When circuses expanded their arenas to three rings, clowns were relegated to straight pantomime. The clowns of today perform mostly slapstick comedy, such as throwing pies in the faces of other clowns, tripping over things imaginary or real, and just frolicking around in silent skits. Good portions of them also travel around the world and perform amazing stunts with animals. They are also well trained in juggling and acrobatics.



The make-up and costume of each clown are his own personal trademark, and no other clown may dress or make up in exactly the same way. American audiences feature clowns principally as punctuations points in their swift-paced shows. Clowns serve as comic relief between the tense performances of the aerialists, acrobats, equestrians, and trained animals. They also act as a distraction when set changes are being made in any of the rings between performances.

Another important role the clowns play is in distracting audiences during times of an emergency or accident. They keep the audience's attention away from the scene until it has been taken care of.