Modern And Postmodern Mime; Author: Leabhart, Thomas; Paperback

Author: Leabhart, Thomas
Modern Dramatists; Paperback
Published: September 1997
St. Martin's Press
ISBN: 0312174519

Modern mime, which has emerged as a major creative art form in recent years, has its roots in the theater work of Jacques Copeau in Paris in the 1920s. Copeau looked for a remedy to the ills of the theater of his day by turning to the golden ages of Greek theater, the Noh and Kabuki, and Commedia dell'arte. Here Copeau found an emphasis on the expressive potential of the actor's whole body, rather than just the voice. In this study, Thomas Leabhart examines the contributions of Etienne Decroux, Barrault, Marceau, and Lecoq to the development of this exciting new form, which often overlaps with new trends in theater, dance, and performance art, and which has spawned significant festivals each year in the US, Europe, Australia, and South America.