Pure Mime of Etienne Decroux

G. Kelley [email protected]

Grace KelleyMovementProf. Charlie OatesSp. 08Final paper

The Pure Mime of Etienne Decroux

Etienne Decroux, the father of modern mime, like many paternal owners of a

developmental technique, has become practically forgotten in relation to his protgs that

have followed. And like many paternal developers of art forms Decroux dedicated his life

to his art, to experiment, explore, create, and live it. He did not do it for the money, or for

the global success. Indeed, Decrouxs work and performances were staged with

discretion, they even were privatised, the audience consisted of his own students and

some close friends in the basement of his house, The separation between skilled

performer and non-skilled spectator that characterizes most European theatre [was]

absent.1

Decroux developed a unique concept of what mime meant in the twentieth century.

For him, mime was not about entertainment; he had an aversion to pantomime. His work

and his practice was what is most commonly described as militant. He believed in the

Renaissance custom of mentor and apprentice; to have students who would not just learn

all they can, but continue in their profession by staying with him, whereby, after several

years of experience they would earn the title of ancien (Sklar, 74). Decroux held a

1 Sklar, Deidre, Etienne Decrouxs Promethean Mime, The Drama Review, p. 73, Vol. 29.

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hierarchical system among his students, or apprentices, and rank depended upon both

skill and promise, which includes seriousness about studying, respect for Corporeal Mime

and a strong and graceful body, (Sklar, 74).

For Decroux, his goal in mime was not solely to replace gestures instead of speech.

On the contrary, he wanted to achieve drama inside the body by finding the purity of

execution (Sklar, 64), and ridding the body of external influences and gestures.

It is difficult to distil Decrouxs work into a single definition, as his work was

innovative, and thus developed over time, but from an actors point of view I would like

to try and capture the essence of Decroux and his aim and expectations from his students.

By researching this, I hope that it will become more evident when looking at

contemporary performance art, street art, and mime, where the remnants of his work lie.

I have already mentioned Decrouxs belief of purity in execution. He had a high

standard for himself, as director, and for his students. Thomas Leabhart writes, Decroux

could not direct ordinary actors who had not undergone rigorous and transformative

training in Corporeal Mime.2 It was only possible to have trained with Decroux in order

to achieve this essence of purity as a performer. I will explain the four quintessential

practices Decrouxs students underwent as part of their rigorous training.

1.) Claiming the right to rebel against the limitations of the body and against

socially accepted aesthetic images.3 This is the key to his Promethean art, not to want to

2 Leabhart, Thomas, Etienne Decroux, p. 76.3 Sklar, Deidre, Etienne Decrouxs Promethean Mime, p. 65.

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stay the way you are, but to become the way you desire to be. 4 The student learns to free

the body, just as the mind is free already. It is the beginning of the concept of finding the

drama within the moving body, as opposed to reverting to the use of gestures or speech.

See image 1.

Image 1. A Decroux performer.

2.) The trunk of the body is the primary, most important tool for the actor. It is the

trunk that is the largest and most difficult part of the body to articulate, that expresses

what is universal.5 It is the largeness of the trunk that allows for this universal

understanding, for although the movements are not as elaborate as the hands, they require

a lot of precision in exemplifying the differences between each move. It should also be

noted that hand gestures and facial expressions vary in different countries, carrying their

4 Ibid, p. 65.5 Ibid, p. 71.

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own connotations, but the trunk of the body seems to carry fewer specific suggestions

that could be created by culture and society, hence this idea of the universal.

3.) With the use of the trunk of the body comes the elimination of the hands and

face. Looking at the figure in image 1., he is masked by a white cloth. This prevents any

suggestions of expression through the face, even instead of face paints or a faced mask.

Decroux intended for the facial expressions to be suppressed for he believed that an

actors personal nature manifests itself in their personal expressions.6

4.) After ridding his performers of facial expressions and hand gestures, Decroux

sought to eliminate personal idiosyncrasies. According to Sklar, the actor whose actions

[were] based on impulse or emotion [was] embarrassing or ridiculous to Decroux.7

Idiosyncrasies prevent the actor from achieving this universal expression, they become

traits of the actor who cannot rid himself of them. By acting impulsively on emotions, the

face, almost by reflex, reacts too. Again, looking at image 1., this mask is not only to

prevent the viewer from focusing on the actors face, but it also gives the actor the

freedom to focus on the trunk of his/her body by not having to think about neutralising

their face.

* * *

The contribution of the Mime? In less time than it takes to write about it,

eliminating props and settings, the Mime carries us from one place to another. With a

minimum of gestures, it offers a maximum of expressions. Its substitute images

6 Sklar, Deidre, Etienne Decrouxs Promethean Mime, p. 71.7 Ibid, p. 71.

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immediately adhere to the scenic scale. The Mime is in keeping with the grand style

through which the Moliere of the Comedies, the Amusements, and the Farces alone

in France raised the Theatre to new heights.

