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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 17, 1981)
White-face and black tights... 1 f Comedy Story by VANESSA KOKESH Photos by BOB BAKER Russ Fish grimaces and strains in a herculean effort to lift an imaginary barbell Fish teaches a class on mime and performs in Eugene 7 A mask of white paint hides a lighting salesman No one knows who he is, but everyone knows what he is Once he steps in front of a crowd, Russ Fish transforms from a merchant into a silent comedian — a mime Fish began miming two years ago under the instruction of Vaugn Avery, a 14-year veteran of mime and owner of the Theatre of Movement mime troupe Fish and Avery formed the four-member Eugene group that once claimed 11 actors Fish and co-instructor Kate Holcomb teach a two-hour class on mime in hopes of recruiting more members to the troupe Mime is the art of silent ex pression, although it is not al ways silent It is one of the fas test growing and changing arts in the United States," Fish says When most people think of mimes, they imagine a silent, white-faced figure dressed in black Although a mime's mask may be paper-mache or plaster gauze, white grease paint — called white-face — more com monly is used This mask gives the face a look of neutrality and anonymity "Once you put on your white face, no one knows who you are And that makes it easier to perform You can act crazy and it doesn't matter," Fish says Imported Coffee & Tea by the pound or by the cup KINKO’S 344-7894 764 E. 13th Bean of the Mofith Espresso Blend $4.10 lb. Compare our Price* Mtmes highlight their faces with black lines Each mime draws a different face They ex periment until they find one they like the best "I'm still drawing different lines all the time, and I probably will until I find the right face " Holcomb says The class taught by Fish and Holcomb stresses performance They would like to see everyone get involved in shows Class member Marty Eastman says she wants to be a member of the Theater of Movement troupe She became interested when she started sewing cos tumes for the mimes "I use mime with the kids," says Eastman, an education supervisor in the Eugene Head Start program "They love it " Each class begins with a warm-up Isolation exercises develop movement control of each body part Students then move on to dif ferent walks, but they don't go too far Fish teaches three stan dard walks done in place Once these fancy steps are mastered, students advance to other movements Mimes incorporate move ments into illusions such as tugging on an imaginary rope or climbing an invisible wall. Ultimately, students will inte grate movement and illusions into character development PRE-MED MEDICAL SCHOOL SCHOLARSHIPS Sponsored by the U.S. Air Force For information call - Ralph J. Wintheiser (503) 223-3993 221-2654 (call collect) Mb 1 f*) n . A giro* way o* lilt .. Fish says people attracted to mime usually are theater oriented He has taught drama students, jugglers and dancers He stresses being in good physical shape The better you are in tune with your body, the more aware you are of your body." he ex plains Mime takes a lot of time You need time with yourself to think of what you're doing and a lot of physical practice " The mime trend has grown here, ironically by word-of mouth, says Fish, who says he performs not for money but for his love of performance Cur rently two mime groups display their silent prowess around Eugene The Theater of Movement group appeals to a more adult audience in terms of subject matter, he says Fish claims mime has a serious and even philosophical side that a mature audience would appreciate All their acts come from the members' creative imagina tions “You can contrast mime with television, which lays everthing out for you,” he says. “Mime makes you think. That's why mime lends itself better to adult audiences " Fish says he feels that he's often on stage, even in everyday, one-on-one conver sations “After you get into mime, it almost becomes a way of life "You find yourself performing and you don't even know it.” Comfortably Priced Check it out! Even though you didn’t expect a T-shirt sale it’s here until Nov. ZSth s 0)1 $,64* Reg. 58”
