Experience the twisted, tantalising world of Gary Strange: a cheery inhabitant of the London sewers who is hungry for human connection and eavesdrops on his neighbours’ carnal desires. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you might even gag.
Clown Sex unpacks social and sexual taboos in a hilarious triptych of unexpected tales that will entertain, provoke and titillate in equal measure. Gary Strange has moved into the London sewers due to the cost of living crisis. One benefit of living in London’s innards is that Gary can listen to his high-rise neighbours through drainpipes and plugholes, overhearing stories of bad sex, sad sex and even clown sex. He recounts a day in the life of a failed teacher and party animal, a journalist’s enlightening sexual encounter with a feline friend, and Gary’s personal experience of getting jiggy with a kink-positive clown. From garlic flavoured nipples to cat cunnilingus, it’s funny, grotesque and surprisingly relatable.
Writer and actor Natasha Sutton Williams is an award-winning queer and disabled artist. Her anarchic one-woman show shines a spotlight on human fragility, illuminating the joys and sorrows of giving in to our innermost desires in a society which judges sexual nonconformity. Her deviant yet endearing characters all have one thing in common: they will do almost anything to combat loneliness.
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| Photo by Rowan Spray |
Ahead of the 2023 Edinburgh Fringe I spoke with Natasha to discuss the show further.
The press release teases “from garlic flavoured nipples to cat cunnilingus, it’s funny, grotesque and surprisingly relatable” but can you tell me a little more about Clown Sex?
The show’s protagonist Gary Strange has moved into the London sewers due to the cost of living crisis. One benefit of living in London’s innards is that Gary can listen to his high-rise neighbours through drainpipes and plugholes, overhearing stories of bad sex, sad sex and even clown sex. He recounts a day in the life of a failed teacher and party animal, a journalist’s enlightening sexual encounter with a feline friend, and Gary’s personal experience of getting jiggy with a kink-positive clown.
I have a real soft spot for Gary, even though some people might find him to be a bit of a wrong’un. It’s true that he has some odd tastes - clown sex being one of them - and he loves to bask in the joy of filth, but what is so great about Gary is that he doesn’t let society’s prejudices get in the way of expressing himself, or his pleasure seeking. He is cheery, sweet and really quite thoughtful, especially when it comes to his romantic partners. He has taken wokeness very seriously.
What inspired you to write the piece?
If you can believe it, around ten years ago I was commissioned by a youth theatre to adapt a show that used the metaphor of clowns for Eastern European trafficked sex workers. It was a rather strange premise, but what sparked my interest was the idea of clown sex itself. Who would want to have sex with a clown? How would you seek it out? What would clown sex look and feel like? I decided I wanted to tell the story of a clown sex ingénue. At that moment, Gary Strange was born.
How did you approach blending the different styles of theatre together?
To get it ‘right’ is quite difficult. On the surface, Clown Sex sounds like a kooky, crazy show, but a huge amount of time and effort has gone into the complexity of the writing. All good tragedy has baked in laughs. All good comedy has tragic moments. That’s what I’m trying to create with Clown Sex.
Also, a good director helps! They bring out nuances in the text that I as the writer/performer won’t have consciously recognised. Together we can emphasise those through the physicality, vocal intonation and character motivations.
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| Photo by Rowan Spray |
As a writer is it easier to write about things you’ve experienced in your life or things that are hypothetical?
I prefer to write fiction as opposed to non-fiction for the stage. I write about my observations on the more extreme elements of human behaviour, melodramatic interpersonal relationships, and colourful characters I’ve met over the years. One of my friends says I seem to attract dramatic people in my life! However, I am not a writer who directly writes about their own experience as I am much more interested in creating fictional characters who are inspired by real people, as opposed to writing the equivalent of a Ted Talk play about my lived experience.
What do you want an audience member to take away from seeing the show?
Clown Sex is designed to entertain, provoke and titillate in equal measure. It’s freaky, funny and at times a little disturbing. But the message of the show is to invite people to lean into their secret desires, and seek out new experiences, even if society deems them to be unsavoury. As long as it’s consensual, this play is saying ‘Be free!’ Clown Sex is trying to promote not just a liberation of sexual freedom, but a liberation of thought, particularly when it comes to society’s judgements on individuals. You’ll have to come and experience the show to see if it delivers.
What performances/shows have inspired you?
Gosh, I’ve been inspired by so many performances over the years. To give you a snapshot, as a child I used to watch Seven Brides for Seven Brothers on repeat. When I was nine years old, a very Christian babysitter who was looking after me on New Year’s Eve said, ‘Have you ever seen Rocky Horror Picture Show?’ which was on Channel 4 that night. From the moment we switched it on I fell in love. More recently, I watched Four Lions directed by Chris Morris and loved how daring it is. I wish we had a contemporary show which was as risqué as his Brass Eye series.
Can you describe the show in 3 words?
Hilarious, grotesque, relatable.
Natasha Sutton Williams will perform Clown Sex at the Edinburgh Festival at 1.45pm in Pleasance Courtyard (Bunker Two) from 2nd – 27th August (Not 16th, 21st or 28th). To book, visit https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/clown-sex
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| Photo by Rowan Spray |
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