Image: Alex Brenner

‘Unbelievably,’ says Helen Lannaghan, one of the two directors of the London International Mime Festival, ‘this is our 39th year. Who’d have thought it?’

Numerically the LIMF might seem a little long in the tooth, but there’s definitely still a spring, a leap and often even a pounce in its step. January in London can seem very unforgiving. As an early high spot of the capital’s cultural calendar, this annual three-week celebration of all manner of physical and visual theatre (plus an array of workshops) is an excellent antidote to winter blues and a boost to spirits weary from end-of-the-year excesses. In short, if it’s a fresh start to the new year that you want then look no further.

‘I’ve only done 29 years of the festival,’ Lannaghan says, ‘so I’m a relative newcomer. Joseph’s done them all.’ The person she’s referring to, surname Seelig, is her fellow director and the LIMF’s founder. ‘He was at the point of stopping the festival in 1986 when I joined him,’ Lannaghan continues, ‘and it went from there. I didn’t really think about how long we’d do it. Joseph and I still have great fun making the programme. Of course things are different these days, but we relish change. It keeps you on your toes!’ 

‘Being on one’s toes all the time can be exhausting,’ Seelig himself chimes in, ‘but the reward is working with great artists. I started the festival at the prompting of a great mime/clown, Nola Rae, in 1977. Some ten years on it was time for some different energy. Working with Helen certainly provided that, and much more. It’s extremely satisfying – and probably quite rare – to create a distinctive event that takes on a long, influential and relevant life of its own.’

Note Seelig’s use of the term ‘relevant.’ It’s true that the work LIMF showcases is, at its best, charged with vitality. It can harbour both social and/or artistic significance in part by connecting with who we are now, or maybe how we imaginatively want to be. And, always, much of it’s a helluva lotta fun. ‘We’re not interested in clichés,’ Lannaghan affirms. ‘We want to find artists who make contemporary work that will challenge and entertain a very diverse audience.’

But just who might that audience be? ‘Whilst some people have been coming to LIMF from the outset,’ Lannaghan says, ‘and now bring their children and even grandchildren, our audience is constantly changing as London’s cosmopolitan population ebbs and flows. A recent survey told us that nearly half our audience is non-British. The very nature of the work we present means that it doesn’t matter whether English is your first language, or even whether you’re a hearing person or not. It’s all accessible. Most people say they come to LIMF because they want to see something different, so that’s another big part of our brief.’

Diverse audiences require an artfully balanced programme. For Lannaghan and Seelig that entails, she says, the pair of them exercising some pretty astute judgment.  ‘We want – no, need – to present a range of work that covers the broad scope of visual theatre, but specific components of it…reaching into its corners.’ The breakdown of genres in the 2015 LIMF is typically impressive, running the gamut from puppetry/animation (Basil Twist’s Japanese-influenced Dogugaeshi at the Barbican Pit Jan 28-31), contemporary circus (Mat Ricardo’s Showman at Southbank Centre’s Purcell Room Jan 19-21, or the superlatively cheeky Gandini Juggling’s world premiere 4 x 4 at the Linbury Studio Theatre, Covent Garden Jan 13-15) and mime (London-based Theatre Re’s Blind Man’s Song at Jacksons Lane Jan 21-22) to theatre steeped in clowning (Thomas Monckton, masterfully silly in Circo Aereo’s The Pianist at the Purcell Room Jan 14-18, or Trygve Wakenshaw’s wacky solo Kraken at Soho Theatre Jan 9-18), visuals (like Theatre Ad Infinitum’s technically remarkable Light at the Barbican Pit Jan 20-24) or movement and/or dance (the London premiere of Gecko’s latest show Institute, an all-male four-hander at the Linbury Jan 17-20).

It’s always useful to ask the LIMF co-directors for tips as to what the riskiest, weirdest, funniest and sexiest shows are, or any that might be too easily overlooked. What, in other words, are some highlights in 2015? ‘Highlights?’ Lannaghan echoes with a hint of a scepticism. ‘That’s like asking us to pick a favourite child. Let’s just say that for something off-beat and quirky I’d choose Peeping Tom’s 32 Rue Vandenbranden (at the Barbican Jan 28-31).  For something beautiful and ethereal I’d choose Compagnie 111/Aurélien Bory’s Plexus (at Sadler’s Wells Jan 22-23), which was made for the dancer Kaori Ito, and where the strings of the marionette have become the set. For sheer chuckle-worthy fun I’d pick Circus Ronaldo’s Amortale (at the Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall Jan 16-18), and for a glimpse of our bright circus future I’d go to see the well-fit boys of Barely Methodical Troupe (at the Platform Theatre Jan 8-10).’ 

