Most mimes are trying to get out of imaginary boxes or make audience members believe a thick rope is tugging them off stage.
Stella Filler, however, is not one of them.
“You won’t find me at picnics,” said Filler, who claims to be the only “kosher mime” in the world. “I mime about Jewish life and, with thousands of mimes, that makes me unique.”
Filler, of Palo Alto, will perform at Jewbilee, a day of Jewish learning propelled by film screenings, political discussions, Torah text study, religious and spiritual debates, and song and art workshops Sunday, Jan. 24 at the Addison-Penzak JCC in Los Gatos.
Jewbilee is hardly the first Jewish event Filler has performed at. She’s taken her act — a part-time gig — to Chabads across the country, in addition to synagogues, schools, camps and conferences.
It’s no joke — being the only kosher mime involves a lot of travel.
“I shlep my props everywhere,” said Filler, who makes her own. “Sometimes I look like an old crazy lady with all of my stuff.”
Props such as swim caps for children who pretend they are escaping from Alcatraz. Or Filler’s own hats, which replace the wig she wears as a sign of modesty while she’s on stage.
You could say Filler’s act — a woman going through Jewish rituals and life experiences — pushes the envelope in a way. For example, she aims for laughter when miming about the sacred ritual of soaking in the mikvah.
“I don’t go into the holiness of it,” said Filler, who attends Chabad of Greater South Bay and Congregation Emek Beracha, both in Palo Alto. “My miming is meant to be funny, like when a child bothers you while making challah or a when a woman goes on an awkward blind date.”
Of course, her performances for children are more light-hearted. She dresses them up like characters and teaches them mime. Filler said she loves working with kids because “they always laugh,” unlike many of the Orthodox women who often are noticeably reserved.
Still, “I’m never worried that my audiences won’t laugh,” Filler said. “I’m not a clown. I make sure they get it.”
Born in Tangier, Morocco, Filler took up ballet at a young age. After finishing high school, she moved to Israel to escape the anti-Semitism she experienced in Morocco, and continued to perform.
While living on Kibbutz Carmia, Filler created a mime act based on her life as a cowgirl. Her humorous portrayal of the animals she tended to sparked laughter among audience members, who urged her to study mime full time.
But Filler needed more convincing.
“For me, mime was very boring,” she said. “Still, I tried it and tried it. Who would have thought I’d be doing mime all my life.”
After several years in Israel, Filler longed to be near the family she left behind. In 1970, rather than return to Morocco, she joined a sister who was living in the United States.
Following a break from miming, Filler jumped back into it by going to Paris for some formal training. There, she studied with two legendary mimes, the late Etienne Decroux and the late Marcel Marceau, in addition to several other Parisian performers.
In 1975, Filler came back to the U.S. and settled in Palo Alto. At that time, her focus was purely secular, which was reflected in the theater arts classes she taught at Santa Clara, Stanford and San Jose State universities, and De Anza College in Cupertino.
Marriage to her husband, Victor, and the birth of their first child transformed Filler’s act from non-Jewish to, well, Jewish.
“In my history of mime, men were always the center of the act,” she said. “I could not find myself as a woman, let alone a Jewish woman. Now if you see my act, especially if you’re a Jewish woman, you understand it.
“That’s why I’m the only kosher mime in the world.”
The Kosher Mime, Stella Filler, will perform 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 24, at Jewbilee. The first half of her 60-minute act will be for children; the second for adults. Jewbilee is from 1-8 p.m. at Addison-Penzak JCC, 14855 Oka Road, Los Gatos. $4-$7. Information: www.svjcc.org/jewbilee.