Central Deborah Gold Mine has launched its new “Mime Tour.” The tour aims to provide an immersive experience of the lives of 19th-century miners. It features a troupe of mimes silently reenacting the gruelling work of the gold rush era—complete with invisible pickaxes and gold.
“It’s about immersion,” said Central Deborah’s head of marketing, Beryl McGuffin. “We wanted to give people a taste of what it was like during the gold rush. What better way to experience the gruelling work than watching skilled mimes pretend to do it?”
The Central Deborah Gold Mine insists the tour has been a huge success, boasting sold-out performances and rave reviews from the local mime community. “The mimes have captured the essence of the gold rush era,” McGuffin continued. “Their ability to convey exhaustion and frustration without uttering a single word is revolutionary.”
“I came expecting to learn about Bendigo’s mining history,” said visitor Rob Peters, “but I got a performance art piece that left me more confused than enlightened. At one point, the mime collapsed from exhaustion, and I wasn’t sure if I should clap or call an ambulance.”
As for the future, Central Deborah Gold Mine is considering expanding the mime tour to include other historical events, such as the invention of the wheel and the first moon landing. “We think mime is the perfect medium for these moments in history,” McGuffin said with a straight face. “Because, after all, some stories are best told in silence.”
For now, visitors can look forward to more silent reenactments, where they can pay to see history come alive metaphorically.
