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by MaryAlice Bitts-Jackson

You鈥檝e seen them at street fairs and boardwalks: those white-faced, stripey-shirted imps who silently pull themselves along invisible ropes. Their silences are golden in Europe, where they鈥檙e part of a respected performance tradition, but in America, the very mention of their name can elicit giggles and groans.

We鈥檙e speaking, of course, about mimes. But, says Artist-in-Residence Bill Bowers, there鈥檚 much more to this art form than many of us know.

Bowers is a mime鈥攎ore specifically, an award-winning pantomime-mime hybrid鈥攚ho is sometimes silent, but has a lot to say. He鈥檚 also a longtime Broadway, film and television actor with an MFA from Rutgers University and an honorary Ph.D. from Rocky Mountain College. He  teaches at New York鈥檚 Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development, and his recent one-man show earned a coveted Critics鈥� Pick endorsement from The New York Times.

The celebrated performer came to Dickinson last week for an artistic residency that included a discussion of the relationship between personal identity and creativity, acting workshops, a reception with students and professors and a performance at the nearby Cubiculo.

鈥淚 was fascinated by his way of thinking about the body as an instrument and using mime and pantomime as a way to speak out without having to speak,鈥� said Holly Kelly '15. 鈥淭hinking about performance in this way will be extremely useful, because so often in opera, you have to use only your body to accentuate the music.鈥�

In between sharing tips culled from his decades-long career in New York, Bowers also spoke about key moments in his life, growing up gay in small-town Montana and finding his voice in silence while studying with the legendary Marcel Marceau.

鈥淗e鈥檚 had quite a remarkable life, and he told his story with such good humor, creativity, honesty and grace,鈥� said Laura Colleluori '14, a theatre arts and Italian studies major who plans to work in theatre education and community-building.

Learning by example

Bowers' approach to arts education鈥攁 method that combines traditional instruction with practical advice from the trenches鈥攊s familiar to Dickinson students. He is just one of the celebrated arts professionals who visit campus each semester to work directly with students in and out of the classroom.

Last semester鈥檚 resident artists included a Grammy-winning vocal quartet and Pulitzer Prize winning composer, a renowned artist-activist and a world-traveling taiko musician. The spring artists-in-residence include a Guggenheim and Pew-funded stained-glass artist, a trailblazing string quartet and a Pulitzer Prize winning poet.

Jeremy Lupowitz '15, a theatre-arts and French major, said that experiences such as these are invaluable. He was moved both by Bowers' resilience and his commitment to communicate more deeply through art.

"I learned that there are a lot of ways we can transmit our thoughts, feelings and ideas to one another鈥攙erbal communication is just one road on the map," said the aspiring director. 

"And just because there are some things that our society can鈥檛 or won鈥檛 talk about, it doesn鈥檛 mean that we won鈥檛 find other ways of expressing ourselves, until eventually, society feels a little more comfortable discussing those issues,鈥� Lupowitz continued. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a lesson I鈥檒l carry with me for the rest of my life.鈥