that one episode of The Simpsons .  And it’s not just fiction giving clowns a bad name — 10 years ago, the media reported on a spate of creepy clown sightings across the U.S. and around the world.  In the past few years, however, society has put aside its collective coulrophobia to re-embrace clowns, and not for horror-related reasons. Vulture and LAist profiled a growing clown scene in Los Angeles, with the latter declaring “LA is a Clown Town.” In 2024, Brooklyn Magazine covered the immersive, bi-monthly show Clown Cult, where attendees don “polka-dotted tutus, brightly colored wigs, pink velvet bodysuits, knee-high socks, rainbow sweaters, oversized ties and red circular noses.”  In other words, clowns are hip, in, and now.  Popular media has also projected a more favorable view of these performers on TV series including Baskets and Modern Family, in which actor Eric Stonestreet occasionally showed off his real-life clowning skills. Clowns have also appeared in the world of drag and music, as Puddles Pity Party (musician Michael Geier) has opened for Weird Al during his latest tour.  Now, it seems, clowns are once again the playful jesters of theater — friendly, accessible, even artistic. And the clown phenomenon has arrived in Pittsburgh, where performers are now sharing their love of an art form with centuries-old origins. Sara Kantner poses for a photo while holding a prop boulder at Glitterbox Theater on July 6, 2026. Credit: Mars Johnson Ryan McGowan-Arrowroot has carved out a nich