Laughter League was founded by Tiffany Riley and Dick Monday, ("Slappy and Monday") life partners and performing partners for the past twenty years. During this time they have headlined at circuses and festivals worldwide including Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey, The Big Apple Circus, The Lone Star Circus, Hanneford Circus, and Circo Atayde. They created the clown troupe, The New York Goofs, Slappy's Puppet Playhouse, and the Funnyatrics Clown Program. Today, they can be found doing it all as The Laughter League and reaching thousands in need along the way. Tiffany is the author of the new book, Beyond the Red Nose, which provides the first deep inside look into this professional world of healthcare clowning with first-hand poignant stories, overcoming challenges, and future plans in pediatrics and beyond.
Laughter League uses the power of theatrical performance and improvisational humor to reach students from pre-kindergarten through 5th grade, specializing in work with chronically ill children and those with special needs. In the school setting, Laughter League utilizes theater and physical comedy to bring critical subjects to life with unique, engaging, and educational performances. This learning style encourages hands-on participation for students, increasing confidence in school work and creating a strong connection between STEM subjects and the their everyday world. Our integrated therapeutic healthcare clowning program reaches over 100,000 children and their families annually in the pediatric setting Hospitalization is a scary and traumatic event for children. The toll illness takes on a family is tangible while stress and anxiety go hand in hand. Laughter League is devoted to bringing the healing and transformative power of laughter to pediatric patients across the United States. Research shows that laughter is a crucial component of the treatment protocol. Laughter League's Therapeutic Clowning program works to reduce the stress of patients, staff, and family members; empower patients to be involved in their own healing; aid hospital staff in difficult procedures; improve relationships between patients, family members, and providers. Additionally, our clowns partner with summer camps for children facing chronic medical conditions, bringing their unique comedic skills to the camp setting.
Funding to provide interactive science and math programs and therapeutic humor services to children in under served communities in the North Texas area.
Laughter League is a 501c3 non-profit organization whose mission is to improve the lives of the people we serve through the transformational power of laughter. We do this with our performance, education and outreach. We are known for our top-notch performers, our passionate outreach and our ability to impact audiences of all ages and walks of life. We are collaborators who find that working with teachers, medical staff and other theater groups is where the true magic lies. We currently have partnerships with Bath House Cultural Center, Arts Mission Oak Cliff, Big Thought, City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture, The Dallas Children's Theatre, Galleria Dallas and the Texas Commission on the Arts. In health care, we have professional Healthcare Clown programs at Cook Children's Hospital in Ft. Worth, Texas Scottish Rite Hospital, Parkland Burn Unit, Camp John Marc and at Boston Children's Hospital and Hasbro Children's Hospital in the Northeast.
We are seeking ongoing support for our healthcare clown program at Parkland Memorial Burn Unit, Cook Children's Hospital in Ft. Worth and Camp John Marc. Additionally, we seek funds to continue presenting Circo Metropolis as a free neighborhood circus.
We at Laughter League have created and committed to a plan of action for anti-racism in our work, our communities and our homes. The entire staff of Laughter League is listening, educating, and acting upon the changes required to truly be anti-racist.
We also recognize that allyship goes way beyond laughter and hope, and while that is our mission, we are also committed to being part of the change we seek in the world. Laughter League has created a plan of action for anti-racism in our work, our communities and our homes. The entire staff of Laughter League is listening, educating, and acting upon the changes required to truly be anti-racist. We want our staff to reflect the diversity of the communities that we serve.
What does that mean for us?
Along with our partners in the North American Federation of Healthcare Clowning Organizations, we have already launched an ongoing forum for educating our performers on how we can understand and implement authentic allyship into our daily work as healthcare clowns. This forum will include discussion of reading materials as well as training and workshops.
We are committed to more actively recruiting BIPOC performers. We recognize that recruiting people of color to our work goes beyond posting an audition notice. We plan to expand our recruitment to include a series of free lectures/performances in communities that will allow us to reach BIPOC's with the magic of the work we do and continue inspiring people about healthcare clowning. In addition, we are committed to creating an internship aimed at developing BIPOC talent for Laughter League.
Laughter League has long been partnering with the school system in Dallas, Texas to bring innovative programming aimed at teaching STEM subjects to struggling students through the use of physical comedy and circus arts. We plan to expand this programming to other market areas where we currently have hospital programs.
Most importantly, we refuse to allow these issues to fade into the background. Every day that we stand in front of an audience, whether it is one person or two thousand, virtually or live, we will be mindful and intentional about walking the walk and talking the talk of anti-racism.
Organization name
Laughter League
Causes
Arts, Culture & Humanities, Health Care, Seniors
Operating Budget
$250,000 - $499,999
Counties Served
Collin, Dallas, Tarrant
BIPOC Serving
Black or African American, Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic or Latinx, Native American
BIPOC Leadership
Neither/None
Address
Sammons Center for the Arts, 3630 Harry Hines Blvd. Sa