The award-winning comedy duo James & Jamesy will launch their North American tour next month in Gibsons with a new production exploring themes of trauma, memory and friendship.
Easy as Pie, which casts Alastair Knowles and Langdale local Aaron Malkin as clowns grappling with existential consequences of an abortive pastry gag, will appear on May 4 at the Heritage Playhouse in Gibsons. The show’s local debut leads to extended runs at festivals in Orlando, Toronto, Winnipeg and Edmonton.
Knowles and Malkin have appeared as James and Jamesy in a half-dozen acclaimed touring productions that feature multimedia wizardry, physical comedy, and audience interaction. The pair last appeared in Gibsons with a 2018 performance titled Thunderfoot.
More than a decade ago, director (and self-described ringmaster) David MacMurray Smith played an instrumental role in crystallizing the two actors’ onstage personas. “I believe that everybody, fundamentally, has clown skills, a part of our nature that enjoys exploring human nature and what we do with one another and how we communicate,” said Smith. “Aaron and Alistair pick up and play themselves a great deal in their work.”
In Easy as Pie, Malkin and Knowles play clowns attempting to perform a classic comedy routine: getting a pie in the face. They fail, and are left to figure out why they can’t complete this simple task. Their journey to uncover the cause of their failure leads them to explore the complexities of trauma, the fallibility of memory, and the role that love plays in the healing process.
“I’m aware of a lot of people’s negative perceptions of clowns,” said Malkin, “and for us to step out looking the way we do in this show, it makes me face my fears of how they’re going to see us. We question how we can reduce the stigma around asking for help, and how we can encourage or assist people with healing from trauma.”
Malkin moved to the Sunshine Coast in 2018, drawn by the presence of his mother-in-law, lifelong arts supporter and LGBTQ2S+ advocate Judy Lynne. Lynne passed away in 2020, but the community and environment compelled Malkin and his family to remain and make Langdale their home.
To create and refine Easy as Pie, Malkin and Knowles rehearsed with Smith during intensive workshops in Winnipeg. Through their collaboration, they explored ways to express real-life hurt in a way that is accessible to diverse audiences.
“It’s still an ongoing process for me,” said Knowles, “but I think there’s something that we share in the process, one might say vulnerability. As clowns, we work into the vulnerability enough that we can be comfortable in it and guide others so that they can survive their vulnerability and see it as a positive learning tool.”
The duo has received 20 best-of-festival awards for previous shows. In addition to their touring work, Malkin and Knowles operate a Vancouver studio where they run classes and workshops to help participants find freedom in self-expression.
Easy as Pie appears at the Heritage Playhouse in Gibsons on May 4 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets ($20) are available online via brownpapertickets.com.
