When Ken Galluppi, owner of The Hills’ Pizza and Desserts restaurant offered on Facebook to teach a free two-hour clowning arts workshop on Saturday mornings, he didn’t know if anyone would show up.

A father, his daughter and two adult women were curious to attend the first class.

Galluppi, restaurant owner for nearly two years, said he wants to provide new learning experiences to youngsters on summer school recess. If adults are interested, too, all the better.

“Learn to do clowning the right way,” is the lesson he hopes to impart to participants. Galluppi was a professional clown for 16 years, mainly in the Raleigh, N. C. area.

Depending upon participants’ interests, he will teach balloon twisting, juggling, face painting, magic and puppetry.

“I don’t know who will be showing up weekly. I’ll just keep putting it out there,” he said.

Galluppi and his wife, Valerie, and their four children adopted the persona of “The Nut Family” in the early 1980s. As the family head, he became Walnut; his wife called herself Nutmeg, and children took nut-related names, Ben (Acorn); Gabe (Filbert), Nathan (Peanut) and Erika, (Hazelnut).

They performed at church ministries, retirement homes, hospitals, corporate events, birthday parties and 4-H functions, stressing family and sharing topics in their original skits. Later, Galluppi taught clowning at a community college in Raleigh.

“Clowning is not about being silly,” he said, emphasizing the art is about bringing joy or giving advice.

At his first gathering, Galluppi talked about the three types of clowns: auguste, whiteface and hobo, referring to their costumes and makeup.

“You create a character and you become that character.”

Galluppi said clowning skills build confidence in individuals and develop imagination, specifically when creating balloon sculptures and puppetry are involved. He would like to assemble enough youngsters interested in learning puppetry to present a production at the restaurant.

The first get-together involved practicing the basic lock twist, the foundation for balloon sculptures.

“Why are people attracted to balloons?” he asked the participants. “They are attracted to the colors and the squeakiness. It’s an easy skill and you can get very elaborate.”

Fundamental animal sculptures are dogs, then progressing to giraffes and snakes; adaptations of the original dog shape. A balloon animal can last as long as two weeks.

Anyone interested in learning clowning skills on Saturday mornings can call Galluppi at 480-816-6656 or stop by at 9 a.m., Saturdays, at 16726 E. El Pueblo Blvd.