How to Dress Like a Mime

Mimes have a long history beginning in Ancient Greece. The first mimes were not required to stay silent throughout their performances, and it wasn't until the 19th century that this became part of a mime required act. The French version of the mime stuck to the modern day, resulting in the distinctive style seen throughout the world. Mime acting is considered a significant representation of physical theater, especially as the mime's entire performance is conducted through actions instead of using words. Dressing like a mime requires finding the right clothing and understanding the designs used on the face.  

Traditional Mime Clothing

Mime performance requires a lot of movement, so the clothing must be easy to move around in first and foremost. Due to the amount of physical theater involved with a mime performance, durable clothing is also useful for handling spills and falls outside. The base layer of the mime's clothing is black, with black pants. The classic mime shirt is a horizontally striped black and white shirt, with black sleeves. Modern mime performance uses a wide variety of outfits, moving away from the traditional appearance of the mime.

White gloves, black shoes, and a black beret typically round out the clothing and accessories for the mime's look. The white gloves help draw attention to the hands, which is one of the primary ways the mime communicates with the crowd. The rest of the body, with the exception of the torso and face, uses black clothing and accessories to draw attention to the primary action areas.  

Painting the Mime Face

The distinctive mime face is another important part of the act. Like the hands, the face uses a white base to accent and accentuate all movements and expressions. It provides a focal point on the mime, allowing significant non-verbal communication. Start the mime face painting with a layer of white grease paint. Traditionally, only the face has a base layer of white, the ears and neck are left untouched.

Black eyeliner and mascara are used to accent the eyes. Some mimes have tears painted in eyeliner running down their face, while others create vertical patterns above and below the eyes. Additionally, paint black eyebrows onto the mime's face. This makeup draws focus to the eyes and also exaggerates facial motions. Use black lipstick or lipgloss to paint the center of the lips. Sometimes red lipstick is used to create a stronger facial focal point or to add a dramatic impact.  

Acting Like a Mime

Once the mime clothing and makeup are completed, acting like a mime is the next step. Mimes are completely non-verbal, relying on body language and exaggerated motions to tell a story. Common mime actions include pretending to pull a rope, carrying a clear glass window and escaping from an invisible box. More complex actions build upon the basic mime activities, and may include audience participation. Part of the challenge of acting like a mime is relying entirely upon body language and motion to get points across, instead of explaining verbally.