One would be forgiven if they thought the San Francisco Mime Troupe was a silent ensemble of performers in white makeup wearing berets. But in truth, they’re anything but silent.
For the past 65 years, the radical, outspoken and Tony award-winning troupe has been making performance art accessible to all via free live theater shows (with singing and talking!) in outdoor spaces. Yes, it’s entertaining. But make no mistake; the expertly written and performed satires dive deep into current events, examining and questioning the political, environmental and social landscape of the day.
“Our work is the broader definition of mime, which is ‘the exaggeration of everyday life in story and song,’” says Velina Brown, director of SFMT’s new musical, American Dreams. The musical will be playing all over the Bay Area this summer, including a free outdoor performance at 7 pm, Wednesday, Aug. 21, at the Mill Valley Community Center.
SFMT’s shows reliably tune into our current political, social and ecological climate, taking on the difficult questions of the day with hilariously entertaining dark comedy, offering a direct, thought-provoking and refreshing take on the serious topics we all confront today.
Their current show, American Dreams, is no exception. The story is set in a familiar present-day world where once upon a time the American Dream meant a job, house, car, spouse, kids and a dog. But for Gabriel Pearce, a Black man disillusioned with liberal promises, his dream means victory the day after the presidential election. Voting for a conservative felt like a hopeful change to him.
However, for his daughter, Paine, a university teacher torn between protesting students and funding threats, it’s a nightmare. But as the SFMT describes it, “Whether you’re asleep or woke, what some see as nightmares others see as… American Dreams.”
Brown explains, “We are in a moment that finds our country the most fractured in recent history. We grew up with the idea or at least the myth of the American Dream. But now it seems there is no unified dream. I always thought a cornerstone of our identity as Americans was that we lived in a democracy. Now that seems to be up for question. One person’s dream is another person’s nightmare. Hence the plural, American Dreams.”
Over the past half century, SFMT has presented hundreds of performances satirizing current affairs and entertaining audiences throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, nationally and internationally.
While Brown considers it a great honor to be part of one of the longest running theater groups in the nation, she adds that, “There’s also a lot of responsibility that comes with generations of people growing up watching the SF Mime Troupe and turning to the troupe for our take on what’s happening in the world and also the generations of people who have been part of the troupe and have helped keep the flame burning.”
Past SFMT shows include 1600 Transylvania Avenue in 2001, which was a satirical critique of the Bush administration, addressing themes of war and civil liberties. The more recent Freedomland (2015) discussed police brutality and systemic racism in the United States well ahead of the mainstream discussions sparked by the murder of George Floyd in 2020.
“Many times, audience members have come up to me after a show and said, ‘Thank you. Your shows remind me that I’m not crazy,’” says Brown.
During the pandemic, when in-person events were not happening, SFMT produced a two season radio play series (or scripted podcast), Tales of the Resistance (2020-2021), about the Covid pandemic, racial justice and political resistance. Brown directed Season 1 of Tales of the Resistance and four episodes of Season 2. These and dozens of other productions by the troupe have been pivotal commentaries of the times we are experiencing.
“Tales of the Resistance was our way of continuing the conversation with our audience, even though we could not present a show live due to the Covid quarantine. So working in a completely auditory medium when we are a very physical theater company was different and a big challenge, but it was pretty thrilling for all of us to rise to that occasion,” Brown explains.
Collective Dreams
Most organizations in our culture are run hierarchically, with an executive director or CEO. But the San Francisco Mime Troupe is a collective, which is defined as a group united by a shared interest or goal, working together to achieve a common objective. Unlike cooperatives, collectives aren’t focused on economic benefits, though they can include that aspect. The collective is an equitable way of running things, a system working well for the Mime Troupe, which was created in 1959 and has run as a collective since 1973.
Brown is not only the director of the current SFMT show, American Dreams. As a SFMT collective member for 25 years, she believes the structure of the organization is one of the keys to the troupe’s longevity, along with the very passionate core group.
“When we encounter challenges (sometimes really big ones), enough of us have been willing and able to go the extra mile to make something happen,” she says, “I think it has been a strength of ours to have several smart, committed people, whose various talents, skills and perspectives can be leveraged in the service of our mission.”
Everything is political. But politics and social issues can be difficult to discuss and express, especially when people have different viewpoints of what their American Dream might be. That’s where the arts come in.
“Art is a way that we can talk to each other about what it means to be human. An artist finds a way to express what we may be feeling but haven’t found a way to articulate. When we experience their art, we feel less alone. We feel understood, and we understand more about others,” says Brown.
“Often mere entertainments (which are supporters of the status quo) just show us reasons we should be buying more things we don’t really need. The Mime Troupe endeavors to show an alternative explanation of our world from a worker’s perspective as opposed to a corporate perspective,” Brown continues.
It’s a perspective we don’t often hear. In a time of steadily decreasing funding for the arts and the simultaneous rise of entertainment for entertainment’s sake, the San Francisco Mime troupe stays the course with their medium and their message. Because it turns out that whatever way one looks at it, politics and art are inextricably entwined, and the SFMT makes both accessible to the people.
“During this very fractured time in our country, we can feel so small, exhausted and overwhelmed,” says Brown, “We can feel like, ‘What can I do?’ I hope our audience will leave feeling uplifted and encouraged to stay engaged, and participate in the guidance of our country.”
SF Mime Troupe presents the new musical, ‘American Dreams,’ at 7pm, Wednesday, Aug. 21, at the Mill Valley Community Center, 180 Camino Alto, Mill Valley. Admission is free. ($20 suggested donation.)
