TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADER to Open CoHo Clownfest in September
The solo show blends pansori opera, clown confession, and K-beauty satire across three acts.
MoldyMelon Productions has announced the upcoming regional tour dates for Take Me To Your Leader: The Seoul of a Clown, a genre-defying solo show written, directed, and performed by multidisciplinary artist Monel.
Following its successful debut, the production will open CoHo Clownfest in Portland, kicking off the festival's opening weekend on September 4 and 5, 2026. The tour will then travel to San Francisco, where Monel will perform the closing show of the Church of Clown Flopfest on October 18 (and October 16), before returning to Portland for a final performance at Kickstand Comedy on November 14.
Part pansori opera, part clown confession, and part K-beauty séance, Take Me To Your Leader is a 60-minute fever dream divided into three distinct acts. The production introduces audiences to a traditional pansori folk diva rooted in ancient musical storytelling; a hyper-fixated K-beauty devotee surrounded by an altar of serums and sheet masks; and a self-proclaimed dictator throwing a birthday party defined by military precision and toddler-level tantrums. Through meticulous physicality, live sound, and bold satire, the show explores how historical fractures, modern perfectionism, and the pursuit of power shape our daily rituals.
TOUR DATES & TICKETING INFORMATION
Portland, OR — CoHo Clownfest
- Dates: September 4 and September 5, 2026 at 7:30 PM
- Venue: CoHo Theater, 2257 NW Raleigh St., Portland, OR 97210
- Admission: $5+ (Tickets available online or at the door)
- Box Office: CoHo Clownfest Lineup & Tickets / Direct Ticketing
San Francisco, CA — Church of Clown Flopfest
- Dates: October 16, 2026 at 8:00 PM; October 18, 2026 at 6:30 PM
- Venue: 2400 Bayshore Blvd., San Francisco, CA 94134
- Box Office: Church of Clown Flopfest 2026
Portland, OR — Kickstand Comedy
- Date: November 14, 2026 at 7:00 PM
- Venue: 1006 SE Hawthorne Blvd., Portland, OR 97214
- Box Office: Kickstand Comedy Event Link
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Monel (all pronouns) is a Corean-born, Portland-based multidisciplinary artist, movement educator, and physician. As MoldyMelon Productions, she creates comedic works that blur the lines between memoir, satire, and interactive theatre. Rooted in durational performance since 2010, Monel has expanded their repertoire to weave contact improvisation, butoh dance, and theatrical clowning into both performance and pedagogy. They have presented solo work at prominent venues including Portland Center Stage, 18th Street Arts Center, Sh'bang Arts Festival, Earthdance Creative Living, Secret Seed Studio, and the Electric Lodge. Recent mileposts include the debut of her first full-length solo show, Take Me To Your Leader, at Shaking the Tree in December 2025, followed by their second solo work, DOTTER, premiered at CoHo Productions in June 2026.
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