WORKSHOP WITH MICHELLE MATLOCK
Sunday, May 24, 2026
6:00 - 9:00 pm
Kinetic Arts Center
785 7th Street
Oakland, CA 94607
Limited to 18 students
$75
An exploration into some essential tools used to discover the unique clown that is inside of each participant. We will prioritize relishing in your own delight, expressing the greatest possible emotions, celebration of both debacles and triumphs, connection with the audience and acceptance of your own ridiculous stupidity. This workshop is designed to meet participants wherever they are in their clowning journey. New and experienced players are welcomed. Ages 17 and up.
In this Clown Workshop we will:
Ignite your impulse to have fun
Find the pleasure of being present & expressing emotions
Practice identifying your own delight
Take simple clown action and find funny conflict
Accept your own ridiculousness
Establish a connection with the audience
Celebrate debacles and triumphs
Embrace the unknown in order to create something new
Laugh your ass off!
No one turned away for lack of funds. For scholarship information, please send a email to info@circusbella.org.
Please wear comfortable clothing in which you can easily move around. Feel free to contact us with any further questions at info@circusbella.org.
About Michelle:
Michelle Nicole Matlock is a performing artist, director, and teacher whose work lives at the intersection of theater, circus, and community-based performance. She is a dedicated educator, teaching clown, physical acting, and devised performance through intensives at Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theater (Blue Lake, CA), Clown Gym (NYC), and with Laughter League, where she trains healthcare clowns across the country. Her teaching centers on embodiment, creative risk-taking, and helping artists develop their own authentic voice.
Michelle’s original solo show, The Mammy Project, has toured nationally and internationally to critical acclaim and received three 2025 Seattle Gregory Awards for Outstanding Performance, Original Script, and Production. She spent nearly a decade performing with Cirque du Soleil’s big top show OVO, where she made history as the first Black American to create a main character for the company.
As a director, Michelle has led a wide range of productions nationwide, including For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow Is Enuf at Lakewood Playhouse, Circus Bella in San Francisco, The Midwinter Revels with Puget Sound Revels in Tacoma, and work with the Bindlestiff Family Cirkus in New York City. She is also the Director of the Tacoma Light Trail, a large-scale winter light art festival that brings together artists, performers, and communities across Tacoma.