In ancient Greek theater, the actors all wore thick masks that served a number of purposes. They had different identities, which allowed the actors to switch roles and genders easily, and exaggerated expressions that allowed the audience to clearly see what emotion they were portraying from a distance. The masks also served the incredibly clever purpose of projecting the actor’s voice into the auditorium, thus allowing them to be heard by everyone. Most of the time, it feels like I’m wearing a mask too.
