WHAT IS CORPOREAL MIME?
A physical theatre technique, a new way to look at theatre, a contemporary artform.
Etienne Decroux’s dramatic corporeal mime is taking the body as a main means of expression and the actor as a starting point for creation with the aim of “making the invisible visible” (Etienne Decroux), of allowing the actor to show thought through movement.
Art of movement rather than art of silence, dramatic corporeal mime is first of all the art of the actor/actress. An actor, whatever his artistic ambition might be, must, before all, be present, “be” on stage and this presence is shown through the body. The body is what sustains the costume, what the spectator sees, what carries the voice. It is the skeleton, the hand in the glove.
Placing the body at the centre of his work, the corporeal mime actor seeks to recreate the essence of drama, to integrate in the body all principles of an action or a dramatic situation – disequilibrium, instability, causalities, rhythms – and to attain the control of the latter through learning a corporeal technique. The actor becomes sculptor and sculpture.
Dramatic Corporeal Mime as a teaching process, aims to give to the actor this control of presence on stage, of placement, displacements, actions through learning the technique, articulation, mobile statuary, improvisation and repertory.
To study a technique, as in music, multiplies the possibilities of the actor, allows him to do what he wants, not only what he can. In this way, it is a door open towards more freedom and imagination, and more clarity in in the execution.
ETIENNE DECROUX (1898 – 1991)
Having studied at Jacques Copeau’s Theatre School in France, he became a cinema and theatre actor and collaborated with, among others, Antonin Artaud, Charles Dullin, Louis Jouvet and Marcel Carné in the movie ‘Les Enfants Du Paradis’. He dedicated the second part of his life to the creation of a theatre which takes the actor as the centre of the creation processand considers the actor’s body as the principal instrument. He created numerous pieces, investigated into the body’s expression for many years and gave classes at the school L’Atelier in Paris, Teatro Piccolo in Milan and the Actors’ Studio in New York. Moreover, he directed his own company and toured Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, Holland, Sweden, Great Britain and Israel.
In 1962, he founded his school in Paris, where he taught and continued developing his technique. Many actors studied with him, among others: Jean Louis Barrault, Marcel Marceau, Jessica Lange and Michel Serrault. His work as well as his contribution to theatrical knowledge earned him worldwide recognition. His name figures among the great masters, such as Meyerhold, Stanislavsky, Grotowski, or Lecoq.
There are numerous schools (ESAD of Valencia, RESAD of Madrid, Instituto del Teatro of Barcelona, as well as schools in Paris, London, etc.) at which Corporeal Mime technique is taught as a complement to other physical or corporeal techniques. In Spain, however, the Moveo Centre in Barcelona is the only one that offers a specialized and intensive training in this technique.
The legacy and contemporary path of Corporeal Mime
Étienne Decroux revolutionised physical theatre by emphasising the body as the primary instrument of expression. His teachings have influenced a diverse range of practitioners and institutions worldwide. Among his notable assistants, Corinne Sooum and Steven Wasson, Thomas Leabhart, Denise Boulanger and Jean Asselin, Claire Heggen and Yves Marc, Anne Dennis, have continued developing his principles.
Wasson and Soum have made significant contributions through their work at Théâtre de l’Ange Fou, in both working on the corporeal mime repertoire and in creating original ensemble shows, which has gained them international recognition.
Both Soum and Leabhart have also written extensively about his teaching methods and legacy, further solidifying their role as key figures in preserving and disseminating his work. Similarly, Jean Asselin and Denise Boulanger of Omnibus in Montreal have successfully integrated Decroux’s methods with contemporary performance practices.
In the present times, new centres such as Moveo are emerging globally, contributing to the evolution of corporeal mime. In Spain, the Moveo Centre has been active since 2005 and recognised as a reference for its pedagogical and creative work.
But we are not the only ones. In London, Théâtre Re creates movement-based theatre productions. In Japan, artists like Kentaro Suyama also keep developing both the corporeal mime pedagogy and creating shows based on this training. Corporeal mime is also present in Brazil, where people like George Mascarenhas, Deborah Moreira and Nadja Turenko made significant contributions. In France, Hippocampe Mime Corporel, founded by Luis Torreão, continues to preserve and innovate within the realm of corporeal mime, offering a platform for both local and international artists.
Similarly, corporeal mime is present and developed in Germany, Italy, Colombia, and the United States, among other countries. This list is of course incomplete and does not do justice to many other practitioners around the world.
Together, these institutions and practitioners create a vigorous network that ensures the ongoing relevance and evolution of corporeal mime, drawing from Etienne Decroux’s vast legacy while adapting to contemporary artistic landscapes.
More info about Corporeal Mime in Moveo:
More info on Corporeal Mime
Sobre la enseñanza de las piezas del repertorio de mimo corporal dramático: apuntes y reflexiones desde el centro Moveo de Barcelona – Ana Bustamante – Anagnórisis. Revista de investigación teatral, nº. 25, junio de 2022 – Universidad de Barcelona
Etienne Decroux and His Theatre Laboratory – Marco De Marinis
Total Theatre Magazine – Annette Lust -1998
Total Theatre Magazine – Anne Dennis – 1997
The Dynamo-Rhythm of Etienne Decroux and His Successors – Leela Alaniz – 2013
El proceso creador del actor corporal: de la gramática a la representación, Tesis doctoral – Mª Teresa Villar Martínez – 2015
