Best Physical Theatre

Jacques Copeau was a French theatre director, actor, and producer who significantly influenced modern theatre practices. In 1913, he founded the Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier in Paris, aiming to reform the stage by rejecting elaborate commercialism in favor of simplified sets and a focus on the actor's...

Derevo is a physical theatre ensemble founded by Anton Adasinsky in Leningrad in 1988. Adasinsky, previously a member of the Litsedei clown theatre, shaped the group's distinctive style combining mime, clowning, butoh, dance, and improvisation. The company relocated to Dresden, Germany, in the 1990s...

Mauricio Celedón is a Chilean mime, actor, and director, born in Santiago in 1957, who founded the multidisciplinary Teatro del Silencio in 1989.

Circa is a leading contemporary Australian circus company originating from Brisbane. It’s known for its exceptionally skilled acrobats and performers creating intensely physical and visually arresting shows. The company's work pushes the boundaries of traditional circus, offering a unique theatrical...

Teatro del Silencio is an international physical theatre and mime company founded in Santiago, Chile, in 1989. The ensemble was established by Chilean director Mauricio Celedón and French performer Claire Joinet, functioning with a collaborative base between Chile and France. The company's theatrica...

Andrew Dawson is a British mime and movement artist recognized for his contributions to physical theatre. He co-founded the Mime Theatre Project in 1984 and is the creator of the solo piece "Space Panorama," a wordless retelling of the Apollo 11 moon landing performed entirely with his hands. He has...

Gecko Theatre is a British physical theatre company founded in 2001 by artistic director Amit Lahav. The company creates devised ensemble works that integrate movement, music, lighting, and visual design with minimal reliance on conventional spoken dialogue. Productions tour extensively both within...

Théâtre de l'Ange Fou is a physical theatre company specializing in corporeal mime, founded in Paris in 1984 by Steven Wasson and Corinne Soum. Both founders trained with and served as assistants to Étienne Decroux, the French performer and teacher who developed corporeal mime as a systematic discip...

Boleslav Polivka is a Czech actor, mime, and clown born in 1949 in Vsetin, Czechoslovakia, recognized for blending pantomime, improvisation, and absurdist comedy on stage and screen. He performed extensively with the Theatre on a String (Divadlo na provazku) in Brno and has appeared in numerous Czec...

Teatro La Memoria is a Chilean theatre company founded by director Alfredo Castro in 1989, noted for experimental productions examining history and identity.

The Warsaw Mime Centre is a contemporary physical theatre and training institution located in Warsaw, Poland. Founded in 2008 by Bartłomiej Ostapczuk, the center operates its own theater venue and a dedicated studio space for artistic development. It focuses on the study and performance of classical...

Ockham's Razor is a British contemporary circus and aerial theatre company established in 2004. The group is distinguished by its reliance on custom-built, suspended structural apparatuses that serve as the primary setting for their performances. Their shows blend physical theater with acrobatics, o...

Lloyd Newson is a British choreographer recognized for his innovative work blending dance with theatrical elements. He established DV8 Physical Theatre in 1986, pioneering experimental physical theatre that often explored challenging social themes and incorporated cinematic techniques. His choreogra...

Mimbre is a British, all-female contemporary acrobatic troupe founded in 1999, celebrated for using dynamic human pyramids and physical storytelling in site-specific theatrical performances.

Brigitte Soubeyran was a German mime and stage artist associated with the development of modern European movement theatre during the 20th century.

Broken Box Mime Theater is a New York City ensemble founded in 2011, notable for creating original contemporary stories performed entirely without speech.

Mamadou Dioume is a Senegalese-French actor and teacher, known for playing Bhima in Peter Brook's stage and 1989 film versions of The Mahabharata.

Circa Contemporary Circus is a Brisbane-based Australian performing arts company directed by Yaron Lifschitz. Its productions combine high-level acrobatics with elements of dance, physical theatre, sound, and spare theatrical design, often emphasizing the capabilities and vulnerability of the human...

Massimo Rocchi is an Italian-Swiss comedian and mime who trained with Étienne Decroux in 1978 and graduated from Marcel Marceau's Paris school in 1982.

Circomedia is a center for contemporary circus and physical theatre based in Bristol, England, offering professional training and higher education programs in circus arts and physical performance. The organization integrates traditional circus skills with physical theatre methodology, positioning it...

Mimus Companhia de Teatro is a Brazilian physical-theatre company founded in 2007 by Deborah Moreira and George Mascarenhas around Decroux's corporeal mime.

Katsura Kan is a Japanese butoh performer and choreographer, notable for international teaching and for linking butoh with physical theatre practice.

Juan Carlos Agudelo Plata is a Colombian mime, actor, director, and teacher associated with Bogotá's Casa del Silencio and contemporary corporeal mime.

Michael Lee is an American mime actor, director, and teacher who has practiced the form for over 40 years and trained with Marcel Marceau.

Sigfrido Aguilar is a Mexican mime and theatre artist, noted for promoting pantomime and physical theatre in Mexico’s contemporary stage scene.

Debra Skelton is a Canadian mime and physical-theatre performer whose work combines nonverbal acting, movement, and character-based stage storytelling.

Tony Brown is an American mime performer and teacher who studied with Étienne Decroux and co-founded the Adaptors movement-theatre company in New York.