The larval mask or Basel Mask has its origins in the celebration of Carnival in Basel, Switzerland. This mask has become an integral part of the actor training sequence developed at The International School of Theatre Jacques Lecoq in Paris, France. Lecoq’s research and teaching is an extension of the work begun by Copeau at […]
The Question of Masks in Devising I was recently speaking with a colleague about a devising workshop that we are planning and he asked me, “why use masks?” This prompted a lot of thought, which led to a lot of questions and then to a lot more thought. Here are some of those thoughts shared. […]
What is Economy of movement? Why would that be important? I was once having a conversation with a colleague and had just mentioned having finished the section on neutral theatre mask. She asked me how long I had spent with the students on the neutral mask exercises. I replied eight weeks. She was shocked. What […]
This blog post is going be all over the place so be warned. It has been hard to focus my thoughts on any one aspect of what I do given the events in the world at large. I spend my days caught between the world I live in and the world that is being imposed […]
The following is a sequence in which theater masks provide the cornerstone as concerns understanding and integration of physical principles for the actor. Several movement classes are listed and theater masks play a role in some as well as physical classes that are intended as preparation for the mask work. The sequence is designed to […]
This semester at Ball State University has been about using theater masks in the actor training sequence. The training sequence is based on the work done at the Lecoq School in Paris. We are using the neutral and larval (Basel masks) to teach acting principles so the actors can approach text and scene work more […]
Guest Blog Post 1 This following blog post is what I hope to be a long series of posts by guest bloggers articulating how theater masks are used today in their world of practice, teaching and students of life. The following was written by Jon Stancato, a long time client and collaborator in the design […]
How are theater masks used today? Or perhaps the better question is How is the use of theater masks important in todays worlds of training and performance? I find it wonderfully reassuring that the mask, its expressive form and the power it has to reveal remains as contemporary and applicable as it was 35,000 years […]
The phrase: “the mask reveals,” takes our discussion of masks and their important presence in performance, training, ritual and celebration in many directions. This post will focus on how the theater mask acts as an agent connecting the past and the present as if they existed together in the moment with a sense of immediacy […]
Using theater masks for actor training began in the western theater with Jacques Copeau in France in 1913. Copeau believed the solution to effective teaching for the actor was to emphasize physical training. To accomplish this effectively he reached for the theater mask. The foundation of mask training lay in the actor’s awareness of the […]
