Tuesday, January 26, 1999
Actress comfy with role in 'Couch'
PBS players tours in stage version
BY JAMES SCHMELZER
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Alyson Court was 16 years old when she put on a rubber nose, painted six freckles on her cheeks anddonned a blue stocking cap and pigtails. She never imagined she would become the clown princess of public television for preschoolers.
The Toronto actress, now 25, has been Loonette the Clown on PBS' The Big Comfy Couch for nine years with her best friend Molly (the dolly), Granny Garbanzo (her next door neighbor), Major Bedhead (another neighbor), the elusive Dustbunnies (Fuzzy and Wuzzy live under the couch) and others.
Each episode addresses a topic, such as good manners or having bad dreams, or is themed to a movement such as balancing and jumping. All the action takes place on or around a gargantuan green couch. The music is non-stop.
Two weeks ago in Toronto, Loonette and Molly began their second live concert tour. It comes to the Aronoff Center Thursday.
Ms. Court hasn't always been a clown.
“I started acting when I was 10,” she says by phone from New York. (Stranded in La Guardia Airport because of fog, she does not sound much like the bubbly Loonette.) “I played an orphan in a dinner theater production of Annie. I was the one who threw a dead mouse at Miss Hannigan.”
A year later, she began working on the Canadian children's show Mr. Dress-Up. It was there she met Cheryl Wagner, a puppeteer with an idea for a children's show that focused on hip music and lessons on life.
After a year at the University of Toronto, the young actress was sure of one thing: She did not want to become an engineer. So at 18, she debuted as Loonette the Clown on TV and has been singing and playing with Molly ever since. (The show airs locally at 9:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday-Friday and 10:30 a.m. Sunday on Channel 48; 7:30 a.m. Saturday on Channel 14; and 8:30 a.m. Saturday on Channel 54.)
Loonette opens each show with a song and rolls through a half-hour that always includes favorites such as the Clock Rug stretch and the Ten Second Tidy. That's when Loonette limbers up on a circular rug that looks like a clock or quickly cleans up around her couch.
She also sings songs that relate to the episode's theme, such as “My Belly Button” and “Jump for Joy.”
The 90-minute stage show is much the same, filled with familiar songs and moves. Kids are encouraged to sing along.
The music, written by J.P. Houston, is crucial to the show.
“The music is so good because he was 18” when he wrote it, Ms. Court says. “He's just really hip.”
After nine years of sitting on the green couch (which Ms. Court says is quite comfy), the actress realizes she cannot be a clown forever. After 65 episodes, The Big Comfy Couch ceased taping in 1996 because of lack of funding.
“We haven't found anyone who wants to foot the bill,” Ms. Court says. “But PBS is thinking of syndicating the show nationally.”
Ms. Court isn't sure she wants to continue acting and mentions furthering her education. How does she see her life after Couch?
“Confused,” she says, laughing. “Ideally, I'd like to make enough money to take classes for myself, to broaden my mind, not just to find a job.”
In the meantime, Loonette, Molly and Granny Garbanzo are having fun on tour. Sitting in hotels watching movies can get tiresome, but Ms. Court loves bringing Loonette and Molly to loving audiences.
If you're coming to the show, “bring your dancing shoes and be prepared to have a good time,” she says, sounding more like Loonette than Alyson. “The sillier the better.”
IF YOU GO:
• What: The Big Comfy Couch Live Concert.
• When: 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
• Where: Procter & Gamble Hall, Aronoff Center.
• Tickets: $19 and $25 at the Aronoff and Music Hall box offices Ticketmaster outlets or call 241-7469.
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