Clowns bring circus to Shelton

Written by Fred Musante
Friday, 23 October 2009 09:31

Clowns Dave and Cherie, who are Ambassadors of Laughter for the Ringling Bros., Barnum & Bailey Circus, visited the Huntington Branch Library for some reading and circus fun.

Dave explained to a roomful of preschoolers that Cherie was feeling a bit shy because she wasn’t used to meeting so many nice boys and girls, and that launched a gag with Dave trying to get Cherie to stop being shy.

The clown visit on Oct. 14 was partly to advertise that the circus was coming to town — for a run Oct. 29 to Nov. 1 at Harbor Yard Arena in Bridgeport.

But this being the library, it wasn’t long before the clowns were reading “If I Ran the Circus” by Dr. Seuss, which delighted the 40 or so giggling toddlers.

“We got hooked up with the clowns because of the Big Read,” said Huntington Branch Librarian Shawn Fields.

He said he was at the Barnum Museum for a Big Read event a week before and found out the clowns were coming to Shelton for appearances at several nursing homes and the Spooner House homeless shelter.

So the Ambassadors of Laughter were also booked for an appearance at the branch library’s popular Toddler Movement program.

The Dr. Seuss book gave Laughter Ambassadors a chance to put on their own circus, complete with juggling and other high jinks.

“Cherie and I want you to know this is what we love about reading books,” Dave told the youngsters. “When you get to the most exciting part, you don’t have to wait a week to find out what happened.”

Later, Dave and Cherie Gregg said they met when they applied to clown college. They got married 17 years ago and joined Ringling Bros. Circus, “The Greatest Show on Earth,” in 1999.

Clowning can be serious business, as 4-year-old Samantha Sharkey discovered when she agreed to be their “victim,” uh volunteer assistant, for part of their juggling act.

At the end of the show, Dave and Cherie put a clown nose on children’s librarian Marcia Austin, who runs the Toddler Movement class.

“Does it smell funny?” asked Dave.

“Yes, a little,” said Austin.

“Well,” Dave joked, “it should smell a little funny, because it is a clown nose.”