Archie is at the Southbank for the performance of Toron Blues, as part of the London Internatinal Mime Festival.
One of the oldest theatrical mediums around, the performance of mime has entertained people as far back as Greek and Roman times. Acting out a story through the use of body movements and without the use of speech, this silent art form has been reinterpreted in different ways by a variety of artists and performers throughout the ages. Early Pantomime shows had within them elements of mime and silent movie figures the likes of Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton utilised these methods in the silent film era and presented it in a more slapstick and farcical manner. Most notably French mime artist Marcel Marceau is regarded as one of the pioneers of the movement and it was his alternative mime persona, Bip the Clown where he gained notoriety as a performer. Across the month of January, a number of performance venues and theatres have played host to the London International Mime Festival. Celebrating the medium that is mime, the festival showcases some of the top mime and physical performance acts across the globe from countries such as Australia, Belgium, France and Spain. A visually stunning spectacle, the festival has exhibited a range of performances and different interpretations of mime the likes of physical theatre, aerial acrobatics and much more. Taking place over nineteen days, the festival kicked off on Wednesday 11th January and is set to come to an exciting finale on Sunday 29th January. On Thursday 19th January 2012, WinkBall video reporters were down at the Southbank Centre for one of the highlights of the festival, Toron Blues, to speak to fans that had come to see the performance. Toron Blues or Tendre Suie, was treated to its UK Premiere at the Southbank, so anticipation and excitement was at a high. An aerial acrobatic show inspired by existentialist playwright Jean-Paul Satre’s ‘Huis Clos’ (No Exit), reporters asked fans who had come to see the show if they have ever seen this type of theatre performed before, what attracts them to this type of performance and why they have come to see the show?