FINAL WEEKS! (248) 745-8668
"Get Up and Dance!"
— Martin Kohn, Detroit Free Press
to promote, foster and encour-
age mime while preserving and
perpetuating the work of this
;7) international star.
"Marcel Marceau is a mime
in the purist sense, - says Jack
Cohan, executive director of
the Westhampton Beach
Performing Arts Center in
New York and president of the
foundation. "There's no gim-
mickry in what he does, and
he communicates so well with
the audience."
Cohan, who has been artis-
tic director of theaters in
Wisconsin, Connecticut and
South Carolina, has booked
Marceau in each of those
venues, and the two have
become close friends. Each has
\_ been a guest in the other's
home.
Marceau, 76, who lives in a
French country house filled
with artwork, was born in
France, the son of a kosher
butcher killed at Auschwitz.
Growing up without much
religious observance, he found
his world in studying and imi-
tating the gestures of people
he saw. Later, silent screen
stars fired his interest in
unspoken expression.
Soon after formally study-
ing dramatic arts, he was invit-
ed to perform in theaters. As
his engagements increased, he
formed his own school, toured
with his ensemble and pro-
duced a string of mimodra-
mas.
"I think that after the war,
my art became deeper and
more tragic — more funny in
a certain sense but also more
tragic in its themes," Marceau
told the Forward.
Marceau, twice married and
the father of three, began tour-
ing the United States in the
1950s and increased his audi-
ence with television appear-
ances and motion picture
roles. He also has ventured out
into painting in a style similar
to Chagall as well as writing
and illustrating children's
books.
His lithographs will be on
display and for sale at the
Power Center July 6-10,
according to Brian Trim of
Spectrum Theatre Productions
in Ann Arbor. Trim, who stud-
Ann Arbor Summer
Festival Schedule
The follcrwing programs are planned for this
year's Ann Arbor Summer Festival. For show
times, venues and tickets, call (734) 764-
2538 or visit the Web site at
www.mlive.comlaasf
SPECIAL EVENT
Gregory Peck — June 19
COUNTRY
The Wilkinsons — July 8
FAMILY/KIDS
Festival Youth Arts Showcase — June 23
Luma: Theatre of Light — June 26
Gemini at the Top of the Park — June 27
Marcel Marceau Kids Matinee — July 10
David Parker at Domino's Farms — July 11
WORLD MUSIC
Trio Voronezh — July 7
JAZZ/BLUES
Branford Marsalis — June 22
Bobby McFerrin — June 29
July 1
Diana Krall
POP/CONTEMPORARY
Royal Crown Revue —June 21
Art Garfunkel — June 25
Gloria Loring — July 3
Bolcom and Morris — June 30
COMEDY
Capitol Steps — July 4
Paula Poundstone — July 9
DANCE/PERFORMANCE ART
Luma: Theatre of Light — June 26
Peter Spading Dance Company — July 2
Marcel Marceau — July 10
THEATER
Kevin McCarthy in "Give Em Hell
Harry''— June 24
ied with Marceau in France, has been
liaison for Marceau classes in the city
and has arranged for the famed
mime's appearance at the Interlochen
Arts Festival on July 3.
Rob Mermin, founder-director of
Circus Smirkus, a Vermont enter-
tainment center that features young
performers from around the world
in its summer program, studied
with Marceau, became a clown,
launched his own company and
invited his teacher to perform under
the big top.
These two also became good
friends, and Mermin is helping pro-
duce Marceau's mime training tape.
"He taught me how to make a
connection with the audience and
project [emotions] through gestures,"
says Mermin. "He has codified many
of the gestures and conventions of
character, coming up with a system
for portraying attitudes. When I was
with him years ago, he used more
improvisation."
Cohan, whose home displays
Marceau lithographs, has enjoyed
long and stimulating dinner conversa-
tions at the entertainer's estate, where
pictures of the silent movie stars he
admires line the walls.
"We sit down at 9 and leave at 2,
after he regales people with his sto-
ries," Cohan says. "He's very animated
and often serious, but he can be quite
a cutup, too. He reads all the time and
wants to know what's going on [in
politics] wherever he travels."
Marcel Marceau will perform
his family show at 2 p.m. and his
adult show at 8 p.m. Saturday,
July 10, at the Power Center,
Fletcher and Huron Streets on
the University of Michigan cam-
pus in downtown Ann Arbor.
Matinee prices are $10 for chil-
dren and $20 for adults. The
evening show tickets range from
$21-$30. (734) 764-2538.
Mar
. ceau and his assistants
teach an advanced/intermediate
residency July 5-10 at the U-M
Dance Building. Tuition is $500
for students and $300 for auditors.
A Kidsmime workshop for those
aged 8-10 and 11-13 and begin-
ning classes for ages 14-adult will
be offered. (734) 647-2278.
Marceau will appear at the
Interlochen Arts Festival at 3
and 8 p.m. Saturday, July 3.
(231) 276-6230.
're.)
then enjoy
Join the happy couple as they tie the knot,
the reception, which includes a pasta supper, wedding cake
and a champagne toast. You can interact with a variety of
lovable lunatics and zany relatives, throw some rice, kiss
the bride or dance with the groom to a live band!
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Detroit Jewish News
6/ 11
1999
85