The Life of a Clown
Abridged
Biography that doesn't betray his security questions.
Danny Wightkin is a Chicago based clown, performer, and teaching artist. Originally from Monroeville, PA, Danny won Best Sense of Humor from his high school and apparently let that go to his head.
Danny enrolled in Allegheny College where he assumed he was going to be a Chemistry major. Obviously that did not happen and he switched to a Theatre degree which led him to studying in Chicago for a semester in the Comedy Studies program. Returning to college, he quit most other extracurriculars to run a weekly satirical newspaper called The Krampus and develop an original sketch revue.
There was no other option besides moving back to Chicago, and when he first arrived, Danny dove into the improv and sketch world. He completed The Second City Conservatory and Annoyance improv programs before realizing he was unsatisfied and moving into the world of clown full time.
Danny fell in love with the freedom and individuality that clown allows and has been studying it for the past 10 years. He is drawn to the unique relationship that clowns can have with the audience and the sense of play that can be shared in those spaces. The use of movement, physicality, and breath to create those connections is also of great interest to him, and led him to studying a variety of theatrical practices such as Linklater, Feldenkrais Method, Alexander Technique, and more.
He has studied with international teachers with the Lecoq school and Philippe Gaulier, in addition to masterclasses with renowned clown Avner the Eccentric. He has had countless other teachers and is always seeking more tools to add to his performance toolbox.
Danny consistently develops and performs clown material in Chicago and tours his shows. His solo show Help Me Help You Help Yourself has won multiple awards. He also has appeared in the Chicago Reader recommended show Clown Brunch and the variety show Who's Waldo?. Currently he is working with Avner on developing a new show, Pre-Post-Mortem, where he plays Charon, the boatman of the River Styx. Across his shows the common themes are sharing the joy of play, having the audience clown alongside him, and making an absolute mess of the stage.
Recently, he has been teaching clown at The Annoyance Theater. Also for this theater, he choreographed the fights, physicality, and dances for a sold out original farce: Rudder Bullshit. At the start of 2026, he decided to focus on helping grow the Chicago clown community and now hosts social events, runs community shows, and is the admin for the community calendar.
Beyond clowning, Danny is an avid board game player, and is currently developing his own game. In his downtime, he enjoys rock climbing, piano, video games, painting, reading, TTRPGs, and hanging out with his cats Lord and Liege.