Theatre Masks Out Side in: Perspectives on Mask History, Design, Construction, and Performance

Theatre Masks Out Side In examines masks from different angles and perspectives, combining the history, design, construction, and use of masks into one beautifully illustrated resource.

Each chapter includes key information about an element of mask study: history and uses, theatre traditions, practical principles for directing, performing exercises, design considerations, mask-making techniques, and considering makeup as mask. Artist interviews, theatre company profiles, and hundreds of images provide insight into the variety of mask styles and performance applications. Project suggestions, discussion questions, useful worksheets, creative prompts, and resources for sourcing masks are included to inspire further exploration.

Theatre Masks Out Side In is designed with the beginning theatre maker in mind, as well as prop makers, costume designers and technicians, and actors learning to use masks in performance.

Wendy J. Meaden is a costume designer, maker, and educator. She currently serves as a Professor of Theatre and Associate Dean of the Jordan College of the Arts at Butler University. Her freelance career includes designs for Indiana Repertory Theatre, the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, and Cardinal Stage Company. Her fascination with masks grew out of a number of design projects, international collaborations, and the insatiable curiosity of her students.

Michael A. Brown initiated his exploration of masks as a student and later as a teacher at the prestigious London International School of Performing Arts, a center for physical and devised performance grounded in the training approaches developed by Jacques Lecoq. He has appeared in and directed numerous theatre productions in the US, UK, and China, and served as a movement artist and trainer for the international phenomenon War Horse and for the feature film Gravity. Currently Michael is an Associate Professor of Theatre and Director of the MA/MFA Program in Acting and Contemporary Performance Making at Columbia College, Chicago.