Stage, dance and screen
Theatre and dance makeup and the looks of film stars. 52 face guides on EveryFaceShape so far.
Stage, dance and screen have their own faces: the painted veshams of Kathakali, the kumadori of Kabuki, the lianpu of Peking opera, the masks that change in a flash in Sichuan opera, the faces of Theyyam and Yakshagana, and the looks of film stars that became everyday fashions. Many of these traditions are taught for years and recognised by UNESCO.
Faces that tell the story
In Asian classical theatre, a face tells the audience who a character is. Kathakali's green pacha marks heroes and its red-marked kathi proud villains. Kabuki's red lines mark heroes and its blue lines villains. Peking opera uses red for loyalty, black for integrity and white for cunning. The painting takes hours and is often done by the performer.
Screen looks
Film turned stage methods into fashions. The pencil moustaches of 1930s and 1940s Hollywood, the cat-eye frames and winged liner of the 1950s, the bindis and kajal of Indian film heroines and the aviators of 1980s cinema all spread from the screen. Contouring, once a stage trick for flattening light, became an everyday look in the 2010s.
Famous stage, dance and screen face guides
Still to be written: Kathakali, Theyyam, Yakshagana.
Further reading
WorldUrna
A spiral mark on the forehead in Buddhist art.Adornment
WorldEyeliner
Cosmetic applied around the eye contours to define shape.Makeup · Most faces
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreLipstick
A pigmented cosmetic applied to the lips for colour and texture.Makeup · 1884
🇯🇵 JapanOshiroi
Traditional Japanese white face makeup for kabuki actors and geisha.Makeup · 1934
WorldTheatrical makeup
Makeup used to create character appearances for theater productions.Makeup
🇨🇳 China and 2 moreSunglasses
Protective eyewear designed to shield eyes from bright sunlight and high-energy visible light.Frame · 1929
🇯🇵 JapanOhaguro
A Japanese tradition of blackening teeth with iron and tannins.Makeup · 1000
WorldContouring
A makeup method using darker and lighter shades to sculpt facial features.Makeup
🇯🇵 JapanHikimayu
A pre-modern Japanese practice of removing natural eyebrows and painting new ones on the forehead.Makeup
🇨🇳 ChinaPeking opera makeup
Symbolic face paint for Chinese opera roles.Makeup · 1790
WorldGlasses
Vision eyewear with lenses in a frame for correction, protection, or fashion.Frame · Most faces
🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreEye shadow
Cosmetic pigment applied to eyelids to define and accentuate the eyes.Makeup · Most faces · 1910
WorldSoft-angled eyebrows
An eyebrow shape with a rounded peak that softens facial angles.Brows · Square faces
🇮🇳 IndiaKathakali makeup
Elaborate face paint for Kerala dance drama charactersMakeup
🇲🇽 MexicoDía de los Muertos face paint
Skull-style makeup worn during Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations to honour ancestors.Makeup · Most faces · 1913
🇨🇳 ChinaPeking opera face paint
Symbolic oil-based makeup for Chinese opera characters.Makeup · Most faces
🇺🇸 United StatesSeminole face paint
Traditional Seminole facial markings for ceremony and war.Makeup · Most faces
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreKajal
Traditional eye darkener used across cultures for adornment and protection.Makeup · Most faces
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Sunglasses: Rich Niewiroski Jr., CC BY 2.5, source
- Theatrical makeup: Mrgarden 2342, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ohaguro: Utagawa Kunisada, Public domain, source
- Kumadori: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Hikimayu: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Peking opera makeup: Art Poskanzer, CC BY 2.0, source
- Bian lian: Yongxinge, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Contouring: Tobias ToMar Maier, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Glasses: Jacek Halicki, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Eye shadow: courtney murray rhodes, CC BY 2.0, source
- Urna: Iudexvivorum, CC0, source
- Eyeliner: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Lipstick: Sjr, Public domain, source
- Oshiroi: Conveyor Belt Sushi, CC BY 2.0, source
- Pencil moustache: Roland Godefroy, CC BY 2.5, source