I would not get into theatrics like miming stuff unless you are actually a well-known mime in your community and people appreciate your art form. Even then, some people hate mimes, so probably talking is going to get you further.
Instead I'd just go next door and say, "hey, in that wind storm, your tree dropped a huge branch on my kid's canoe and I'd like to get it fixed up before it's canoeing season and he's stuck without his canoe - he loves that thing. Do you want to come take a look? I don't really know the details about repairing this stuff or insurance or whatever but before I get too far into it I wanted to get your input here."