Charlie Le Quelenec
.Mask Designer & Performer.
HELLO THERE!
My Name is Charlie Le Quelenec and I’m a final year Performing arts student at Canterbury Christchurch University. I chose the Practice as Research (PAR) module because I felt it would give me more scope to explore creatively in my final university assessment, as opposed to the more traditional written dissertation.
Having had experience in theatre design and mask making from previous university modules I decided to focus on this area of the creative process.​
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The Question...
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"What impact does estrangement of the audience have on how stories are told and perceived?".
"What impact can the use of masks have on storytelling, how can they be manipulated to embody the traits of estrangement, and what effect can this have on the audience?"
It is well known that Masks have been used in theatrical performance for thousands of years in a multitude of different ways – my goal was to see how I could apply estrangement techniques and if this could be conveyed successfully to an audience.
In order to begin this I first needed to consider the conventions we had decided to work under as a company(displayed below.)
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Layers of reality
1 - Objective Reality (Canterbury Present day) - Performativity
2-Subjective Reality (Theban players)- Arts and Conflict
3- False Reality (Theban Market people)- Propaganda
4-Symbolic Reality (Brechtian Masques)- Storytelling
For the masks i would focus on the fourth level of our reality, as within our performance it's where the main characters from the greek tales exist. Pairing this with our themes Propoganda, corruption of power, and Estrangment i began the process of designing the masks.
"The Theban Players Present; A Delightfully Theban Performance in Honour of our Glorious King and Theban Noble persons, On the subject Of Thebes’ Great Stories That Truly Enrich our Theban Pride"
When Choosing what i would make masks out of i tried to select characters that i thought i would be able to apply Bertolt Brecht's estrangement theory to.
taking this into consideration i decided the best option was to choose a figure from each of the adapted tales in our Greek Theban cycle
From Antigone, I selected King Creon’s Advisors- who represent the slimy and devious nature of the ‘yes’ men who are all too familiar with in politics today. From Oedipus, I chose ‘Narratipus’ a version of older Oedipus narrating his life's tale and the action occurring on stage. Finally from the ‘victory of the Epigoni’ I chose the Epigoni warriors – who overthrow Thebes and found Spearhawk Landing.
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Mask Designs
King Creon's Advisors - Antigone
In our version of Antigone the action is focused on the experience of king Creon rather than Antigone herself. Written in a comedic style; Katie’s adaptation focuses on the overarching realities of Politics, drawing clear parallels with our modern day politics. Taking inspiration from Boris Johnson's Brexit Speech it Explores the mercurial nature of party-line favour, in-fighting, and the propoganda that is ever present in our lives both consciously and unconsciously . King Creon's advisors are written as unscrupulous, ambitious and abitrary in their allegiances. They are the smiling assassins in the scene, initially flattering King Creon preparing him for his speech and praising his decrees only to turn on him in the end, eventually leading and contributing to his demise. Because of this i felt there was more than enough for me to use as inspiration for the masks.
My vision for the advisor masks was for them to portray the two faces of the wearer, to represent the duality that exists within them.
I decided these would be full face masks mounted on wooden rods - the reason for this being that the performers would be able to communicate their lines and the character behind them without being completely obstructed by the mask because, when they were not speaking they would be able to alternate between the face they present to the world and the true form beneath.
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my aim was for them to have exaggerated, distorted features but to still be clearly recognisable as faces – to use and enhance estrangement theory I decided to use vivid bright colours to distract the audience from their muddled appearance – to represent how these characters exist behind walls of façade and decoration.
Narratipus - Oedipus Rex
The Original tale of Oedipus is that of an Orphaned Boy who is Raised by Adoptive Parents in Corinth – Seeking his destiny from an Oracle he is told he will kill his father and sleep with his mother – hoping to avoid his destiny he flees to Thebes where he kills a man and then marries and has children with a woman we later learn were his biological mother and father.
James Green’s adaptation transforms Oedipus from a victim of fate to a Villain who actively pursues and fulfils his destiny Brutally Slaying the man he believes is his father and then sleeping with his mother with not an ounce of remorse. When he later finds he has married and had children with his biological mother he admits no wrong doing and although In the Original story Oedipus is so disgusted with his actions he removes his eyes so he no longer has to look at what he has done James’ Oedipus feels no guilt on his part and so his eyes are removed by his wife and mother Jocasta. The result of this change in narrative is that the audience is turned completely against Oedipus – they root against this most contemptable of characters.
Again, here we can pull clear parallels from politicians who believe they are above the rules and morals by which the general public must abide. Committing wrongdoings and expecting no comeuppance, for example Donald Trump, The president of the united states who has embroiled in many a scandal for things he has said. By having Oedipus blinded involuntarily the audience will be able to see him suffer for the things he has done.
The mask I decided was most fitting to create was one to represent his eyes after they have been gouged out.
