Show 'one of the greatest pieces of theater'

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jevans@pickenssentinel.com

CLEMSON - Artist Daniel Stein aims to shatter your conceptions about mimes this weekend - all without saying a word.

Stein brings his acclaimed show "Timepiece" to Clemson's Brooks Center of the Performing Arts Friday and Saturday.

Performances begin at 8 p.m.

The performance is a part of Clemson's WORDBRIDGE playwrighting workshop, an intense two-week workshop that brings aspiring and established playwrights from around the county to the University to interact with aspiring Clemson playwrights.

"We are honored to have Daniel Stein, who is an internationally recognized clown and mine," said David White, artistic co-director of WORDBRIDGE. "It is a show unlike anything I have ever seen."

"Timepiece" tells the story of the passage of time's effects on one man.

Stein refers to the piece - which took two years to develop - as "visual music."

"It's one of the greatest pieces of theater that I've seen in the United States," White said.

Audience members should leave their notions about mime at the door, White said.

"When people see clown and mime artist, they think it's not going to be appealing," he said. "This is totally accessible. It's not white-faced mime. I don't want people to be intimidated by that, or turned off by what they think it's going to be. It's a totally physical performance."

Stein is known throughout the world for his work.

"This has been performed at the Kennedy Center, the Lincoln Center," White said. "We just need to make a little noise so people know it's going to be here."

Stein will stay and work with WORDBRIDGE artists on physical theater, said artistic co-director Mark Charney.

Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for students, a real bargain, Charney said.

Theater lovers shouldn't miss out on this rare opportunity, Charney said.



"I think people aren't coming and that scares me because it's so good," he said.

A special reception will be held after the Saturday performance to allow the audience to meet Stein and the WORDBRIDGE playwrights.

For more information, contact the Brooks Center at 656-7787 or Charney at 656-5415.