Tom Dougherty has captivated audiences in theaters and circus rings all across the world. In recent years, he assumed the role of lead clown for the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, a position only a handful of clowns have held in the show’s 140 year history. He has headlined the Big Apple Circus, toured with Cirque du Soleil and was artistic director of Circus Chimera. He has performed his solo stage show in such venues as the National Theater in Washington DC, Wolf Trap and Lincoln Center in New York as well as schools, festivals, arenas, hospitals, correctional facilities and theaters throughout the world. In recognition he has won the Silver medal at the International Circus Festival in Hanoi, the Felix Adler Award for best solo clowning 2007 and for best routine 2008 as well as the Maryland Governor’s Excellence in Arts Award for his work in theater clowning. Since then he has teamed up with Pepe Silva and together won the Prix d'Image at the Albacete Festival in Spain and from there joined Cirque Arlette Gruss in France, Circo Price in Madrid, Budapest Festival, and were prize winners at the Monte Carlo International Festival of Circus.
His passion for performance began at the renowned Neighborhood Playhouse where he studied acting under Sanford Meisner. Following graduation, he perfected his skills at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College and then studied LeCoq method of movement with Dody DiSanto before joining her performance troupe, Membrane. A founder of the theater company Theatricks, he established a school where he coached and mentored many working clowns and actors in addition to his role as director, playwright and actor. Tom has been on the staff of the famed Ringling Bros. Clown College, the Baltimore School for the Arts as well as guest instructor at colleges and schools throughout North America and Europe.
