Alan Levandowski, age 13, of Cleveland, Ohio, for his question:

WHERE DID PANTOMIME ORIGINATE?

Pantomime is acting without words. The word comes from the Greek word meaning "all mimic."

No one knows just when pantomime began. It was a popular form of entertainment during the early Roman Empire. The actors wore masks with three compartments. Each compartment had a different face.

Pantomime plays became popular in England in the 1700s. They owed much to a type of Italian comedy, the "commedia dell arts." Stock characters included a clown called Harlequin, a lovable father called Pantaloon, and a daughter called Columbine. The plays combined music, dancing and acrobatic acts and had elaborate scenery and stage effects.

The traditional Christmas entertainment in Great Britain includes stage productions of fairy tales and nursery stories. These shows are called "pantos" because they were originally pantomimes.

All actors use a certain amount of pantomime, although pantomime usually refers to a short play in which no words are spoken. The actors tell their story with gestures.