Tony Montanaro
1927 - 2002
I met Tony Montanaro in 1988 when I was Artistic Director of The Graphic Mime Theatre. We had what we called an International Program in our season where we had planned to invite as many international mime artists as possible to come to Toronto and teach or perform. Doug and I were worried that we wouldn't be able to afford to bring Tony to the studio. Both Doug and I were sleeping in the studio at the time because we couldn't afford to rent apartments on our own. The cost of a good hotel on top of his fee, we were sure, would put us over budget. (We were already paying an added 35% on the exchange difference between the Canadian and U.S. dollar.) Tony immediately put us at ease over the phone and surprised us by saying without hesitation that he would simply sleep in the studio. On the floor! We managed at least however to get him a bed and set him up in a small loft we had built in the corner of the studio. That was not the first time I was to be impressed by his open, unpretentious and, above all, generous nature.
The next surprise came when I managed to mix up the airport terminals here in Toronto and went to the wrong one to pick him up. We hurried over to the right terminal and I ran around looking for him, completely embarrassed of course as his plane had already arrived almost an hour before. Having never met me he easily picked me out of the crowd, smiled and said, "Are you Stephen?" He seemed completely unfazed at having to wait ungreeted in a strange airport. I stammered my apologies only to be told that it was no problem and on we went.
It was an intense week of study and students had come from as far away as Winnipeg to take the workshop. One of the first things that impressed me about Tony as a teacher was that he had insisted that we open the workshop to both beginners and professionals, saying that both could learn just as much from each other. He effortlessly conducted the workshop on many levels being equally patient with the beginners as he was critical of the professionals. It was fascinating to listen as he talked about his career and personal experiences using them as a teaching tool themselves. After the workshops we would walk around the neighbourhood looking for different places to have lunch or dinner and I remember one of things we discussed was the difficulty we had in Toronto finding theatre and studio space. He scoffed at the notion and began to point to storefronts and small buildings and say to me, "Look there's a theatre space. Oh here we just walked by another one." He then told us about all the times he and others would simply rent an old storefront or empty space, renovate it and open a performing space only to be shut down by building inspectors and/or municipal regulators a year later. Unfazed they would simply find something else and do it again. As far as he was concerned, once you have decided to do something based on a real desire then there wasn't anything stopping you from doing it.
Tony taught at our studio for one week. The effect he had on me as a teacher was tremendous. I had studied for two years as an actor with the same teacher in Vancouver, three months at Ecole Jacques Le Coq in Paris, and again for a year and a half with the same physical theatre teacher in Toronto plus I had already been teaching for four years prior to Tony's arrival. Yet after only five days with Tony I threw out four years of class plans and started over. My teaching took a giant leap forward!
On a personal level he also inspired and reconfirmed my faith in the beauty of simplicity and humility. The fringe aspects and benefits of a contract have never been my focus, only the importance of the work and the excitement of sharing one's knowledge and talent matters. Tony's generosity and passion for life and creativity was infectious and I will never forget those five simple days when my career changed.
Thank you Tony.
Stephen La Frenie
Zen of Tony Montanaro
(From "Mime Spoken Here" The Performer's Portable Workshop. Tony Montanaro with Karen Hurll Montanaro. © Copyright 1995 by Tony Montanaro with Karen Hurll Montanaro. Tilbury House, Publishers 132 Water Street Gardiner, Maine 04345.
The Beginning of Mime
If you're looking for a date when mime began, you'll never find it. Mime "began" with the first gesture, the first time someone or something moved in response to a need, a thought, an instinct. It is accurate then to say that the "beginning" of mime is not a static, chronological date but a dynamic, timeless imperative.
Every art form has evolved to satisfy the human need for self-expression. The thoughts, ideas, and feelings expressed through art are universal; only the medium is specific. The more specific the medium, the easier it is to define the art form.
Here we come to the problem with defining mime. Many art forms are defined by an instrument or a set of rules. Ballet, for example, is defined by turn-out, stretched feet, square hips, etc. Mime has no specific rules to distinguish it from the other art forms. The medium for mime is "whatever works," whatever gets the point across. Mime is simply self-expression. For this reason, I call mime the "common ground" of theatre.
