Pantomime is a vital skill to be included when teaching children drama and acting. Actors who pantomime well are adept at showing the audience what is happening, how their characters feel, and what their characters are thinking without relying on lines or words to do so.
Pantomime does not necessarily refer to clowns dressed in black and white entertaining passers-by on the street, although some pantomime artists do work in this way. Pantomime is simply the art of showing without props or words.
Pantomime Acting Exercises
"Walking Through" is a wonderful introduction to pantomime, especially for young actors and acting students. The teacher instructs her students to sit in a large circle with lots of space in the middle. Within the circle is the "magic space".
Before each child takes his turn, he must walk through the circle in a neutral fashion. His posture should be erect, his head looking strait ahead and his arms relaxed at his sides. The teacher then announces what the environment in the middle of circle has become, for example, a bed of hot coals, a smelly swamp with quicksand, or a bowl of chocolate pudding. The student must walk through the circle again while showing that he is in this environment.
Most children enjoy this activity and want to walk through the circle numerous times. Some children want to come up with their own environments. While having fun, young acting students realize the importance of physicality as they watch each other maneuver through imagined environments and begin to develop the skills necessary to pantomime.
When the class is ready to move on, the teacher will give the students more difficult pantomimes to perform individually. Brushing teeth, washing a dog, and driving a car are good examples. Trust develops among the students when they respond to each other's pantomimes and then perform a second time. For example, a student may pantomime walking her dog. After the short act, another student suggests that the dog starts to chase a cat. The first student then performs again, this time including the embellishment.
Pantomime Improvisations
Once the group is used to performing short pantomimes for each other, it is time to let them work group pantomime improvisations. A student will start any activity that the teacher suggests, such as playing a baseball position or cooking. One by one, other students are welcome to join in the pantomimed situation.
A key to successfully leading this activity is to remind students that "joining in" does not mean doing the exact same thing. For example, if the first student pantomimes shoveling snow, the second student may join in the pantomime by building a snowman. When pantomime exercises deteriorate into kids running around the classroom, it is time to stop and switch to a quieter activity, such as an imaginary journey.
Concentration and teamwork are skills that actors develop during pantomime exercises repeated periodically over the course of a drama workshop or series or classes.