In James’ script “Narratipus” an Older, Aged version of Oedipus begins the tale sitting in a chair in the corner of the stage his face “covered with a ragged cloth”
My design consisted of a blood stained bandage that would reveal the two blackened holes where his eyes should be – this would be adorned gruesomely with dried droplets of thick darkened blood.
My aim with this was to make the overall appearance jarring enough to estrange the audience into understanding the underlying message within the story; Oedipus acted with mal intent, he was unrepentant, and because of this he was brought to judgement for his actions.
The Epigoni - Victory of the Epigoni
Calum Harbottle’s adaptation of The Victory of the Epigoni represents the changing nature of the political landscape within Our Theban Cycle –
Earlier on In the performance we are shown the confusion created by the bells at the end of the Theban marketplace – do they signal the end of the market, or is it the warning noise of Thebes being overthrown in yet another political coup? In this, The Epilogue we hear the screams of King Thersander. The great king for who this whole performance has been in honour of has been Overthrown by the Epigoni. Three of the Theban Players flee, leaving one player alone on the stage. In the ensuing sequence the Epigoni slay the Theban player in a manner which echo’s the killing of the sacred cow in the founding of Thebes which opens the show. Further echoing this the Epigoni pull coloured ribbon from the Theban player, (mirroring the innards pulled from the sacred cow) scattering it about the stage – thus founding Spearhawk Landing.
In this scene the Theban Player and the Sacred cow are one in the same- they represent the same idea. The people of Thebes, who once killed a creature to found their city find that now they are the sacrifice – they are viewed by the Epigoni as a lesser being. The killing of the Theban player in this represents an act of almost karmic revenge – what goes around comes around and this is a clear display of just that.
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To further this poigniant message I elected to make masks for The Epigoni. When initially designing the masks I first made the decision to create a half face headpiece/mask in order to be as visually striking as possible but also to leave the performer able to complete the movement piece, and Secondly decided on the use of the same colour scheme as that used by Amy Chamber’s for her Sacred Cow Puppet (Turqouise, Purple and Gold.)
I believe the choice to continue with these colours Draws an interesting parallel between the initial slaying of the cow; who was considered to be beautiful, innocent, and pure, in the founding of Thebes, to the eventual slaughter of the Theban people by the Epigoni who would be decorated in the very same colours Sparking the Question- Was this unfortunate Theban Player just as innocent as the cow that they had once slaughtered to found their own land?
Creating the Masks
In my initial plans for the Advisor masks I had wanted to explore new method of fabrication through a combination of sculpting using plaster casting and Papier Mache, doing everything from scratch. Unfortunately due to the lockdown I was unable to acquire the equipment I would need to do this. This being the case I considered the options available to me, and decided to go forward using mask templates, cardboard papier mache and glue. Having been familiar with these materials from past mask-making experiences I was confident that I would be able to create something that would if not equal my original plans then at least provide an adequate representation of them.
For the base structure on which the rest of the facial features would sit I began by reinforcing the template to make it more robust, by applying five layers of papier mache using PVA glue and Old newspapers. While waiting for each of the layers to dry I began creating the beak like noses using sturdy industrial cardboard and hot glue. Attatching these to the papier mache bases with hot glue I then applied one final layer of papier mache to create an even base upon which the paint would sit.
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Whilst waiting for the final layer to dry completely I then began to carve the exaggerated features I needed for the faces out of cardboard – once this was completed I began to paint both these and the completely dry papier mache masks. Finally I placed the features to the corresponding coloured masks as depicted in the original designs.
For these masks overall design I took a great deal of inspiration from the portraits of Pablo Picasso – I believe this is reflected most clearly in the positioning of the features. Although they were not created in the way i would have liked i am relatively pleased withthe final finished product
The Advisors
Oedipus Mask
For the Oedipus Mask I was fortunately able to stick almost exclusively to my simplistic yet effective original design with the one exception being the use of the basic craft mask as the base as opposed to a stronger moulded one I had planned.
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Beginning with the craft mask I applied two layers of papier mache to once again reinforce the structure. Using the fabric from an old ripped pillowcase I tore off a strip of fabric; by using this material i hoped to pay homage to the original masks used in greek theatre which were often made out of linen.I then shaped ithe fabric to the dimensions of the mask underneath overlapping slightly. In order to create an aged look to the fabric I used the tea staining method – taking a damp tea bag and applying it to the fabric in a dabbing manner until I had achieved the desired effect.
Turning the mask on its front I secured two squares of spare fabric to the back of the eyes, completely covering them in order to create the darkened hole look. returning to the front of the mask.
I then applied a mixture black and brown paint to the create the dimension needed to allude to a hole. Mixing a Red Brown colour to duplicate the look of oxygenated dried blood I applied this in a free manner as I didn’t want it to look too put together.
To create the dried teardrops of blood I began with larger blobs of hot glue and stretching them to resemble teardrops – I coloured them with a combination of browns, dark reds and brighter reds to convey that the wounds were still open.