While other art forms have become more clearly defined through time, the definition of mime has blurred. This has happened because by its very nature mime is an iconoclast. Nothing is sacred except the message. For most art forms the medium is the message. For mime, it's the other way around: the message is the medium.
The Definition(s) of "Mime"
I have listened to many heated (and some unpleasant) discussions as to the correct definition of the word "mime". This is only indicative of human nature. We want to have names for things. Artists need to label themselves for publicity reasons. Agents need words and short phrases for their "products." Audiences like to refer quickly to the art forms they like or don't like.
Words with clear-ct definitions save us a lot of time. But often they save too much time. For example, many people don't go to mime performances because they hate mime. But what if that show is really fantastic? They miss a wonderful experience just because they defined mime incorrectly.
Some people think that mime is the "charade" section of the ballets. This mime is simple sign language (ie. two hands over the heart means "love." Pointing to your eyes means "I saw.").
Other people equate mime with the mime illusions. Anyone who palms an invisible wall is a mime, according to this definition.
Then there are those who define mime as silent acting. It's true anyone who is capable of "speaking" without the use of words would have to be a mime. But all mimes don't have to be silent, at least not in my book.
My definition of "mime" is "physical eloquence."
Mime is the eloquent and efficient delivery of a mood or a message in which the body is the primary instrument. That message doesn't have to be a story! the theme may be abstract or literal, but if the artist delivers that theme eloquently he/she is a mime as far as I'm concerned.
You will find that the more you learn about and practice mime, the broader your own definition of the word will become, until you see mime everywhere.
Who is a "Mime"?
According to my definition, Jose Limon was one of the greatest mimes of all time. The first time I saw him on stage, he was performing a piece he choreographed called The Traitor. This was the story of the betrayal of Jesus, danced by eight men. Lucas Hoving dance the role of Jesus, Jose Limon played Judas. The other dancers were Jesus' disciples.
Many times during the piece, Judas (Limon) moved independently of the music. Whether someone moves with the music or against it doesn't mean anything. What impressed me about Limon's performance was not what he did but how he did it. When he moved across the stage (against the music), he sidled across, like a serpent. When he kissed Jesus, the audience groaned.
He had such a knowledge of movement! When he moved, all I could see was Judas. The dancing never got in the way. The movement was certainly impressive, but it never took the audience's attention away from the story or the theme of the piece.
The dancers used a prop: a white sheet of cloth, that served to create different scenes, different effects. At one point, the dancers snapped the cloth taut: it became a tablecloth over which Jesus laid his hands. Another time, the cloth became a robe and people stepped on it. The dance was mimetic: you could see tablecloths, robes, stones, the cross; you could see the human and the divine meeting in the betrayal of Jesus. That's why I thought , "This guy's a mime!"
14 basic guidelines to Creating Sketches
1) Design your sketch from the audience's perspective...
2) Remember that at the opening of your sketch, your audience has absolutely no idea what your sketch is about or what kind of character you are playing...
3) Remember to subject your talents to the demands of your sketch...
4) A sketch must reveal something new to the audience, something the audience doesn't already know.
5) Your sketch must escalate or accumulate...
6) While you perform or rehearse, be aware of the undercurrent of "causes." Don't merely jump from effect to effect...
7) Honor your transitions...
8) Listen to your character's internal dialogue while you are performing...
9) Don't belabor the mime illusions. Choose only those gestures and illusions that serve your theme and nothing else...
10) Don't be afraid to throw away good material for the sake of the overall sketch...
11) Be conscious of the tempo and dynamics. Very often beginning mimes and storytellers adopt one speed and stick to it. This makes their sketches monotonous...
12) Beware of antics or pieces of choreography that do not conform to the "bell curve" of action...
13) Don't belabor a point if your audience has already "gotten it."...
14) Practice empathy when you create sketches (as well as when you perform them)...
