A story in four acts
After the Applause
First you learn the part.
Then the part learns you.
At first,
there was an audience.
The face
he borrowed
Learning the part
A borrowed face.
A practised self.
At court, he learned which smile earned laughter and which bow pleased the king. The mask helped him belong.
Each performance made the role easier. His own face began to feel unfamiliar.
Identity, rehearsed.
Act II
A face becomes a habit.
01 / RehearsalHe chose a face
that pleased them.
02 / HabitThe smile came
before the feeling.
03 / IdentityWithout the mask,
he felt like no one.
The silence
in the room
After the last applause
Then the room
fell silent.
The king and queen were gone.
Only their thrones remained.
He still bowed.
Habit no longer needed an audience.
Act III
Nobody answered.
He kept
performing.
A part
without a room
Beyond the audience
Who was he
without the role?
No one was watching.
He still felt he had to perform.
He feared the silence after the last bow.
Who would he be without the role?
Act IV
One more gesture.
He could stop performing.
But he no longer knew
who he was without it.
The audience was gone. The need to please remained.
An empty stage.
A part left waiting.
After the applause
When the mask
becomes the self,
who takes it off?
The room has fallen silent.
The question stays.