Peruvian clowns celebrate National Clown Day with a colorful street parade

Peru’s streets burst into color and laughter as hundreds of clowns marched through Lima to celebrate National Clown Day, honoring the legacy of beloved performer Tony Perejil. The annual parade featured vibrant costumes, juggling acts, and playful calls for “more laughter, fewer excuses.”

Videosur, Liamar Ramos/Reuters

26 May 2026 at 02:17:02

Clowns march in a parade while celebrating Peruvian Clown Day, in Lima, Peru May 25, 2026.

Alessandro Cinque/Reuters

Hundreds of clowns took over the streets of Lima on Monday (May 25) to mark Peruvian National Clown Day, filling the city's downtown with color, music, and laughter in its annual parade.

Performers dressed in a rainbow of costumes danced, juggled, and marched through the Peruvian capital.

"Long live the Peruvian clown," and "more clowns, fewer politicians, more laughter, fewer excuses," were among the slogans clowns brought to the parade.

Peruvian Clown Day is observed every May 25 to honor Tony Perejil, known as "the clown of the poor," who in the 1980s traveled through Lima's neighborhoods with a multicolored tent to bring joy to local communities.

-Videosur, Liamar Ramos/Reuters