The use of masks in ancient greek theater draw their origin from the ancient dionysiac cult. Thespis was the first writer, who used a mask.
The members of the chorus wore masks, usually similar to each other but completely different from the leading actors. Picture 1 portrays a sort of mask suitable for the chorus.
Because the number of actors varied from one to three, they had to put on different masks, in order to play more roles.
The actors were all men. The mask was therefor necessary to let them play the female roles. Picture 2 portrays a woman's mask.
Some people claim that the masks had one more significance : they added resonnance to the voice of an actor so that everyone in the huge ancient theater could hear him (Baldry 1971). I do not quite agree with that point of view. I think it's enough for someone to attend a modern performance of a play in the ancient theater of Epidavros to feel the perfection of the acoustics in an ancient theater. Even the audiance of the last row can hear a whisper from the orchestra.
An interesting idea (Wiles 1991) is that the mask could give to the character some sort of universality, creating an average figure, so that the audiance would judge him on his actions and not his appearance. Certainly that was a result of the use of the mask but I am not quite convinced that it was one of the purposes of its use.
Usually the masks were made of linen, wood, or leather. A marble or stone face was used as a mould for the mask. Human or animal hair was also used. The eyes were fully drawn but in the place of the pupil of the eye was a small hole so that the actor could see.
In most drama, actors did wear masks, and often exaggerated costumes. However, in later centuries (IE Hellenistic period) actors may have acted without masks, based on vase paintings of dramatic performances.
wood,linen,metals,marble,leather,and mud hoped this helped
greek actors wore funnel shaped masks so that the people at the far back can see what emotion was being portrayed
they used masks to show which god(dess) they represented. Each mask represented its own god or goddess.
In the ancient Greek theatres by the actors.
they would leave town
It depends if it was a Comedy or a tragedy. If it was a tragedy they would wear really dark colours but if it was a comedy they would wear bright colours like Green and Red
they wore costumes and some times masks or wigs depending on the play.
It was the tradition of the ancient Greek Theatre and the style is also to be found in the modern world in some Asian theatre traditions. The mask defines the character/mood of the character and the audiences learn to associate certain mask faces with particular roles.
people wear masks for partyies and stufff.......
for the lulz
In the ancient Greek theatres by the actors.
Actors wear masks to show different emotions and so male actors are able to play characters who are women.
masks happy/sad masks
Yes, they followed the Greek customs to have characters represented by masks which depicted their main traits. All actors where men. They also played female roles, which they could do thanks to the masks.
In Greek theatre, costumes were essentially nonexistent. Onstage, actors wore the typical fashions of the day rather than the clothes their characters would wear. Masks enabled the actors to take on the physicality of a character and make it more real for audiences. Masks were also versatile enough that a small company of actors could play a large number of roles without having to do time-consuming costume changes.
The cast of All My Heroes Still Wear Masks - 2002 includes: Kevin Kjonaas as (Himself)
they would leave town
It depends if it was a Comedy or a tragedy. If it was a tragedy they would wear really dark colours but if it was a comedy they would wear bright colours like Green and Red
Greek theatrical masks are used so men can pretend to be woman and so they can play several parts. They also used masks so the people at the back can see there face expressions. The uses of masks in ancient Greek theatre draw their origin from the ancient dionysiac culture. Thespis was the first writer, who used a mask. Usually the masks were made of linen, wood, or leather. A marble or stone face was used as a mould for the mask. Human or animal hair was also used. The eyes were fully drawn but in the place of the pupil of the eye was a small hole so that the actor could see. Some people claim that the masks had one more significance they added resonance to the voice of an actor so that everyone in the huge ancient theatre could hear him. The members of the chorus wore masks, usually similar to each other but completely different from the leading actors.
the young, the old, and demons. even animals also.