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2. Lovers
in masks
Lysander and Hermia
discuss their dating problem. Like all the actors in this
production, Hermia wears a half-mask. This means that the
actor cannot act with her face, which is especially
noticeable in floridly emotional or "poetic" passages such
as the one that Lysander's line leads into. The half-mask's
neutrality displaces expression out into the minutest
utterances of the whole body. The possibilities of stylized
acting are as expressively rich as they are different from
realistic acting. The line "Why is your cheek so pale?"
gains new prominence in this masked
context.
Lysander's suit seems lifted slightly from the everyday by
the cut of the jacket (a matador perhaps or a hotel waiter).
Note the harsh lighting, the complete absence of "mood"
effects.
See also:
> School 4.
Lysander & Hermia
> Bar 3.
Lysander & Hermia, close
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