{"id":112040,"date":"2025-02-21T11:12:47","date_gmt":"2025-02-21T16:12:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=112040"},"modified":"2025-02-21T11:11:04","modified_gmt":"2025-02-21T16:11:04","slug":"interview-lets-assume-know-nothing-quintuple-threat-kelly-clipperton-talks-new-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2025\/02\/21\/interview-lets-assume-know-nothing-quintuple-threat-kelly-clipperton-talks-new-show\/","title":{"rendered":"INTERVIEW | Let\u2019s Assume I Know Nothing: Quintuple Threat Kelly Clipperton Talks About New Show"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_112037\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-112037\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-112037\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-52.jpg\" alt=\"Singer, songwriter, designer Kelly Clipperton (Photo: Jennifer Rowsom)\" width=\"1200\" height=\"628\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-52.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-52-300x157.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-52-1024x536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/02\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-52-768x402.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-112037\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Singer, songwriter, designer Kelly Clipperton (Photo: Jennifer Rowsom)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Performer, songwriter, producer, playwright, and set, costume and projection designer, Toronto\u2019s Kelly Clipperton wears many hats at different moments, as the saying goes. Kelly both writes and performs in a new show Let\u2019s Assume I Know Nothing And Move Forward From There, A One Man Lady Cabaret Show.<\/p>\n<p>Naomi Campbell directs the show which opens at the Factory Theatre from March 4 to 16.<\/p>\n<p>We spoke to Kelly and Naomi about the show.<\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/rGe5zVRIhhc?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<h3>Let\u2019s Assume I Know Nothing And Move Forward From There, A One Man Lady Cabaret Show: The Interview<\/h3>\n<p>Active in both the performing and visual arts fields, Kelly has been a Toronto fixture for four decades. With a BFA from York University\u2019s theatre program, he\u2019s branched into production, songwriting, playwriting, designing, photography, filmmaking, and more. His work as a costume designer netted a Dora nomination in 2013.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was in the theatre program,\u201d Clipperton says. \u201cI originally showed up there thinking I wanted to be an actor.\u201d For the last few years, he\u2019s been focused on production, costume design, and other things that have kept him off stage.<\/p>\n<p>Music would be a detour in and out of theatre. \u201cI grew up in a musical family,\u201d he recalls. \u201cMy dad was an incredible musician.\u201d At extended family gatherings, Happy Birthday would be sung in four-part harmony. It sent a message. \u201cMusic was something you did because you enjoyed it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In university, he wrote, produced and acted in 3 plays: Trash, Brotherhood, and Cruelty. Writing and production carried him through several years. \u201cBut, I took a stab at writing something much shorter \u2014 a pop song,\u201d he says. \u201cIt rolled from there.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>His band Kelly &amp; The Kellygirls toured North America and the UK, and had singles from their seven recordings on the indie charts between 2004 and 2014. In total, he devoted about two decades to music, with ten albums to show for it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt&#8217;s still part of my world.\u201d He says he\u2019s working on his first album in about ten years. \u201cI didn&#8217;t see myself doing theatre anymore, either,\u201d he adds wryly.<\/p>\n<p>The new show aims to hit both funny and poignant notes, with reflections on grief and aging alongside an entertaining performance and a high octane 5-piece band for live accompaniment. The show is presented cabaret style, and originally presented in workshop form last May. The two workshops were sold out successes.<\/p>\n<p>Kelly is responsible for everything from costume design to the projections that will display during the performance. \u201cNaomi and I have designed everything together,\u201d he says. \u201cI really like doing things with my hands.\u201d That extends to tasks like video editing and post-production work.<\/p>\n<p>Working both on and off stage creates an acute awareness of the various aspects of your own personality. \u201cThere&#8217;s a push and pull,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI really love creating.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/vLN9P3RFf-E?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<h3>The Show<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cWhen you walk into the room, it will feel like a cabaret,\u201d explains director <strong>Naomi Campbell<\/strong>. She describes it as a cabaret with vintage style.<\/p>\n<p>Campbell is a performing arts professional with a specialty in new Canadian theatre. She served as Artistic Director of Luminato Festival Toronto from 2018 to 2023.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt&#8217;s a one man show, but it&#8217;s not a one man show.\u201d The five-piece band adds to the ambience, and interaction is part of the show. \u201cThey have little bits, props,\u201d Naomi says. \u201cThey&#8217;re very much a part of the show. It&#8217;s a real combination of song and story.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The show begins with an old school welcome message to the audience. It later incorporates focused monologues and song, delivered in Clipperton\u2019s trademark high energy style. He\u2019ll be singing a combination of his own songs and relevant covers, and even appears as his own father in a different era in a moment of theatre magic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt&#8217;s funny, and it&#8217;s high energy, but it also tells a story of grief and loss,\u201d she says. Clipperton\u2019s father dealt with vascular dementia, and it\u2019s part of his story. \u201cIt&#8217;s relevant, it&#8217;s not just pure entertainment. It tells a beautiful story.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Throughout, he goes back to his family\u2019s music. \u201cThe music of the family is really clear throughout the whole piece. It&#8217;s also just purely entertaining.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She describes the workshops last May at Monarch Tavern as having a shoulder to shoulder audience.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cKind of scary, actually,\u201d adds Kelly.<\/p>\n<p>The show has since been developed with more sophisticated production, and choreography by Shane McKinnon. Clipperton made not only his own costumes, but those for the band as well.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt&#8217;s a good time of the year for a real shot in the arm show,\u201d Naomi says.<\/p>\n<p>What does Kelly hope people will get from Let\u2019s Assume I Know Nothing&#8230;?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe&#8217;ve had a lot of conversations about that,\u201d Clipperton says. \u201cReach out and touch someone.\u201d The old Bell commercial adage was his first thought. \u201cThe way the technology has shifted over the last 20 years has been a struggle for me,\u201d he adds. It\u2019s changed the way people interact, as he points out.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think that our constant barrage of information [&#8230;] doesn&#8217;t hold the sincerity that I think we used to communicate with.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>His message, in the end, is quite simple.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBe kinder to each other, and all that.\u201d<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Find show details and tickets [<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.factorytheatre.ca\/shows\/lets-assume-i-know-nothing-and-move-forward-from-there\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">HERE<\/a><\/strong>].<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><em>Are you looking to promote an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/advertising\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"color: #0e101a\"><u>event<\/u><\/span><\/a>? Have a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/masthead\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><u>news tip<\/u><\/a>? 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