A brilliant Mime performance from leading Mime Artist from Switzerland, Markus Schmid at Star of the Sea Convent School in Cape Town
Mime is one an ancient form of theatre. Mime artists use their bodies without speaking to tell a story. Markus Schmid trained with one of the greatest Mime artists in the world, Marcel Marceau, and he came to Star of the Sea Convent School in Kalk Bay on his world tour to perform for the children there. It was an incredible experience.
As part of the training in the Helen O'Grady Drama Academy, children are taught how to use their imagination. Using ones imagination is a very important tool for Mime artists. Mime artists have to really believe that the illusion they are creating is a real one. If you for instance believe the wall in front of you is real, you will react to it in mime as if it real and this will create the illusion for the audience.
In mime the term 'pointe fixe', is French for 'fixed point.' The mime artist creates a point with his body, and then keeps it motionless in space. This technique is the basis of all illusions a mime can create. So the wall becomes the fixed point to which to mime artist must work.
Making a dynamic line is when for instance you pull a rope. The secret to this concept is to imagine the force going through the body . It is an understanding where the pressure builds up in the body if you are pushing, lifting, etc. You create realistic forces with your body to mimic those that you would be experiencing if you pushed down on a table for instance.
Another important aspect of a mime artist is to"manipulate" space and matter. This is a fancy phrase for "making things out of thin air", for instance a ball with the curved hand. The mime artist will use this to create the illusion of a ball bouncing.
As part of the training in the Helen O'Grady Drama Academy, children are taught how to use their imagination. Using ones imagination is a very important tool for Mime artists. Mime artists have to really believe that the illusion they are creating is a real one. If you for instance believe the wall in front of you is real, you will react to it in mime as if it real and this will create the illusion for the audience.
In mime the term 'pointe fixe', is French for 'fixed point.' The mime artist creates a point with his body, and then keeps it motionless in space. This technique is the basis of all illusions a mime can create. So the wall becomes the fixed point to which to mime artist must work.
Making a dynamic line is when for instance you pull a rope. The secret to this concept is to imagine the force going through the body . It is an understanding where the pressure builds up in the body if you are pushing, lifting, etc. You create realistic forces with your body to mimic those that you would be experiencing if you pushed down on a table for instance.
Another important aspect of a mime artist is to"manipulate" space and matter. This is a fancy phrase for "making things out of thin air", for instance a ball with the curved hand. The mime artist will use this to create the illusion of a ball bouncing.
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