A Deep Dive into Masked Theatre With Pig Iron
April 11, 2010 * 2 PM
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts
118 N. Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA
$10 tickets available here or at (215) 627-1883
MAKING FACES is an invitation to join in the ongoing
conversation Pig Iron has had about masked
theatre over the last 15 years. Masks have been a part of live
storytelling for several millennia, and they play an integral role in countless
societies' ritual and cultural activities. The human face - a kind of mask itself - is both incredibly expressive and fundamentally mysterious.
Masked theatre taps into this paradox: we wear a mask
to reveal ourselves.
This afternoon event at PAFA will follow an intuitive and non-chronological
theatrical journey through masked theatre, uncovering Pig Iron's
obsessions, investigations and queries into the role of masks in performance -
and, perhaps even deeper, into the role of performance in our lives. MAKING FACES will explore a wide variety of mask styles: the calm, balanced Neutral Mask; Balinese and Italian character masks; the utilitarian
masks we wear to protect our faces from welding torches and hockey pucks; the
carnival and masquerade masks of Switzerland
and Brazil; and
the smallest mask, the clown nose. Pig Iron's
crackerjack ensemble will transform from one character to another by covering
their faces to reveal a different part of themselves.
Led by Pig Iron Co-founder Quinn Bauriedel and featuring Sarah Sanford, Geoff Sobelle, and Charlotte Ford, this event promises to open up Pig Iron's creative short-hand while tapping into the spirit of play that governs all of the company's wide-ranging work.