Here, too, Seelig had something to say. ‘It’s interesting and good that UK artists are creators of a couple of what might be described (in your words) as risky or weird: Chris Lynam’s ErictheFred (at Jacksons Lane Jan 15-17) and Knights of the Invisible’s Black Regent (at Southbank’s Purcell Room Jan 12-13). Both of these are by well-established and experienced artists who’ve always worked at the progressive end of the spectrum – really exciting work of which we see too little in today’s safety-first theatre!’

Given the riches that Seelig and Lannaghan present annually, I was curious what the ratio of acceptance and rejection is out of all that they see in preparation for each edition of the festival. ‘Cripes,’ says Lannaghan. ‘A lot. We reject maybe 95% of what we see. As you can imagine we get lots of videos from Marcel Marceau imitators (which are an instant ‘No’) and amateur groups (also ’No'). Then there are circus artists with a 10-minute act, street shows (January in London?!) and text-based work (‘But we can do it in English’) which we also don’t do except in very rare cases such as Mat Ricardo's Showman, which delves into some of the history of his noble art. We watch lots of DVDs and online videos which give a good indication of the quality of the work. We try to see live performances of things we think might work in our programme but it’s not always possible, as is the case where we help commission new work, which this year is Theatre Ad Infinitum’s Light.’

The latter is a British company. How does the UK rate in terms of level artistry compared to the rest of the world? ‘There’s a very different aesthetic in Britain,’ Lannaghan explains. ‘Making non-text based work isn’t really something most British companies feel comfortable with. There’s more of a tradition abroad, in France and Belgium particularly, where arts funding is stronger and culture is regarded as important and central to the well-being of the nation, for now anyway... I think UK artists regard spoken theatre as having more legitimacy, but there are of course notable exceptions including Theatre Ad Infinitum and Theatre Re. In terms of contemporary circus the UK has lagged behind the rest of the world, with particular hot spots in Canada, Australia and France, but groups like NoFit State Circus (at Jacksons Lane Jan 27-31 with the London premiere of Noodles) and Barely Methodical Troupe (recent graduates of the National Centre for Circus Arts, formerly The Circus Space) are starting to change that.’

Speaking of changes, I wondered what LIMF’s daring duo would say when asked to cite at least three significant changes in the field in which LIMF sits that have happened since the festival began. ‘Political changes in Eastern Europe meant that a whole stream of work that was a major focus of the early festivals no longer exists,’ says Lannaghan. ‘Much of that work was largely text-free, so they could get away with criticising their governments in an indirect way. Boleslav Polivka’s company, from the former Czechoslovakia, featured in many early editions of LIMF. In 1989 members of his company were imprisoned days before coming to London, so Bolek came on his own and performed a solo show instead.’

Lannaghan takes a beat before continuing, ‘Contemporary circus has grown by leaps and bounds, particularly in France where the work is well supported with a strong network of excellent training opportunities and dedicated venues. Plus, of course, that special verve that comes from the imaginations of extraordinary artists.’ She pauses again before remarking, ‘Can we just talk about leotards for a moment? They featured heavily in early editions of LIMF. Thank goodness they’ve gone!’ Setting issues of style aside, Lannaghan adds, ‘Some of the people who used to come to the Mime Festival in the early stages of their careers now run important venues, so the work has opportunities that it wouldn’t once have had from people who understand and appreciate the possibilities visual theatre offers the wider theatre scene.’

Seelig is ready to pitch in again. ‘I’d just like to emphasise the point that in recent years our major theatres and festivals are increasingly being led by people interested in more than just the well-made play. I think visual theatre is almost part of the mainstream now, even if the general public doesn’t know it!’

Here Lannaghan picks up the ball. Asked to define LIMF today, she says, ‘People who should know better can’t get past the old image of the white-faced mime walking against the wind. It’s important to forget any clichés and come to us with an open mind. This is a festival of essentially wordless contemporary visual theatre, a distinctive performance genre embracing elements of circus-theatre, puppetry/object theatre, mime, live art and physical theatre. Most of our shows sell-out and we have an ever-growing following, so clearly the word is out there. Oh, maybe not the word...’

It’s back to Seelig for the last word. ‘LIMF celebrates and promotes work which is internationally accessible. There’s no language barrier, everyone can get the point. That’s great, but as the man says in Lampedusa’s The Leopard, "If we want things to stay as they are, they have to change,” and that’s what we try to do each year.’

London International Mime Festival

8-31 January 2015 at Barbican, Jacksons Lane, Platform Theatre, Royal Opera House, Sadler’s Wells, Soho Theatre, Southbank Centre