Why did Greek actors in the age of Sophocles always wear masks? In this book, first published in 2007, David Wiles provided the first book-length study of this question. He surveys the evidence of vases and other monuments, arguing that they portray masks as part of a process of transformation, and that masks were never seen in the fifth century as autonomous objects. Wiles goes on to examine experiments with the mask in twentieth-century theatre, tracing a tension between the use of masks for possession and for alienation, and he identifies a preference among modern classical scholars for alienation. Wiles declines to distinguish the political aims of Greek tragedy from its religious aims, and concludes that an understanding of the mask allows us to see how Greek acting was simultaneously text-centred and body-centred. This book challenges orthodox views about how theatre relates to ritual, and provides insight into the creative work of the actor.
Product Identifiers
Publisher
Cambridge University Press
ISBN-13
9780521865227
eBay Product ID (ePID)
96796897
Product Key Features
Book Title
Mask and Performance in Greek Tragedy: from Ancient Festival to Modern Experimentation
Author
David Wiles
Format
Hardcover
Language
English
Publication Year
2007
Number of Pages
332 Pages
Dimensions
Item Height
254mm
Item Width
180mm
Item Weight
828g
Additional Product Features
Title_Author
David Wiles
Country/Region of Manufacture
United Kingdom
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