Photo/Illutration Clowns parade along the street in Odesa, Ukraine, in April 2017. (Provided by Mikio Oshima)

Circus lover Mikio Oshima believes videos featuring clowns will put smiles back on the faces of people in Ukraine, a country he has fond memories of.

The circus has been popular there, with a clown-featured festival held every spring in Ukraine, said Oshima, 68.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine shocked Oshima.

“Believing in love and goodness will stop wars,” he said he thought at the time. “I want to deliver laughter to (people in Ukraine) and cheer them up, and clowns can do that.”

Oshima has been involved in bringing circus events and clowns from abroad for many years.

From 2017 to 2019, he was invited to Comediada, an international festival of clowns and mimes held in Odesa, southern Ukraine, where he served as a judge.

He has kept in touch with festival organizers and the clowns since then.

Comediada typically hold their main event, a clown parade, on April 1.

So Oshima came up with the idea of launching an “online clown parade” on that day with the theme of “Bringing peace with laughter.”

But he wanted to prioritize “how the people in Ukraine feel.”

“I was ready to scrap the idea if someone said it wasn’t the time for something like this,” he said.

He mentioned his idea to two Ukrainian men who have organized Comediada, and they supported him. 

One of them had recently undergone knee surgery. Since it is not easy for him to evacuate, he has remained in central Kyiv, Oshima said.

“Clowns know no borders,” the man told Oshima in a text message. “It’s nice that the world is supporting Ukraine.”

The other man fled Ukraine and is staying in Dubai, where he has a relative, Oshima said.

The man advised Oshima to not focus too much on supporting one side of the war because that could widen hostility and divisiveness.

After conversations with the two, Oshima asked for videos from around the world in which clowns perform in silence.

Thirty videos featuring a variety of acts such as pantomime, juggling and acrobatics were sent to him.

Six of them were sent from Ukrainians. The rest came from Hungary, Poland, Chile, Moldova, Israel, Germany, Italy, the United States and Japan.

Oshima has posted them on a YouTube channel called “Clown parade” since early April.

He is also planning to hold a clown parade in Hamura, western Tokyo, on May 29 with two Japanese clowns who have performed in Comediada.

Proceeds from the event will be donated to support Ukraine, he said.

Videos can be seen at:
(https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLWb_uXAFOkDFjM2j1jbhzA/videos)

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