This young man is not clowning around

Juggling 101, advanced unicycling, and the elements of pie-throwing may not sound like typical college courses. But this is the course load for Hampden resident Brad Leavitt during September and October in Venice, Fla.

Leavitt, 19, is one of 30 students enrolled in the renowned Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Clown College.

He first thought about becoming a clown six years ago. “I began watching clowns on television and at the circus, and I found myself awed by the effect they had on the audience,” Leavitt recalled after beginning his classes Sept. 9.

“I studied their every move,” he said. “Rather than be entertained by them, I wanted to entertain people as a clown myself.”

Brad credits his uncle, Randy Judkins, as being his biggest inspiration. “My uncle has been clowning for as long as I can remember,” Leavitt said. “I grew up watching him, and he had a big influence on my goals.”

Founded in 1968, the eight-week clown college remains the only school in the world dedicated solely to preserving the art of clowning. More than 1,000 people have completed the program.

“Clown college is the boot camp for the circus,” said Steve Smith, the school’s director. “We take our silliness very seriously. We work six days a week, from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. It’s a tough business, but it has rewards that can’t be measured.”

Fewer than 50 candidates are selected from the hundreds who apply for each class, said a clown college spokesman.

A 1989 graduate of Hampden Academy, Leavitt has been performing since he was 12.

His first experience occurred while he was working at a children’s day camp. “I assisted with a mime and modern dance class,” he said, “and I also became involved in choreography and skit rehearsal.

“One thing led to another, and before I knew it I was performing. At the end of the summer I was asked to perform at a local co-op fair. I’ve been performing ever since.”

Leavitt has been performing solo routines throughout Maine for three years, using his skills in mime, juggling, unicycling and balancing.

“I think I’d make a great clown because I have the imagination and improvisational skills necessary to act or react as a funny clown,” he said.

In addition to the essentials of clowning, students must complete rigorous training in circus skills. A typical clown college day includes classes in makeup application, improvisation, arena choreography and gag development as well as acrobatics, juggling, unicycling and stilt-walking.

On Nov. 2 students will display their newly acquired skills to circus owner and producer Kenneth Feld during an elaborate comedy stage production known as “The World’s Funniest Final.”

The best and brightest of the class will receive contracts to perform as apprentice clowns with The Greatest Show on Earth.