(Jean Dory, The Mime)

Keeping with the purity of execution that Decroux wished to achieve, not only did

he focus on the body but the external elements too. Furniture and scenery were

eliminated, for they obstruct.8 Considering Decroux did not perform for large

audiences, nor did he choose for his art to be entertainment, the use of a set naturally

seemed ineffectual. Costumes were considered portable scenery, hence, an obstruction

too. As you can see in image 1., the actor is wearing minimal clothing. This is so that he

will not rely on his costume as a crutch or let it become codified with denotations,

creating the basis for a character before the actor need do anything at all. All expression

is to come from the body. As for props, Dorcy explains that, The more props an actor

handles, the less he is likely to be particular about his actingThe idea here is to avoid

such use, to show the object so that it becomes unnecessary to use it.9 Props can be a

distraction for the performer, but also for the viewer. It can be difficult to not let the prop

become the lead character in a performance, and it can be even more awkward to have a

prop on stage that is not being utilised. To prevent the actor from feeling compelled to

use it, resolution get rid of it. And finally, lighting. According to Dorcy, The purpose

8 Dorcy, Jean, The Mime, p. 82.9 Ibid, p. 83.

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of lighting is to obscure.10 Lighting is almost like a metaphysical mask for the actor. It

can disguise, hide, or highlight. It can also set a scene, creating ambience; it can be full of

connotations and subtle expressions to aid the actor. But by eliminating it from a

performance the actor is forced to focus on him/herself alone, just like when wearing the

cloth-mask. They have to create the ambience through their physicality; they must find

the drama within their bodies. A Decroux performer is literally stripped bare of any

external aides.

This style of mime seems to be the equivalent of diving straight into the deep end

not knowing how to swim. This method forces the actor to find the purity of mime that

Decroux is looking for, which truly seems to be the essence of his teachings. From an

actors point of view, and being an performer myself, I feel that although it is an arduous

and lengthy training, the challenge is not only extremely physical, requiring the utmost

precision, but mentally too. The actor must deconstruct his/her emotions, impulsive

reactions, assumptions about mime, and reconstruct their knowledge and training into a

pure execution of a performance. The face must no longer be part of the character, the

hands are not allowed to express and gesture. The suppression of what would normally be

considered an initial reaction must be retrained to withhold.

I feel that the most demanding element of Decrouxs practice is the requirement to

find the drama within the moving body. We must bear in mind that he insists upon the

elimination of emotions too, for he finds them ridiculous. This is not a Stanislavskian

10 Ibid, p. 83.

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method, to find the emotion from within. It seems contradictory and paradoxical to

demand for emotions to come from within, and yet not from within. I believe that that is

where the task of isolating the mind from the body and vice-versa comes into play. The

actor must learn to distinguish finding his/her drama physically rather than mentally,

otherwise emotions can intervene. It may seem like an incomplete concept, but Decroux

admits to his students, I think that an art is complete only if it is partial.11 A

contradiction, yet it has sense to it. In order for art to be complete, it must simply be to

begin with. In other words, art is not the final product, but the process too, and perhaps,

more so in the process than the product, for in the process there is creation, innovation,

and exploration.

It is Decrouxs innovation that has prolonged his work. He once said, Mime is

superior to sculpture for there is greater immediacy between the thought of the artist and

its product.12 One may argue over the superiority of mime over sculpting, however this

connection between mime and sculpture sparked a new wave of performance, street art.

In every Western cosmopolitan city it is difficult not to find mime artists performing on

the streets, only they are not performing a routine or sketch. Instead, they take on the

form of a real-life sculpture. During the times they are motionless, they are flawlessly

still. Then when they are tipped by a passer-by, they come to life. Here their movements

are refined, delicate, and well processed. Depending on what type of a sculpture they are

portraying, their actions relate to it. Arguably, this is the element of superiority that the

11 Decroux, Etienne, Words on Mime, p. 28.12 Decroux, Etienne, and Weill, Etienne, Bertrand, "Sculpture", Mime Journal, # 21.

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mime possesses, for the artist is the product. Throughout Europe, particularly Paris, these

sculpture performers are speckled throughout the streets. Two notable artists that have

become a success over the last four decades with their performance art are Gilbert and

George, the double act. They are by far the best example in todays performance art,

street theatre world where we can see elements of Decroux continuing on.

His teachings are still prolific throughout Europe too. There are many schools that

practice and teach his technique, for it is still considered worthy training for any actor.

However, since his death, like most acting techniques, there has been some dilution and

extended development placed upon Decrouxs teachings, mostly by his past anciens and

apprentices. But the essence of Decroux will not be forgotten or phased out. It is so raw,

so bare, that it is almost isolated from other mime techniques. The emphasis of strictly

movement within the body, eliminating any external influence is so precise and isolated,

it would be difficult to create a new practice of a purer essence. Decroux truly achieved

this purity in execution in his work.

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Bibliography

Decroux, Etienne, and Weill, Etienne, Bertrand, "Sculpture", Mime Journal, # 21, 2000-2001.

Decroux, Etienne, Words on Mime, trans. Mark Piper, Gallimard, (Paris: 1977).

Dorcy, Jean, The Mime, trans. Robert Speller, Robert Speller and Sons, Publishers, Inc. (New York: 1961).

Leabhart, Thomas, Etienne Decroux Routledge, (New York: 2007).

Sklar, Deidre, Etienne Decrouxs Promethean Mime, The Drama Review, Vol. 29, No. 4, Winter, 1985.

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Pure Mime of Etienne Decroux

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