At 50, Mime Troupe is too big to fail

At 50, Mime Troupe is too big to fail

http://www.sfexaminer.com/entertainment/At-50-Mime-Troupe-is-too-big-to-fail-49396417.html

By: By Georgia Rowe
Special to The Examiner
June 29, 2009

SAN FRANCISCO ­ The San Francisco Mime Troupe turns 50 this year, and
the award-winning theater company is marking the occasion with "Too
Big to Fail," a rollicking musical satire on the international credit crisis.

Written by Michael Gene Sullivan, the show is a prime example of the
funny, relevant productions the Mime Troupe has been creating for
five decades. Free performances begin Saturday at Dolores Park and
continue through Sept. 27 at various venues.

"Too Big to Fail" could not be more topical. Set in a mythical
African village, the show follows Filije, a recently married man
who's turned down for a loan by the local micro bank.

Lured by offers from a mysterious outside lender, Filije soon finds
himself over his head in debt. What follows is an incredible journey,
as Filije tries to save his credit, his marriage and the future of his village.

"It's a big, epic story ­ kind of like 'The Odyssey,'" Sullivan says.

Directed by Wilma Bonet, with music and lyrics by Pat Moran, the show
features Mime Troupe veterans Velina Brown, Ed Holmes, Lisa
Hori-Garcia and Adrian Mejia, along with Sullivan as the narrator/storyteller.

Founded in 1959 by R.G. Davis as a project of the legendary Actors'
Workshop, the Mime Troupe has always been on the forefront of
American politics.

Davis left the group in 1970, but the tradition of making satire on
hot-button topics has continued; recent years have seen shows on
election fraud, Big Oil profiteering, bioengineering and corporate
takeovers. The company has won a Tony and two Obie awards.

Sullivan, a Michigan native who moved to the Bay Area as a child,
first saw the group when he was teenager. At the time, he planned to
become a history teacher.

"My dad took me to a show in Golden Gate Park," Sullivan says. "It
was history, comedy, politics ­ everything I was interested in doing,
all in one event." He eventually auditioned and was cast as an actor.

Sullivan has been with the Mime Troupe ever since, as actor,
director, resident playwright and member of the eight-person
collective that serves as the group's governing body.

The collective also includes Sullivan's wife, award-winning actress
Velina Brown, who has appeared in many of the company's productions.
The couple, who met in junior high, have a 6-year-old son, Zachary.

Sullivan says that first-time audiences are often surprised by Mime
Troupe shows. For one thing, there's no mime. Productions are also
not improvised, each being tightly scripted.

"We do the equivalent of a small Broadway musical every year," Sullivan says.

Collective members share a common goal: to illuminate social issues
and inspire audiences to challenge the status quo. The themes are
always current, and Sullivan does not expect to run out of material
anytime soon.

"My vision of the world is to create a place where the Mime Troupe
isn't necessary," he says. "We've got a long way to go."
--

IF YOU GO

Too Big to Fail

Presented by San Francisco Mime Troupe

Where: Dolores Park, Dolores and 18th streets, S.F.

When: 2 p.m. Saturday-Sunday; music at 1:30 p.m.

Tickets: Most shows are free

Contact: (415) 285-1717, www.sfmt.org

Note: Performances continue around the Bay Area through September.

Other San Francisco shows:

July 11: Golden Gate Park, Peacock Meadow

July 12: Glen Park

Aug. 15: Washington Square Park

Aug. 16: Yerba Buena Gardens

Sept. 5-7: Dolores Park

.