Billy the Mime

The film The Artist had such beautiful music, was so well performed, that it was easy to forget there was no spoken dialogue in it; and because it stuck in their minds people raved about it long afterwards.               Watching Billy the Mime is reminiscent of this.

Broken into short sequences which cover themes as diverse as the history of art, paedophilia in the church, and Whitney Houston’s last bath, this is an astonishing performance.  Each scene is perfectly judged to fit the music, which ranges from tragic piano concertos to disco, and although we do laugh the main feeling is one of admiration. We immediately recognise the characters he portrays (many of whom appear in the one scene), and it’s a testament of his incredible talent that we completely empathise in each sequence.

There are only a couple of flat moments – the gay bar depiction feeling a little too clichéd, the finale particularly dark – but even within these there are wonderful flourishes.

This is certainly no standard show, and even if mime is far from everyone’s first choice, it is a very rewarding experience.  Well worth seeing, if only to appreciate how well a story can be told without words.