Overall I am happy with the result of this mask – I believe that the simplistic design fits with the description provided in the adaptation but I feel it is still gruesome looking enough to connect the deserved brutality of the act committed against Oedipus by his wife and mother Jocasta.
The Epigoni
For the Epigoni mask I wished originally to create something that was a hybrid between a mask and a headdress. Taking inspiration from the helmets of ancient Greek soldiers I initially designed a headdress that would be seen from all angles (see design photos above) featuring a tall feathered, and fabric plume – this changed slightly due to not being able to get hold of all of the materials I needed. After a slight tweak to the original idea I decided that the main build of the mask which would be created from cardboard paint and glue would appear to be intentionally one dimensional. The reason I chose to change the design in this way was to further use the distancing effect – although I had designed the mask to look realistic by keeping it fairly one dimensional and flat looking it wouldn’t allow the audience to be too drawn in to what was happening on stage. Beginning once again with the basic craft mask template, using thin, flexible cardboard I began to sketch out the 3 different shapes that were needed. Upon completion of this I painted each piece corresponding to the design that mirrors the colours used for the sacred cow -turquoise, purple and gold. Once all of the painted components were completely dry I began to assemble the Epigoni mask.
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Overall I think that this mask is relatively successful – I think that the one dimensional, purposefully flat nature ties in nicely with the overall concept of minimal set and design that we chose originally for the performance whilst The first design is still very clearly based off of the historical ancient Greek soldiers headdresses and the choice to use the same colours that are present in the sacred cow draws exactly the visual parallel intended.
Creating The Masks
Mask Walk -Through
and Demonstration
MY
Creative Influences
Vamos Theatre Company
Pablo Picasso
When looking into creating masks- it would've been terribly remiss of me to not consider Vamos theatre's creative catalogue of past performances and sheer breadth of work.
Since 2006 Vamos theatre have been using full mask theatre to focus into the power of empathy and encourage awareness of shared human experiences - with a mission to " to transform lives through the empathy and connection of full mask theatre"
I believe that this relates directly to our own creative aim to impart a lasting message to the audience using Brecht's distancing tool.
Vamos are a clear example that this can not only be achieved when the natural face is covered but it can actively help towards it. i took this idea and applied it in particular to the advisor masks- being unafraid that a bold design would distract from the meaning underneath. Vamos also make use of multirolling which is something that we decided to use as part of the conventions of our performance.
The main inspiration for the colour scheme used in my designs was directly inspired by the work of cubist painter Pablo Picasso. I researched his portraits and studied the composition of them paying attention to and taking from them the idea that the features of the face can be re arranged and the colours changed without distracting from the fact that it is still a face. I believe the advisor masks are where this influence is most clearly visible – by applying the concepts of cubism to the advisors I hoped to convey the true character beneath the façade of the political yes man.
Greek Theatre Masks
In ancient Greek theatre masks were used as a tool for multi-rolling as casts were small – further to this the actors were all men and so masks were necessary for the actors to be able to portray female characters. Greek theatre masks were designed to ensure that the expressions of the actors would be more visible to the audience.
Greek Masks were designed with large mouth holes so that the actors could effectively project their voice without being obstructed by the bottom of the mask I applied this concept to both the Oedipus and Epigoni masks hoping to show the impact that could be made by being able to visualise the lower facial expressions and to contrast with the full face design of the advisor mask. Although inspiration for the advisor masks was also taken from Greek theatre masks due to their exaggerated features.
How have i grown as a practitioner?
When we began Practice as Research my original aim was to expand my knowledge of Theatre design in general and mask making in particular. I believe that I have grown greatly as a practitioner , I have learnt that it is impossible to underestimate the importance of doing thorough research about your subject material, and the great impact the smallest detail can have on the final product.
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This being said, I found it difficult at times to find ways to apply our overarching theme of estrangement to the designs of the my masks . I began to find solutions to this through group discussions and exploration of the adapted material. Without the collaborative element to our devising method I would have truly struggled to progress. As a performer I found switching between the different levels of reality difficult to conceptualise to begin with, but taking part in the workshops created by my colleagues I quickly picked up the knowledge i required to change rapidlu between the shifting realities with ease. My one regret is that we did not get the chance to properly display how this would have looked as a final product
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Through theoretical exploration I believe that I have proved that it is possible to use masks to portray Brecht’s estrangement technique through the dramaturgy of my designs. However, unfortunately without performing the piece to an audience and being able to receive their feedback and gauge their response it is difficult to answer this. Ultimately until we can present our finished performance to an audience with all of our separate elements combined the research question remains unfinished.This process has taught me to take more control over my creativity as a practitioner and as a result has made me more confident in my ability to design and execute masks and other areas of creative design- This is something that I have always personally struggled wit. My hope is that I can carry the tools I have gained during this process and use them in future creative endeavours to enhance challenges i will face in my future career.
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