Seven Days: Vermont's Independent Voice

What's Mime Is Yours

Given that they often depict themselves trapped inside imaginary cubes, mimes may not seem prone to outside-the-box thinking. Michael Cooper’s an exception. The Maine-based theatrical wizard learned to lean on air from Paris mime master Etienne Decroux, but he avoids giving audiences the silent treatment, livening his performances with spoken-word verse and handmade masks. In his one-man show, the Goddard grad embodies a baby who grows into a white-mustached grandpa, and as “The Big Nose,” he releases his pent-up frustrations with, er, “explosive” allergy bouts. More snippets: A largemouth bass in a smoking jacket puffs iridescent spheres from a bubble pipe, a large-animal vet talks horse sense to a nervous equine, and a graceful dancing giant — Cooper on stilts, with a chin extension — offers a glimpse into fantasy. Don’t miss it.