Masks
Now comes da touchie subject. Till now I have been on my best (and yes I know it does not look like it) behavior. My background is that of a frustrated actor turned producer/director (easier to get an acting job, hire myself). Masks are something to hide behind, a cover of sorts. The idea is to create a scare with the minimum investment of time and creativity. OOPS, did I say masks were not creative, hmmm, why yes I did. It is not that they are not good for something, like dummies/displays, it is that they are not for actors.
But there is the problem. Most haunts do not hire/train actors. Any body that will show up and go BOO will do. And it is not to say that masks are all that bad for actors. The Phantom of the Opera did rather well, leather face and Michael Myers. Ooh, double OOPS, those are masks ALA the Lone Ranger and Zorro. They conceal identity. They become symbols of good or evil, or even good trapped within evil, but …
Is there a point? Why Yes, I believe there may be, soon, I hope. Traditional Halloween horror masks look great and they stop dead as a doornail right there. Next month I will talk about customers and reactions. Bottom line is that masks are a cheap ($$) way to create scary actors for a haunt. Masks accomplish two things before the doors even open. One: they empower the actor, he/she becomes something/one else; the mask is their crutch, without it most of these sorry performers can do nothing, with it they release uncontrolled energy and can become demigods, a danger to themselves and to customers.
Two: they dehumanize the actor and empower the customer; I (the customer) can do what I like to you (the masked non-person actor) because you are not real, you could be a dummy and it does no harm to kick a dummy.
Hmmm, I wonder how JB feels about masks? You now know. But, there is more. I use masks (did I say that? quick someone slap me). I do not use them often. I like the Hockey Mask and have a scene where I use it often. Other than that I use masks on the displays, except for slow time. During the week (M-W) Castle Dragon has a small staff, sometimes as few as four actors. My design allows me to operate 50 to 75 customers per hour with four hard workers. We leap frog ahead of the customers and on these slow nights we use more masks, as many as three.
What I like are true character faces, little if any make-up and basic wardrobe: nothing to take away from timing and "eye contact". Next on the ladder would be more basic make-up, white/pale face, black lips and a touch of blood. Appliances are great for enhancing another wise ordinary face. But I try not to distract from the eyes.
Masks have many faults, the lack of good eye contact is number one, next is the poor fit, popping out of the costume around the neck, or slit up the back and when the actor turns around you see his/her head. The lack of mouth motion as they scream at me almost makes me laugh. But, complete costumed characters done well do command my attention. The best that comes to mind are the werewolves of Verdon Manor. No mouth movement, but good eye contact.
What is he talking about with this eye contact stuff? The deep subtle scare comes from the eyes. Track the customers as they enter the scene, search out the eyes, look for the weakest link and lock eyes, continue all else, but one or more customers should have deep eye contact with the actor. Some will look away, most will be afraid to look away.
I have seen customers walk straight to the exit, or was that run? Nothing is better than a good character face, facial expression and eye contact. It is real, latex is not real, nothing is scarier than real… nothing!
Leather Face, Michael Myers etc are not traditional, they are cinema developed props that have history connected to them.
Jason, Freddy Kruger, Darth Vader and Hannibal the Cannibal all evoke emotions and for some, emotions of fear. Jason was a young man in a Hockey mask. The mask did not reveal an entire face, leaving the viewer to guess at the identity Freddy's' face was the result of a fire. The damage concealed his original identity. Darth Vader wears a mask to stay alive. It hides the fact that he is human. Hannibal earned his mask with his teeth and of all the images; I find this one the more terrifying.
Hannibal Lecter is a human that crossed over to realms of horror. The other characters are inhuman, or act that way. Not any actor could play the part of Hannibal Lecter. It requires more acting skill to be a villain of such horror with no mask and add to the mix the partial mask he did wear, but only after establishing his character without one. Haunted attractions do not attract Academy Award winning talent like Anthony Hopkins, nor do they contain award-winning scripts. Ideas are rampant, execution faulty, scenes incomplete and technical flaws abound. Yet we survive.
Motion Pictures continue to provide a wealth of horror material from which we all draw some of our inspirations. Sometimes we select a mask to use because of these emotions. We, as creators, rely on the images created in movies and television to help us produce some of our scenes. The movie "The Pit and The Pendulum" with Vincent Price inspired my pendulum room. Freddy has been a stable in haunts for years and Jason rules. Leatherface is still chasing customers out many a haunt with a chainsaw. I do not question the use of masks, just how, where, when and why.
HOW A mask is used to hide a poor actor. The power this can provide to the actor has already been discussed. The real problem, is the actor any better? The answer is no. If your actor cannot do a great job without the mask, he will do no better with it. The haunts creator will often mistake improvement in a scene with the emotions he has tied to the mask. The creator will read into the mask (not the actor) things he wants to see. The mask has now impaired the actor and the creator. "I spent one hundred dollars on that mask and it will make the scene work". The scene will scare people because the mask is great. Yeah, right
WHERE Creators tend to use masks in scenes with little floor space. The idea is that the closer the mask is to a customer the more horrific it will be for the customer. The customer must pass close to my creature and will fear the closeness. The reality is that the closeness reveals that it is a mask for which the actor must now compensate and either scream louder or become more physical. The mask is no longer scaring the customer; the action of the actor, as he goes over the edge, is scaring the customer. The customers are not afraid because of the creators' design; instead they are in fear for their safety in the real world, and rightly so.
WHEN I try to visit haunts whenever possible. I go to garage haunts, Halloween parties, yard haunts and, yes, the commercial ones. At times the only faces I ever see are those of other guests, customers or the ticket taker. Masks cover all the faces. One haunt I visited had Freddy popping out everywhere. Masks, masks, nothing but masks, every scene all over the place, AHHHHHHH!
WHY The mask is an easy out. A scene based on a mask is easier to produce. The creator can rely on images/fears that the mask evokes. He will create actions based on these images, direct the scene as the mask directs him and allow the mask to limit his creativity.
OK, I have trashed masks. I use masks and not only on dummies.
HOW Carefully. Masks are powerful. They can and do create fear in customers. The mask must not be close to the customer, at first. The mask must completely cover the head, fit snugly and give the actor freedom of movement. The costume cannot expose anything that is not the character being portrayed. The eyes must be visible. Open the eyehole in the mask, add color correct make-up to the actors' eyes and make sure that the snugness of the mask pulls it back flush with the flesh of the eye socket. The transition between mask and body must be flawless and look natural.
WHERE Scenes with masks must be big. Use space to build the tension. Create the scene around the space needed for the scene to develop. The masked actor moves towards the customers. By varying the rate and direction of movement, the actor controls what the customers see and how safe the customer feels. A small scenic area gives the actor no room to develop his character or to move in relation to the customer.
WHEN a scene with a mask is a high point on the roller coaster (another article). Use these scenes as accents of terror. Masks become more effective when used sparingly.
WHY Now the mask becomes a challenge. You are no longer using it as a crutch to show how great you are. You are using them as a true horror artist, painting scenes with variety, and keeping your customers guessing as to what they will see next. A scene produced with a mask will now create fear because it is different and the customers know that masks mean something different and unexpected.
The Hannibal Lecter style mask worn in haunts today evokes emotions. A person may see a monster, a murderer or a cannibal. Which image scares you the most and why? The answer will guide you to create horrific scenes. Good haunting
JB Corn
Copyright 1999, All Rights Reserved
ARTICLES
Next Week, Illumination
Mad Hatter
Copyright 1999, All Rights Reserved
ARTICLES