Pantomime Notes

• Definition: A sequence of facial expressions, gestures,

body positions, and movements that convey a
story/character without words.
• Also: It uses the imagination and physical actions to
create vivid believable characters.

Pantomime
• 1) Feel the Emotion: Use your imagination to show the
character’s emotion.
• 2) Relax the Body: Get ready to use your whole body in
showing expression.
• 3) Use Facial Expressions: Use eyes, mouth, forehead,
etc…to show emotion. Observe self and others.
• 4) Use Strong Gestures: Be natural, but big and clear

Guidelines for
Pantomime
• Express your character type (no costuming)
• Create an environment (no props)
• You may only use a chair and it may not be moved.
• Have a beginning, middle, and end

Tips for Pantomime

• 1) Exaggerate: Overdo your actions
• 2) Consistency: Do things the same way over and over
again: size, shape, location
• 3) Simplicity: Don’t make things too complicated! You
must believe that what you are doing is right in front of
you!

3 Basic Rules
Fill out a simple
example:
• Activity ________________________
• Steps
• 1)
• 2)
• 3)
• 4)
• 5)
• Getting ready for school
• Driving car
• Watching a sporting event
• Watching TV
• A boxing match
• Hiking to the top of a mountain
• Walking a dog
• Running a race
• Grocery shopping

Possible Topics
• Activity: Brushing Teeth
• Steps:
• 1) Get toothbrush and rinse it
• 2)Get toothpaste
• 3) Struggle to squeeze
• 4) Scrub, scrub, scrub
• 5) Rinse and smile!

Example
• TEACHER- Have a student volunteer read aloud their
simple pantomime activity, while another student
volunteer performs it at the same time.
• Do as many as these as you can!