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BaselTHE BASEL MASKS    Basel masks are big, whole-face masks with broad, simple expressions.They are based on the designs Jacques Lecoq who founded a famous school of mime in the town of Basel on the border of France, Switzerland and Germany. The purpose of the Basel mask is to teach drama students theatrical projection and timing. The full-face nature of the masks deprives the wearer of all access to facial and verbal expression, and so the wearer must learn to convey the language of the character with their body and movement. This aspect of the Basel masks makes them an excellent tool for teaching awareness of body-language and movement to drama students, without the usual emphasis on verbal expression.
Due to the limited vision behind the mask, the wearer of the Basel mask, the performer, experiences their performance in quite a private, introspective way; the play proceeds slowly and carefully and much is learnt about how to communicate with movement and the whole body.
Our masks come as a set of 6 but can also be purchased individually, and are made from fibreglass. (The masks were originally made from papier mache’ but this has proven to be too fragile). A very instructive workshop on DVD on the character of each mask and how to perform with them is available.
We also have comprehensive lesson plans that provide step-by-step instructions on teaching Basel mask work to drama students in 10 sessions. All these components are available either individually or can be purchased as a COMPLETE BASEL MASK TEACHING KIT.
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