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  • Letters, Etc.
  • Thanos Vovolis and Törbjorn Alström

To the Editor:

My name is Thanos Vovolis. I am a mask/costume/set designer and researcher at the Dramatic Institute, Stockholm. In the article published by TDR [48:2 (T182) Summer 2004] with the title "The Voice in the Mask" by Mr. Torbjörn Alström, my artistic research is mentioned in an inaccurate way and I feel obliged to clarify some points.

My research is on the Greek tragic mask in ancient and in modern theatre with a special focus on the relationship between the mask and the voice of the actor. It was conducted during the years 1990 to 1995 at the Department for Research and Development in the Arts, at the Dramatic Institute, Stockholm-the State Art College for Theatre, Film, and Media in Sweden. The research report was published in 1995 under the title "PROSOPON-The Instrument of the Narration: The Tragic Mask in Antique and Modern Theater." In this research project I defined the mask as an acoustical resonance mask and a potential musical instrument for the voice.

The inaccuracies presented in this article are:

1. It is not a commonly accepted truth, an axiom, that the mask in classical Greek tragedy was an acoustic resonance mask, as it is presented by the author of the article. It is my research that has pioneered and presented for the first time an extended concept of the mask in Greek tragedy. Based upon this research, I have developed a totally new concept and way of working with the mask in general, creating the notion of the acoustical resonance mask.

2. I must stress the fact that there are no Vovolis-Yemendzakis masks. Mrs. Yemendzakis is a voice coach and not mask designer. I did not conduct this research together with Mrs. Yemendzakis as it is implied in the article. It is a research conducted entirely by myself. I have collaborated with Mrs. Yemendzakis in three performances and two workshops in Greece, Sweden, and Norway. Her research on the cries of tragedy has preceded my own. But the cries do not need a mask to be achieved, as Mr. Alström implies. The cries of tragedy can be created without the use of any mask.

3. The author of the article fails to mention my collaboration with the Greek stage director Giorgos Zamboulakis, even though he has attended one of our workshops and has been given written material personally by myself. My collaboration with Mr. Zamboulakis during the past 15 years has lead us to the creation of a method for actors to work with the acoustical tragic mask. This theatrical method has been developed for the use of this particular mask and is based upon archaeological evidence, the textual corpus of Greek tragedy and ancient sources as well as on contemporary theatre practice. This practice includes the physical, psychological, mental, and spiritual aspects of the work of the actor.

4. I must point out that I used papier-mâché as mask material only at the beginning of my research project. During the past 10 years I have developed my material and use material with excellent resonance. Contrary to what the author [End Page 12] of the article believes, mould materials can be adjusted both ways, making a surface thinner by carving or thicker by coating. This characteristic makes mould materials excellent mask materials as they allow an exact and detailed calibration of the inside of the mask so it can be tuned to the desired sound frequencies.

5. Furthermore, the author of this article tries to diminish and cancel my research by presenting it as not functioning. Without any proof of course, and without having attended any of the masked performances I have been working with the past 15 years (for example: Aeschylus's Suppliants, Epidaurus Festival; Zamboulakis's Desert, National Theatre of Greece; Sophocles' Oedipus at Colonos, Festival of Segobriga, Spain; etc.) or any international mask symposiums where I have presented my method (as at the European Cultural Center of Delphi or at the Royal Holloway College, University of London).

Mr. Alström presents his own research as the only fruitful one. But the two...

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