Even if the anatomy of the mask is different from the relative or the friend you had in mind, the expressions and the core of the personality lie somewhere underneath.
Martha Foka
The mask carries within it a fully-rounded theatre character
Text: Dimitra Kehagia
She had the luck to join forces with directors and actors she admires. For many years now she has been a steady partner of Simos Kakalas; her masks are also regularly featured in the theatre performances staged by Mikros Vorras Theatre Company. She takes delight in every new collaboration, but nothing matches the creative freedom she enjoys alongside her lifelong partners. “The trust earned both on an artistic and personal level over the years allows you to put suggestions and ideas on the table and delve into your work. I am proud and grateful for all these partnerships, it’s a maturing process for all of us,” she stresses. As for the artists she would dream working with, David Lynch and Benedict Cumberbatch are topping the list.
A set and costume designer in the past, a mask maker almost exclusively nowadays, Martha Foka would ideally have these elements interact and coexist, as “the one inspires the other. Especially when it comes to the correlation that ties together the character, the mask and the costume, I am open to all possibilities, I do not wish to exclude anything beforehand.” She created her first mask as a student, working side by side with her beloved teacher, sculptor Tina Parali, at AUTh’s School of Drama, and had one of her first professional experiences when she was assigned to design and construct the masks for the play Melted Butter, directed by Simos Kakalas.
She seeks familiarity with the character of every mask she creates, drawing inspiration mostly from her relatives. “I tell it to my students all this time. Even if the anatomy of the mask is different from the relative or the friend you had in mind, the expressions and the core of the personality lie somewhere underneath.” This sense of familiarity provides her with the vital time and space so as to study human behavior and approach the desired outcome, as humanwatching is a structural part of her work, which aims at breathing life into the mask on stage. She reverently follows Tina Parali’s urging to “listen attentively”, which sums up the very meaning of teamwork, collaboration and awareness of the whole a mask maker needs to be equipped with, as every other theatre artist. “Tina is wise and most of all, she is dead right. First you listen and you grasp, then you get involved and share suggestions, hoping that your voice will be heard as well. As is the case in all human relationships, after all.”
The general rule says that actors love masks, as they see in them new and endless possibilities that tone down the importance of their outward image. No surprise, therefore, that many people outside the theatre niche consider them a “cheat”, as they hide or cover up the actors’ imperfections. “The “covering” of the face is a major trap an actor must be alert and careful so as not to fall into. However, we must always keep in mind that a theatre mask carries within it a fully-rounded theatre character, thus differing from a carnival mask that intends to hide the character of the person beneath it. That’s the reason why – certain but not all, if you ask me – actors feel liberated, as they embody a persona given excuse and license to do almost anything, provided of course that their approach is disciplined and focused.”
The “covering” of the face is a major trap an actor must be alert and careful so as not to fall into. However, we must always keep in mind that a theatre mask carries within it a fully- rounded theatre character, thus differing from a carnival mask that intends to hide the character of the person beneath it. That’s the reason why - certain but not all, if you ask me - actors feel liberated, as they embody a persona given excuse and license to do almost anything, provided of course that their approach is disciplined and focused.
On the other hand though, the mask can easily betray the weaknesses of an actor, as facial expressiveness is reduced to zero, placing all the heat on the body; a task that demands hard and persistent work. “You can’t cheat your way around it or resort to easy solutions, as it will certainly backfire on you.” She feels blessed to carry on the centuries-long theatre tradition of the mask. “I do everything in my power to convey my knowledge to anyone interested to receive it,” she adds. She has been passing on this expertise to her students for many years now, but most of all what she truly wishes to get across is a part of her profound love for the world of the mask. There’s no greater joy in teaching than the moment her students realize they can breathe life into a soulless material such as clay, she goes on to say.
Keeping up with our times is yet another source of satisfaction that she draws from teaching, as “the interaction with young artists keeps me a little closer to the current reality. Their problems and concerns are very different from the ones that troubled me in my student years back in the day and I consider it crucial to become acquainted with them.” Having worked both in National Theatre of Northern Greece and the National Theatre of Greece, in Municipal and Regional Theatres, as well as in independent theatre companies, her opinion is that state-funded theatre scenes should set the example for the ones of the independent theatre circles to follow. As for the purpose of art as a whole, she identifies it with shaking people’s inner feelings. “This shaking may be minimal or colossal, the important thing is to make it happen, even for a small part of the audience. There is not a single play to be loved by everyone and there’s no harm in that. As for the ideal path in art for this goal to be achieved, I think that’s a question destined to remain
unanswered.” In any case, she hopes for an art that will never cease to amaze us in a pleasant way, constantly broadening our boundaries.
Martha Foka is currently designing the costumes and the masks for a dance performance at Skanes Dance Theatre in Malmö, Sweden, in collaboration with the outstanding choreographers Danae Dimitriadi and Dionysios Alamanos. “If I were to make a wish for the future, besides physical and mental health, partnerships of this kind, with international theatres, would be my number one choice.”
Bio
She is an honors graduate of AUTh’s Faculty of Fine Arts (School of Drama). She attended a seminar on leather mask construction delivered by Donato Sartori, in Padova, Italy. She has teamed up with theatre institutions such as the National Theatre of Northern Greece, the National Theatre of Greece, the Greek National Opera, the Cyprus Theatre Organization, the Thessaly Theatre, the Municipal-Regional Theatre of Serres, Sfendoni Theatre, Horos Theatre Company, Black Box Theatre (Holstebro, Denmark) etc. In addition, she has joined forces with the following acclaimed festivals: Athens & Epidaurus Festival, Kypria Festival, Contemporary Dance Platform (Limassol, Cyprus), UTE Festival (Romania), Die sieben leben des Maximilian-Festival für aktuelles musiktheater an sieben orten (Land Tirol, Austria) etc.
She has been working alongside stage director Simos Kakalas ever since 2008. Moreover, she has collaborated with renowned directors and choreographers, such as: Michail Marmarinos, Giannis Rigas, Anna Kokkinou, Eleni Efthymiou, Dimitris Baslam, Michalis Sionas, Thanassis Georgiou, Konstantinos Dellas, Tasos Ratzos, Apollon Papatheocharis, Olia Lazaridou, Rimini Protokoll, Angelos Frantzis, Fotis Nikolaou, Antonis Foniadakis etc.
She has also served as a mask construction teacher at the National Theatre of Northern Greece – Drama School and the 2nd Meeting of Young Artists of Southeastern Europe (2018), at the Summery Oracle (Municipal-Regional Theatre of Ioannina 2018, 2019), Aloni Theatre in Pelion, the Municipal-Regional Theatre of Kozani (2016), within the framework of the programme “Ancient Drama in the 21st Century Education” hosted by the Michael Cacoyannis Foundation in Lemnos (2014), the 10th Panhellenic Amateur Theatre Festival in Nea Orestiada (2009) etc.
Photos
Info
https://www.instagram.com/fokamartha/
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Contact
marthafoka@hotmail.com
