The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
PERFORMERS BRING HUMOR TO HOSPITAL
Team trained to be more than clowns, seeks to change energy.
Denise Arribas is a serious musical theater actor but she is so happy that she decided to put on that red clown nose. Arribas is among 11 performers employed by the nonprofit Humorology Atlanta, HA! Group members, who identify themselves as humorologists, provide therapeutic fun to patients (and their families) of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. There’s a lot more to being a humorologist than blowing bubbles, strumming a ukulele and juggling balls. These performers are highly trained in import
ant hospital protocols as well as on how to deal with sick kids.
Q: How did Humorology Atlanta, HA! get started? A: Our team had been working at Children’s Healthcare for 16 years as part of the Big Apple Circus Clown Care program. After the circus went bankrupt in 2016, the only way to keep going was to start a new organization.
Q: How is a humorologist different from your run-of-themill clown?
A: We have been trained to follow a hospital’s hygiene and other procedures and to be as knowledgeable as we can about the full gamut of illnesses and issues that children have. The training is continuous and constant and so is working on our craft. We also have to be constantly adjusting our acts based on what is going on around us. What we do changes from room
to room to room and can turn on a dime. Also, we wear limited makeup because that makes us more approachable. My makeup is lipstick and a nose.
Q: How do you view your role? A: It is about changing the energy of the room. Say you have a child with a terminal illness.
Two clowns come in and make everyone laugh. The release is helpful not just for the kid but for the parents, for the staff, for us.
Q: What is the hardest part of the job for you?
A: Maybe the hardest thing to learn was not concentrating on the sickness but on the child. A kid can be plugged into many machines and the prognosis may not be great but that kid still wants to play and laugh. On a professional level, it was being OK with being a clown. I always saw myself as a serious musical theater actress. This work has transformed me as a person and made me a better actor and performer. It made me aware that it is not about what I want but
about what the audience needs.
Q: Who are your fellow humorologists?
A: The beauty of our team is we all have diverse artistic backgrounds. Our team boasts professional jugglers, mimes, magicians, musicians, improvisers and extensive training and education in theatrical performance and clown specifically.
Q: Are there children you can’t reach or make laugh?
A: We have a pretty good bat- ting average. When we are going from room to room, we knock on the door and ask the patient if we can come in. If the answer is no, we respect that. It may be the only time in the hospital that a kid can say “yes” or “no” to someone. That truly empowers the child. Children’s Hughes Spalding Hospital has an autism clinic. Our approach working with
these kids took a lot of rethinking. Some of the kids are nonverbal or have their own language. The great thing is that clowns don’t have to be verbal and a lot of time we have our own language. That
has allowed us to connect.
Q: What does your group bring to the kids?
A: We give them a break from their illness so they can go back to being a child.
Q: What do the kids give you? A: There was one day when I was complaining that my Amazon Prime package was a day late. I went to the hospital to visit a child who was receiving end of life care. This child stood up from
his bed and started giving instructions on how we were going to sing and dance. The kids, they give me perspective — so much perspective.