Theatre Mask Making
Lorin Cupples
Because Greek theater masks were made from perishable materials, no theater masks used onstage survived to present day. Surviving artifacts from Greek theater are decorative theater masks made of terracotta.
Decorative masks can be made out of many different materials. Common decorative theater masks are the Greek comedy and tragedy masks or Mardi Gras masks. Since decorative theatrical masks are for display, you have more options for materials. You can find the popular Greek comedy and tragedy masks made out of different materials, including plastic, clay, and wood.
Theatrical masks are made from many different materials today. Mask makers may choose to specialize in a specific material for their masks. Here are some different materials your mask maker may use to make your theater masks.
Papier-mch masks are popular because the rigid form is very durable. Papier-mch is a popular arts and crafts activity for kids. Skilled mask makers can make a more sophisticated form with the same basic material.
Few mask makers use leather for theater masks. As the leather warms up from your body heat, the mask will mold to your face. This organic material is found in masquerade masks more than masks for actor training. Though leather theatrical masks are very comfortable, they can be the most labor intensive.
Some mask makers use flexible latex for theater masks. This material tends to degrade over time. Flexible latex has a shelf life of 5 to 10 years because the brittle plastic starts to break down and fall apart. If you need your theatrical masks to last, you may want to find a mask maker who uses neoprene.
As a mask maker for over three decades I have learned what works best for making quality theatrical masks. Masks in my collection are still in great condition after over 20 years. How can we have masks that stay in great condition for decades? The answer starts with durable, long-lasting materials.
I use neoprene to create theater masks from molds as well as for many custom theater masks. Neoprene is a synthetic rubber that is durable and semi-flexible. The medical and automotive industries also use this dependable, all-purpose rubber. You can find neoprene in medical braces, wetsuits, sport shoe soles, and more.
Masks for performance and actor training should be able to survive regular use. These theatrical masks are an investment, and quality is especially important. If you buy poorly made theater masks, you may find yourself needing to order masks the next year.
When you order quality theatrical masks from a skilled mask maker, you are investing in something that lasts. The mask maker may also have suggestions on how to optimize and prolong the life of the theatrical masks.
We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze how you use this website, store your preferences, and provide the content and advertisements that are relevant to you. These cookies will only be stored in your browser with your prior consent.
Necessary cookies are required to enable the basic features of this site, such as providing secure log-in or adjusting your consent preferences. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable data.
Good morning Jessica,
I have taught masks for the last several years and am glad to share with you what I know, plus I'll throw in my Evolution of Theatre (Greeks & Commedia del Arte) PDF free of charge!
I combine mask making as part of understanding the origins of theatre from the Greeks and as a way of introducing the concept of the mask as both a costume piece and an actual character to be 'donned' for a performance. This makes for a wonderful hands-on project which segues into Commedia del'arte.
Originally, I used paper mache and although I still talk about it as a viable medium with which to create masks, I no longer use it for the mask project because of the mess. I have since moved on to plaster bandages. They're inexpensive (Amazon: ACTIVA Rigid Wrap Plaster Cloth, 5 pounds). I have also taught "found item" masks which can be whole lot of fun too! Found items are paper plates, cloth pieces, Solo cups, you name it and you can make it into a mask--excellent for having them construct masks based on specific characters from a play you're reading.
If you're looking for a great online resource about masks, take a look at the work of David Knezz (David Knezz Maskmaker
); very nice fellow, talked to him when we did "Phantom of the Opera" about how to cast a neoprene mask for our Phantom.
I'm attaching the PDF of my Greek & Commedia PowerPoint for you (or anyone else who's interested) to look over and use as you wish. If you'd like more details on the how and what I teach, feel free to shoot me an email directly at theatrea...@gmail.com
Best of luck in your mask making!
Aaron
Last week I spent 2 fun filled days at Haveley Hey Community Primary School in Manchester. The children in year 5 had been learning all about the ancient Greeks, and invited me to the school to make some masks and do some drama with them.
We started the day with a story- Theseus and the Minotaur- one of my all time favourites! We then talked about masks and looked at some examples from around the world. The children had already looked at the myth in class, so soon we were all set to start making our own masks of characters from the story.
In the afternoon of each day, I took the class into the hall. We started with some drama games to get them all relaxed, then I split them into groups to act out sections of the story. At the end of the afternoon, we turned the hall into a Greek theatre and enjoyed all the performances.
A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment, and often employed for rituals and rites. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and practical purposes, as well as in the performing arts and for entertainment. They are usually worn on the face, although they may also be positioned for effect elsewhere on the wearer's body.
One of the challenges in anthropology is finding the precise derivation of human culture and early activities, the invention and use of the mask is only one area of unsolved inquiry. The use of masks dates back several millennia. It is conjectured that the first masks may have been used by primitive people to associate the wearer with some kind of unimpeachable authority, such as a deity, or to otherwise lend credence to the person's claim on a given social role.
In the Greek bacchanalia and the Dionysus cult, which involved the use of masks, the ordinary controls on behaviour were temporarily suspended, and people cavorted in merry revelry outside their ordinary rank or status. Ren Gunon claims that in the Roman saturnalia festivals, the ordinary roles were often inverted. Sometimes a slave or a criminal was temporarily granted the insignia and status of royalty, only to be killed after the festival ended.[9] The Carnival of Venice, in which all are equal behind their masks, dates back to 1268 AD.[10] The use of carnivalesque masks in the Jewish Purim festivities probably originated in the late 15th century, although some Jewish authors claim it has always been part of Judaic tradition.[11]
The North American Iroquois tribes used masks for healing purposes (see False Face Society). In the Himalayas, masks functioned above all as mediators of supernatural forces.[12][13][14] Yup'ik masks could be small 3-inch (7.6 cm) finger masks, but also 10-kilogram (22 lb) masks hung from the ceiling or carried by several people.[15][16] Masks have been created with plastic surgery for mutilated soldiers.[17]
In many dramatic traditions including the theatre of ancient Greece, the classical noh drama of Japan (14th century to present), the traditional lhamo drama of Tibet, talchum in Korea, and the topeng dance of Indonesia, masks were or are typically worn by all the performers, with several different types of mask used for different types of character.
Ritual masks occur throughout the world, and although they tend to share many characteristics, highly distinctive forms have developed. The function of the masks may be magical or religious; they may appear in rites of passage or as a make-up for a form of theatre. Equally masks may disguise a penitent or preside over important ceremonies; they may help mediate with spirits, or offer a protective role to the members of a society who use their powers.[22] Biologist Jeremy Griffith has suggested that ritual masks, as representations of the human face, are extremely revealing of the two fundamental aspects of the human psychological condition: firstly, the repression of a cooperative, instinctive self or soul; and secondly, the extremely angry state of the unjustly condemned conscious thinking egocentric intellect.[23]
c80f0f1006