Archer Pechawis - Performance History

The Early Years - Clown

In the winter of 1982 I met some clowns. After hanging around with them for a few months I quit my job and started juggling. I was 18 years old.

I did my first paid gig on June 25th, 1982, juggling and face-painting at Kitsilano Neighbourhood House. I think I got $50. That night I went to see The Clash at Kerrisdale Arena (the Combat Rock tour), and I thought it would be interesting to go to the show in my whiteface clown outfit.

I was right. It was very interesting.

At this time the Clown scene in Vancouver was very strong, producing the annual Festival of Fools in 1982, 1983 and 1984. I learned my new trade doing birthday parties and gigs with The Extraordinary Clown Band, and by 1984 I had the chops to start street performing. That summer at the Edmonton Fringe Paula Jardine taught me how to blow fire. A real crowd pleaser, that.

I was a street juggler for three years. In those days I would play pretty much anywhere, even while camping with my girlfriend Dolorès Leonard's family. I also enjoyed performing at punk gigs.

Of course no discussion of this era would be complete without mentioning "The Guppy Fuckers", a non-famous band I put together with Glenn Watts on accordian, Fred Holliss on bass, Sharon DiGenova on drums and me on guitar. We played one gig.

Goin' Legit

I had been taking workshops and training on my own until 1986, when I went to the D'ell Arte School of Physical Theatre in beautiful Blue Lake, California. On returning to Vancouver in 1987 I performed in Public Dreams "The Enchanted Forest", and that fall landed a job teaching performance at Spirit Song Native Theatre School.

In early 1988 I got a phone call from the late Dr. Michael Ames, then head of the UBC Museum of Anthropology, who expressed interest in developing a "Trickster" performance to illuminate the museum's collection. I expressed interest in doing a political commentary on Native culture under glass. Michael was down with that, and got really interested when I suggested a two-hander with Monique Mojica. Working with Monique I created a Trickster character named "Itch", and together we developed "A Rattling Under Glass".

In the late 80's I began acting in "legitimate theatre", while continuing with Public Dreams and Ruby Slippers doing outdoor spectacles.

More to come...