Interview with The Umbrella Academy actor Ken Hall: 'My character subverts the powers that be'

Yeah me and Isaac have performed together as a duo for over 11 years. Quite a milestone that I'm always grateful for. We both approach performance through the lens of clown - meaning we're looking to find out what the audience finds funny and give them more of that. So basically when we're performing we're proposing and testing out ideas and if an audience laughs we stay there and try and grow the laugh and play the moment more. We got tagged as being clownprov over the years which is a label I feel we have earned and come to naturally. When we first started we didn't really know HOW to make an audience laugh consistently. It's quite hard especially when you're starting out but we've put a ton of time and training in to get us to a point professionally where we're quite good and usually find the funny.

What makes us laugh generally makes an audience laugh so that's always a good place to start from. We love play and the idea of play and care less about story. We take massive risks at the expense of context at times to explore uncharted territory that doesn't always work. 

We've had many moments on stage that audiences just don't get or we hadn't being able to bring them into our play. And as I mentioned at lot of comedy is trial and error and to be ok with sitting in the quietness and uncomfortableness of the lack of laughter. 

It's daunting but the sooner you acknowledge you're flopping you're back in the good graces with the audience generally (they reward that you see the show from their point of view) and then you're closer to finding a better idea or offer. So when an audience doesn't laugh we like to call it out that we were terrible in that moment and then we shift and begin our search again. Always feeling out and seeking what they like.  The clown is unburdened by failure and has an abundance of perseverance and desire to entertain the audience at all costs. And we generally try to give it our all when we play. We break a sweat a lot of the time and that's always a good measure that you've done a good job. It's a nice way to leave a show - sweaty and satisfied!