That outfit was typical of clowns in 1890, and often used in the opera Pagliacci about a clown.

[0] <http://1890swriters.blogspot.com/2015/10/victorian-clowns-an...>

[1] <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pagliacci>

The image you link to shows clothing in the style of what the automaton is wearing, not Gugusse. He's the man to the left of the box in the NPR image.