Vatican newspaper highlights clown’s work in war zones

March 27, 2026

The Vatican newspaper devoted the most prominent article in its March 26 edition to the work of Marco Rodari, a clown known as Il Pimpa, who attempts to bring joy to children in war zones.

“What is most striking, first and foremost, is the language that the clown Marco Rodari—alias ‘Il Pimpa’—uses to entertain and bring smiles to children in war zones: he speaks neither Ukrainian nor Arabic, let alone English or Italian,” staff journalist Guglielmo Gallone began. “To reach the hearts of the little ones, Il Pimpa employs the universal language of exclamation, mystery, and wonder.”

The “profession of the clown” is “a vocation that has become increasingly uncommon in our part of the world today,” Gallone continued. “In the West, clowns are seen in hospitals, sometimes in circuses (though they are no longer the main attraction there), and often in horror movies—where, however, they are used to terrify rather than to delight.” But “Il Pimpa’s story demonstrates how this profession can fulfill one of the most difficult tasks of the modern era: the ability to inspire wonder.”

After discussing Rodari’s work in Gaza and Ukraine, Gallone concluded:

Stories like that of Pimpa have no conclusion. They cannot have one. They do not need one. On the contrary, stories like this simply need to be heard. And told. Especially today, in a world that seems to know no logic other than that of war.

 

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Further information:

• Un sorriso per i bambini colpiti dalla guerra (L'Osservatore Romano, 3/26/25)