My Shows
News on your favorite shows, specials & more!

TRICKSTER To Be Presented By The Clown School Company at Hollywood Fringe Festival 2026

TRICKSTER, directed by Sarah Painter with a script by David Bridel, follows a sell-out run at The Stomping Ground LA.

By:
TRICKSTER To Be Presented By The Clown School Company at Hollywood Fringe Festival 2026

Acclaimed Los Angeles based The Clown School Company will return with its latest production.

In 2024, The Clown School, the renowned LA based organization devoted to exploring and promoting the practice of clowning, announced the formation of The Clown School Company, a professional performing arm of the School, offering inventive contemporary theater informed by physical theater and clown practices.

The Company's first production, A Kind of Electra, based on the Greek tragedy by Euripides, was a 5-star (Edmonton Journal) smash hit at the Edmonton Fringe Festival in Canada in August 2025. Now the Company returns with its sell-out second show, Trickster, playing at The Hollywood Fringe Festival 2026.

Trickster, hilarious and haunting, weaves together a series of mythical tales from around the world to explore the mischievous and profound aspects of the archetype in our lives. An initial run of the show at The Stomping Ground LA in Fall 2025 was a sell-out hit.

Trickster is directed by Sarah Painter, who has been working on and off in the theater for the last 25 years in both New York and Los Angeles as a performer, producer, writer and director. Most recently she performed with Living Room Shakespeare as Lady Macbeth (Macbeth) and Henry Bolingbroke (Richard II), as well as devising shows with various clown ensembles. Additionally, Sarah is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker practicing psychotherapy in Los Angeles.

Trickster features a script by David Bridel, the multi-award-winning artist, scholar, author and educator whose credits as a director, choreographer, and playwright span the globe. Some highlights include his work on productions at The Mark Taper Forum, Los Angeles Opera, Classic Stage in New York, the Louisville Orchestra, the Kennedy Center, the Theater an der Wien in Vienna, and the Theatre Du Chatelet in Paris. He has worked with actors in multiple notable films, television shows and stage productions, including Waiting for Godot (now on Broadway), Babylon, Euphoria, Wolfs, Gen V, The Consultant, The Seagull/Woodstock NY, and The 100.

Trickster's Artistic Team includes Art Directors Jessika Pilkes and Stefan Rambousek, dramaturgy and assistant direction by Jess Esa, music by Steve Duchardt, and Lighting Design by Camille Roberts.

For Trickster tickets go here; for further information about the production and The Clown School Company go here.



Theater Fans' Choice Awards
2026 Theater Fans' Choice Awards - Live Stats
Best Lead Performer in a Play - Top 3
1. Daniel Radcliffe - Every Brilliant Thing
29.6% of votes
2. Nathan Lane - Death of a Salesman
12.4% of votes
3. Ayo Edebiri - Proof
6.7% of votes

Need more Los Angeles Theatre News in your life?
Sign up for all the news on the Spring season, discounts & more...


Videos


The Most Happy Fella in Los Angeles The Most Happy Fella
North Coast Repertory Theatre (6/03-6/28)
Millennials Are Killing Musicals in Los Angeles Millennials Are Killing Musicals
Colony Theatre (4/30-5/17)
In the Blink of an Eye: A Musical Memoir in Los Angeles In the Blink of an Eye: A Musical Memoir
The Pico (6/19-6/21)
Melt : The Play in Los Angeles Melt : The Play
The Marilyn Theatre at the Lee Strasberg Institute (6/11-6/13) PHOTOS
A CINDERELLA Summer – an “Enchanting” Rudie-DeCarlo Family Theatre Musical for kids 2 to 102  in Los Angeles A CINDERELLA Summer – an “Enchanting” Rudie-DeCarlo Family Theatre Musical for kids 2 to 102
Santa Monica Playhouse (6/06-8/30)
Mandy Keen: MAGGIE in Los Angeles Mandy Keen: MAGGIE
The Stray Theater (6/06-6/18)
 Sierra Madre Playhouse Presents THREE LIVES, Play Written/Performed by Alex Xander Luu, May 22-24 in Los Angeles Sierra Madre Playhouse Presents THREE LIVES, Play Written/Performed by Alex Xander Luu, May 22-24
Sierra Madre Playhouse (5/22-5/22)
17th New Media Film Festival in Los Angeles 17th New Media Film Festival
Culver City Theatre (6/03-6/04) PHOTOS VIDEOS
New York City Ballet   in Los Angeles New York City Ballet
The Music Center’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion (6/24-6/28)
OTR: Provenance in Los Angeles OTR: Provenance
Chance Theater (7/29-7/29)