Faces of the Fringe: Madi Distefano, the Clown
After a 15-year hiatus, a Philly theater legend returns.
Philadelphia Fringe Festival performer Madi Distefano
With the Philadelphia Fringe Festival now officially underway, we look at some of the people who make it what it is in our series “Faces of the Fringe.”
Where You Live
“Broad and Callowhill. Do we call that the Loft District? I call it Eraserhood, because I’m so hip and cool. Otherwise, I just tell people I live on the north side of Chinatown.”
Name Your Show and Describe It in Ten Words or Less
“1A Clown’s Way: A Clown’s Guide to Falling in Line. A fascist clown tries to thwart an insurgency. That’s eight words. Do I get bonus points for having two to spare?”
Your Philly Fringe History
“I was there since the beginning. I consider myself to be one of the founding artists who helped define what ‘fringe’ is in Philadelphia. Our first show was EYE-95, and we got a lot of press. It was a big smash. I did a lot more in the fringe but haven’t performed in 15 years.”
What It’s Like Coming Back from Hiatus
“Terrifying. I wasn’t sure that I had the memory muscles to be big and loud on stage and use my body and my voice and memorize lines. But I did a Fringe preview in front of almost 200 people. Did just ten minutes of the piece, and it went great.”
Shows You’re Hoping to See
“Joe Canuso’s piece The Sicilian Dilemma. The latest Chris Davis work, The 40-Year-Old Ballerino. And then a group of artists is doing The Haus of Wiggles and Giggles Presents: A Drag Clown Cabaret, a show featuring Emily Mayer, who is a fantastic drag king and dancer.”
What Else You Do
“I go to the Sporting Club and work out, and I’m trying to figure out how to produce Wrestler Lady, a TV series about a retired South Philadelphia professional wrestler and bar owner. She wants to get back into the ring, and her daughter is against it. I have a first season and a pilot script all written.”
Jobs You’ve Held
“Professional waterskier, pumping gas on a dock on a lake, selling clothes in a retail store, bartender, teacher, actor, writer, owner of a music venue in Austin, and a ramp agent for American Airlines. I could go on.”
Why Philly Is Right for You
“I’ve lived a lot of places and in the artistic communities in all of those places, but I really missed Philadelphia and made a conscious choice to come back here and dig in. I bought a loft space that’s a live-work space where I can rehearse. I love being able to walk everywhere. Philly is the best city in the world. It’s where it’s at.”
