Twang

"There's not much clowning in Virginia, unless the circus -- or Cirque du Soleil -- comes to town," says Hotel Obligado's Tim Cunningham.

Twang

and makes its debut, aptly enough, in Virginia. Its three creators, Amanda Haney, Jamie McLaren and Cunningham, depict an ensemble of clowns whose attempts to perform traditional mountain folk melodies spin into a maelstrom of comedic ingenuity. If the prospect of turning beautiful music into slapstick comedy sounds like a leap, founder member Cunningham explains it's all grounded in character. "I grew up in the Shenandoah Valley, while Amanda [Haney] comes from Kentucky. So we were surrounded by Appalachian folk culture. But while the music in the show is traditional, we hope the characters are traditional too." Their mountain folk heritage should be clear by the time they pick up their instruments: a ukelele-banjo,

<$s$t-5h$z$c$:played by McLaren, plus a musical saw and a miniature violin.

But there's more to their performance than just strumming.

Twang

<$s$t-5h$z$c$: is also notably the first of the troupe's shows devoted purely to clowning, a form close to the Dell'Arte-trained group's heart but not common to down-home audiences. Precisely for that reason, Hotel Obligado begin the show's tour in Staunton, Va., moving to Williamsburg before reaching Philadelphia this week. So

Twang

<$s$t-5h$z$c$:, lighter and more family-friendly than some of their earlier presentations, such as

Strip

<$s$t-5h$z$c$:, "pays tribute to, and is open to, those communities which influenced us when we were growing up." Plus, Cunningham notes, "there's [the universal appeal of] a guy falling on his butt."

Twang, Wed.-Sat., March 12-22, $8-$15. Mum Puppettheatre, 115 Arch St., 267-872-6265.

—Juliet Fletcher

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