How Do You Make A Tragedy & Comedy Mask?
Throughout history, people have worn masks to take on other personalities and tell stories. The masks that we think of as “Comedy and Tragedy” are actually descended from larger-than-life masks worn more than two thousand years ago in the Greek theater to let the audience know what kind of play they were seeing. The original masks also contained modified megaphones in the mouth so the actor’s voice was amplified for distant listeners. Masks worn by the “chorus” (a group of actors who told the audience what was happening) became the iconic masks of Comedy and Tragedy of the modern theater. Make a base for a mask using a human face (or balloon with a strategically-placed store-bought half-mask). Cover the face with a double-thickness of aluminum foil and press carefully to sculpt all the features. Remove the foil and cut two holes for the nose and a small circle for the mouth. Put the foil base back on the model and apply petroleum jelly or other non-toxic lubricant on the “face.” If you
