This term, we are working on miming, and Grade 1-2 students will be performing a mime in their examinations. I have come up with five things to remember when performing a mime.
1. Facial Expression
Facial expression is really important when performing a mime because otherwise, we don’t know how the character is feeling about the events in the mime. The facial expression could be happy, sad, angry, confusion, annoyed, worried, or scared. By understanding these emotions we understand more about how the character is feeling and what is happening in the story.
2.Clear Actions
Clear hand gestures are vital for our understanding of the mime. Actors need to make sure it is clear what they are holding and when they pick it up/put it down. It’s difficult to understand what a mime is about if the actions aren’t clear. Students could practise peeling a banana to help develop clear actions.
3.Beginning, Middle, End
A mime is usually a little story in itself. It helps if the mime has a beginning, middle and end + a problem that gets resolved by the end of the mime. A simple storyline helps the audience keep track of what is happening.
4.Directing Action to Audience
When miming we tend to use the majority of the stage but it’s important to direct the action to the audience. An important moment (such as falling over or dropping ice cream) is performed in the middle of the stage and facing the audience so we can clearly see what has happened.
5.No Talking
This one is the easiest to remember but sometimes little sound effects can creep into our performances. Try not to mouth words in a mime – clear actions and facial expression should be able to explain what you are thinking or feeling instead of mouthing words like “No!” or “Stop!”.
Best of luck with your mimes this term!
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