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 Japanese
Ancient
Greek
African/Sunugalese
Balinese
Yu'pik
Eskimo
African/Tunisian
Ancient
Egyptian
Contemporary
North American (by Shasha Higby)
Contemporary
North American (by Ed Paschke)
Contemporary
Italian in style of Commedia dell'Arte
(by Antonio Fava)
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Have
you ever really looked at your face? Faces are one of the first
thing newborn
babies recognize! Take a look in the mirror, and watch your face
change expressions. We use our faces to express our feelings
and
attitudes, but also to hide them! We may "mask" our feelings with
our faces. While wearing masks, however, we may actually express
ourselves more than ever! Masks are a vehicle for not only personal,
but cultural expression worldwide.
In every culture
around the globe, human beings create and dance with masks. Masks
have a great power and magical ability to bring to life many different
kinds of beings; spirits, clowns, animals, and ancestors. Masks
are used in religious ceremonies, in parades, in theatrical productions
and dance performances, as well as in social events such as Masquerade
balls and Halloween. They are used for protection (gas masks, football
masks, dust masks), for disguise, and for anonymity. In the world
of dance and theater they can both hide and reveal; hiding the personality,
the face, of the one wearing it, but revealing some inner truths
of both the character and the actor/dancer, through movement.
In many cultures,
such as Bali, the Mask maker holds a revered place in society. He
works with the wood and lets the local spirits and gods speak to
the community through his art. In that way the mask maker is supporting
and reinforcing the community's strength, its well-being, and connection
with its spirituality.
The masked
dance performer can be transformed; in fact many cultures use masks
in ritual because they put great importance in the masked dancer
as a messenger to and from other worlds. For example, in many parts
of Africa masked dancers embody ancestors, animals, or gods, and
bring important messages to the local people about their way of
life, their responsibilities to and relationship with the natural
world, and the way to best maintain what is important in their culture.
Masks are
used in many ways in Mexico, including parades on Dia de los Muertos
(Day of the Dead), and to honor elders in the comic "Viejitos" dance.
In many countries in Central and South America masks are used
for
ceremonies and ritual performances which were first done by indigenous
peoples. Often, masked dancers perform the function of shaman
and
healer. Countless cultures around the world use masks in essential
community events, for they are a beautiful and powerful human
tool
for connecting our inner, outer, and other worlds.
Scientists
have asserted that wearing masks in a ritual or ceremonial context
actually works physiologically to create new brain connections between
the reptilian, limbic, and neo-cortex portions of the brain. If
true, this could mean that ritual action such as masked dance can
physically help the dancer get new perspectives on problems, emotions,
and conflicts!
Masks have
been used for entertainment for centuries, too! Masks were used
in ancient Egypt, and in ancient Greece and Rome, masks were an
essential part of both comedies and dramas. Chinese theatrical forms
such as Peking Opera have used masks to tell stories for many centuries.
Giant masks used in Lion dances and Dragon dances come to life each
Lunar New Year not only in China but in big parades right here in
the Bay Area too! Physical theater styles that are descendents of
Italian Commedia dell'Arte, in both Western and Eastern Europe,
use masks. They also employ makeup that is mask-like, such as whiteface
for mime, and painted clown faces. Even a small red nose is a mask!
Masks can
be freeing, liberating the dancer or actor of any culture to express
his or her own inner power, silliness, or emotions. Wearing a mask
can be a transforming experience for you, too! Halloween often brings
out the mischief in us, and even wearing a bike helmet or a pair
of glasses changes the way we feel and relate to the world. If you
make a mask, take the time to really feel how you change when you
put it on.
Here's an
exercise you can do yourself. Put on a mask, and keep your body
still for a few moments. Then, in slow motion, allow your body to
melt into a position which expresses the character of the mask.
Move slowly from one position to another, like a silent moving sculpture.
Come slowly back to standing still before taking off the mask. Take
turns doing this with a friend, using the same mask or different
masks. Then, try it facing a mirror. How did you feel each time?
Was it more engaging for you with or without an audience? With or
without a mirror? For more activities with masks, see our movement
activity section for 2002.
Making
Masks
Everyone is born a mask maker! We all have the ability to create
expressive masks, we just need to learn to use the materials to
make them come to life. Masks can be made from many things, including
leather, wood, paper maché, metal, or synthetic materials
such as Celastic or Veraform. Masks can even be made from recycled
materials such as baskets, boxes, and plastic soda bottles! See
our art and construction activities for instructions on Paper
Plate mask making and Paper
Maché mask making, to get you started!
While the
expression of a mask is fixed, when one performs with a mask, the
expression seems to change with the movement the dancer/actor is
doing! A slight tilt of the head or a gesture can make the meaning
of the expression change altogether. In this way, a mask truly comes
to life, and is perceived very differently depending on who is wearing
it and what they are doing. Masks are magical, and you as the audience
are part of that magic too. Let your imagination sail!
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