"What Is It About That Special Costume Piece?"

If I don't have my hat, I feel at odds with my performing. I was thinking what is it about this item?

My hat is the essence of who I am. There are actors that will begin a character study with what's in their character's pockets (change, a comb, what kind of comb, wallet, what kind, how much did it cost? How much money is inside? What pictures? How old is the license? what state is it from etc etc). I'm a top hat guy. The top hat is the symbol of a class. So I can break that pretty easily by bumbling. Or I can be a classy clown and play up the sophisticate part.

I feel very uncomfortable without my hat, it's on par with my clown nose in it's importance.

There are so many things I can do with my hat, I open my show with my hat not staying on my head. I use the hat as a character in my pictures. It's very symbolic.

So, I've been wondering, is it lazy on my part to rely on one prop so much? Or is this like the actor with a backstory? I've been thinking, I know I can do many things that will get laughs with my hat, I return to it as an attention getter. I use it in photos as a tip of the hat to the camera. I do juggling with it (hat manipulation).

Do I go there so often because it's easy. Or is it easy because it's an important part of my character?

Just something I'm musing...