Article by freelancer Lauren Haffner
The original use of masks in theater began with comedy and tragedy masks. One shows laughter while the other displays sadness.
The meaning behind the word mask in the theater world at the University of Maryland has taken a turn. The return of in-person performances has included a requirement of face coverings.
Students at UMD were presented with a challenge as they wore masks for their production of “Hookman.” The show followed university guidelines during its two-week run in November and used face coverings as an expressive advantage.
The decision to make masks character-specific and a reflection of the character’s personality came months before the show opened. This element was one that no other productions have incorporated before at UMD, according to second-year MFA candidate in costume design Stephanie Parks.
Originally, the creative team wanted the performance to be a maskless production, Parks explained. She said she met with director Nathaniel Claridad numerous times. Parks said she began to study the script and align each character with the proper design for their mask.
“The mask can be a tool. It can be something that enhances the production instead of holding it back,” Parks said. “It can enhance our understanding of the character in a way that’s really compelling even though it’s a necessary precaution.”
For senior theater and criminology and criminal justice Isabella Benning, being back in the theater physically was a challenge. She said she learned a lot about her delivery and character execution on stage.
Benning said the adaptation of masks in the show added to how normalized they have become. Rather than seeing them as a burden, the masks were viewed for their benefit.
“I truly think that this show has really defined a lot of my performance style for me and where I need to go from here,” Benning said. “I’ve always honestly relied on my face in acting, just the emotional reactions to stuff. Physical stuff has always come second to me.”
Claridad said he was prepared for any guidelines UMD presented the production with. He explained how important it was for the actors to act with their entire bodies.
“We take it for granted…we get a lot of information from how somebody reacts,” Claridad said. “You can hide a lot of that with a mask.”
He admitted it was strange to walk into a rehearsal room with everybody masked after a year on Zoom. Overall, Claridad said he was pleased with the end result of the show. The readiness the actors presented when returning to the stage made him happy.
Fatima Quander saw the production numerous times. The lecturer in the School of Theater, Dance and Performance Studies at UMD said the importance of full-body acting has also become a recurring theme in her classes. Quander said the actors in “Hookman” were able to clearly tell the story through their eyes.
“I noticed the mask at the top of each scene because they were related to the character, but for me, they essentially disappeared,” she said. “I wasn’t distracted by them at all.”