The aspirants who seek to learn the arts of the theatre have an opportunity to practice shadow mime at a mime workshop here. Through the workshop the aspirants are exploring their skills and are also getting acquainted with different art forms of the theatre industry.
The workshop is being organised by Shadow Group, Bhopal, under the guidance of a renowned theatre artiste of the city, Manoj Nair.
The 15-day long shadow mime and acting workshop began here on Wednesday at Sharda Bhavan, TT Nagar.
This would be a different experience for the youngsters as mime is all about expressions and body language. "To learn dialogues is pretty easy but to learn the expressions with body language and performing it on stage is a big challenge. And this is what the students are learning in this workshop," said Manoj.
Mime is a theatrical presentation that is performed through only expressions of the face. Further, a mime artiste is someone who uses mime as a theatrical medium or as a performance art, involving miming, or acting out a story through body motions, without use of speech. Notably, in earlier times, such a performer would typically be referred to as a mummer. Moreover, miming is to be distinguished from silent comedy, in which the artiste is a seamless character in a film or sketch.
This workshop is for anyone who wants something creative and exciting to do during their school or college holidays, he added. "It is not only a place where young people can meet and share their passion for the arts, but we aim to help participants improve their self-confidence, public speaking and communication skills. We help them understand the importance of body language, and generally aim to help them become a little more expressive."
The age group criterion is above 15 years. He said that the mime performer should always endeavour to use fewer props on stage and explain the concept through expressions.