Dan Kamin, a specialist in physical comedy, has taken a circuitous show-biz route, from Charlie Chaplin authority to mime, from actor to magician, from illusionist to storyteller.

His journey continues with comedic theater, including a one-man show dubbed "Comedy in Motion," which capsulizes what he does and knows. His lone public performance happens Wednesday at the Hawai'i Theatre.

"Sometimes I have difficulty explaining what I do," he said in a phone conversation from his home in Pittsburgh. "But it's been an amazing journey; I haven't had to wait tables like other actors."

Among the rarities in his past: he trained Robert Downey Jr. for his "Chaplin" role and helped create momentum for Johnny Depp in "Benny & Joon."

We asked him Five Questions.

Q. You're known as a Charlie Chaplin authority and have written about him, plus consulting with a New York musical about The Tramp. What made him such an icon in comedy?

A. Interestingly, I never saw Chaplin while growing up. At that time, he was erased from the culture; while he had amazing popularity with his films, his outspoken politics, in the era of McCarthyism, rubbed interests in America the wrong way.

I was studying art and industrial design in college when I saw his 1925 film "The Gold Rush," and it was the funniest film I'd ever seen — silent, without words; a comedy, but dealing with serious subject matters, like the 1890s gold rush with snowbound prospectors in a cabin, who ate mocassins then eventually each other, with issues about greed, survival, clothing and shelter. But there were amazing things going on, too — like dance. Charlie's movements were so extraordinary; his cabin was on the edge of a cliff, tilting over; as it tilts, he runs, with a whole ballet thing going on, kinetic and funny and harrowing.

I went to the library to read about his secret art but only could find stuff about scandals, why he got kicked out of the U.S. Then I found a man who was a mime artist, leaning on a wall, creating illusions of being blown by the wind. This was Charlie's art of physical comedy, so I began to study with him, like a sorcerer's apprentice. Over time, the apprentice became the sorcerer. I wasn't yet thinking of this as a job — but I've never looked back.

Q. What door of opportunity opened for you, leading you to a career in the performing arts?

A. After college, I had to find if I could speak in silent language, I had to find my place in this art. I had learned marketing and design skills, so created advertising and posters for my shows — at schools, colleges, eventually symphony orchestras. For a while, I did mime, which was hot. When it cooled, I created a one-person show where I wove in magic, mime and talk, stuff I'd learned. It's hard to describe me. I'm a comic, but I don't stand in front of a mike. I'm a mime, but I talk. I do magic and share tales.

Q. What can folks expect at "Comedy in Motion"?

A. It's a cheap evening of expensive theater. Since I can't bring a symphony, I imitate all the sounds of all instruments. Since I can't afford a ballet company, I do solo ballet. My show is a journey through the arts.

Q. Share a few memories about working with Downey and Depp.

A. When I couldn't find a book about Charlie and how he made his magic tick, I had to write it to read it. I'd been fascinated by his sleight-of-hand stuff, pure movement, no mirrors or tricks, and when Robert Downey was preparing for his movie, he read my book, "Charlie Chaplin's One-Man Show," destined to sell to four people, and he was one of them. He wanted me to help him pull off his role, so I got hired to work with him, training him for the comedy scenes that the scriptwriters didn't know what to do with. It was really hard for him; he was a good actor, but stiff physically, and unfailingly nice and generous. He had his drug problem at this time, but he protected me from it; but he was lured to be self-destructive. I since have written a second book, "The Comedy of Charlie Chaplin," after learning so much working with Downey.

Depp was a cult figure for kids and "Benny & Joon" was a sweet, almost European kind of movie, with a characteristic we don't commonly see in American films: a community seen as a nurturing thing. I was brought in to help Depp because word had gotten around (in Hollywood) that I was able to work with Downey, whom people knew as a druggie bad boy, and I told the folks that Depp's routines were not funny. They asked me, "Smart guy, what would you do?" and I trained Depp for all the routines he did and especially the scene which became the end of the movie.

He was very satisfying to work with; when I met him, he was a chain smoker. I took his cigarette and pushed it up my nose; I did a roll dance, which he had to learn to do in the movie, and I also taught him, over 25 hours, how to roll a coin, a silver dollar, around his hand, and several weeks later, he came back and said he could do it. So it was a nice surprise that he used that trick in his first "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie."

Q. You make people laugh; what's personally funny to you?

A. Comedy is just looking at the world in the right way, since the gravity of life pulls us down. By playing the tragic thing and turning it around, you get some relief. The core of comedy is in the sad; you see this genius in the silent films of Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton. There's the comic overlap to the tragedy. And that's what I try to do in my comedy shows. Give a little refreshing break, from the workaday drudgery. Illuminate it, with comic spotlight.