Chinese opera performers mainly have
two methods of makeup: masks and facial painting. The frequent on-stage change
of masks or facial makeup, without the audience noticing, is a special
technique, known as changing faces.
Changing Faces is a difficult technique in opera performance. It is considered to
be stunts and only mastered after hard training. Face changing is also a special
technique used to exaggerate the inner feelings of characters, portray their
dispositions, set off the atmosphere and improve the effects. Facial changes
expressing sudden changes in the feelings of a character are mostly done in four
ways:
Blowing Dust:
The actor blows black dust hidden in his palm or close to his eyes, nose or
beard, so that it blows back into his face.
Manipulating Beard: Beard colors can be changed while the beard is being manipulated,
from black to gray and finally to white, expressing anger or
excitement.
Pulling-down Masks: The actor can pull down a mask which has been previously hidden on
top of his head and which leaves his face red, green, blue or black, to
demonstrate happiness, hate, anger or sadness, respectively.
Mop: The
actor mops out the greasepaint, which is previously hidden in his sideburns or
eyebrows, around his eyes and nose, thus change his facial
appearance.