THEATRE + COMEDY

Cypress Creek FACE presents Michael Cooper: Masked Marvels & Wondertails, 6 p.m., Saturday, February 19, 2011.

Michael Cooper is an eye-popping visual artist and virtuoso mime whose exquisite performances have dazzled audiences for almost thirty years. His one-man extravaganza combines his breathtaking handcrafted masks, original stories of courage and wonder, outlandish stilt dancing and a physical repertoire that ranges from the madcap to the sublime. The result is a “moving sculpture.

Taking up to three hundred hours to produce a single paper or cloth mask, Michael has elevated this most ancient of theater crafts to the level of a fine art. His ability as a wordsmith enables him to reel in the most discerning of crowds with the nuance of a poet, the joy and timing of a first rate comedian and the twists and intrigue of a master storyteller. And whether he’s high kicking on giant legs, animating one of his magical creations or quite literally “leaning on air,” the unending enthusiasm of this masked marvel captivates both young and old.

Michael graduated from Goddard College with a degree in Peace Studies, a unique major that continues to fuel his dedication to creating wholesome, uplifting entertainment that appeals to his audience’s sense of humanity. He then went on to complete six years of theater training with the two greatest mime teachers of the twentieth century, Etienne Decroux of Paris, France and Tony Montanaro of Paris, Maine. Since then he has crisscrossed the world, presenting his art in such varied places as the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Hong Kong International Children’s Festival, The Comedy Store in Los Angeles, the Dublin Theater Festival, Great Woods, the Eugene O’Neill Theater, Bass Performance Hall and the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center.

Visit Michael Cooper’s website here.