Tucked away against the gray monotony of the University at Albany tunnels, nestled seven steps to the right of the physics building is the PAC Mask. It has a prominent forehead and is cut off right under the nose. The mask is four feet wide and seven feet tall and depending on the angle, will stare with a menacing look in its eyes.
Not many people at UAlbany know the history behind the mask anymore; it was from before their time. But Andi Lyons, a professor who teaches courses in theater design and technology, is the UAlbany’s Resident Lighting Designer for the theater program.
Lyons’ office on the third floor of the Performing Arts Center has an “amazing” view of the main fountain where she can watch the fountain dance and see the nighttime light show. Lyons came to work at the university in 1982 and planned to stay for three years. When she arrived, the mask was hanging in the scene shop. "And the thing is, you know community theaters and the like, will have bits and pieces of cool fun scenery hanging around but it's a safety hazard and as well as just taking up the workspace," she said and they moved the mask into the tunnels in an attempt to break up the symmetry and make the Performing Arts Center easier to find.
The mask was built over 40 years ago and used in a play called “Caucasian Chalk Circle” by Bertolt Brecht. The play is a parable about a peasant girl who rescues a baby and becomes a better mother than its wealthy parents. The set designer in 1978 decided to keep the mask and hung it up in the in the shop.
Being stored in the tunnels, the mask saw its fair share of abuse. The mask often had dents in the nose from people punching it. “Over the years, different students have painted it and repainted it and repaired it,” Lyons said.
Last spring, was the most recent repainting. A returning student, who had been at UAlbany in the late eighties or early nineties, who had been doing a lot of scene painting asked if he could repaint the mask. The left half of the mask is painted in an argyle pattern of blue, yellow and, red diamonds. According to Lyons, it had a "Harley Quinn feel." With a black line separating the mask in two, the right side of the mask is painted gray, but while the left side is smooth, the right is textured with divots and wrinkles.
For the last four years, Carlitos Serrano has been practicing in the PAC basement as a part of the Chamber Singers. He joined the UAlbany singing groups like the Earth Tones, Chamber Singers, and Community Chorale as a means to improve his signing without having to pay for lessons.
Not a frequent tunnel traveler, Serrano said he had seen the mask before, but it had been a while since he had been down there. He called it “only half creepy.”
Serrano said that he would be more likely to go into the PAC having seen it. “It's such a novelty item, I would want to see what it's all about! It looks really well done, so I would be interested in seeing a production that cares enough to make such detailed props,” he said.
In the late eighties, the mask disappeared. Lyons called the university police department just to make them aware, and a week later it had been found. A fraternity had taken it downtown to their house and hauled it up onto the balcony and threw a party. And then they all left for the summer, leaving the mask for their landlord to find. “It wasn’t theater students, ‘cause I do want to say that, but of course we actually teach things like rigging, we fly scenery all the time, so our students would know how to do that but they would be smarter than doing something like that. They could build their own,” Lyons said with a smile.
In 1990, the Performing Arts Center put on a production of “Oedipus Rex” where they built a mask that was 11 feet tall, eight feet wide, four feet deep, and weighed around 300 pounds. The mask was rigged to tilt throughout the play and with the lighting would change the view of the mask and feel of the play. People initially wanted to keep this mask, but it was too large. It had been built on the main stage and wouldn't fit through any of the doors and was subsequently taken apart.
In high school, Bridget Jackson, 20, was active in the theater. She performed in musicals such as “South Pacific,” “Little Shop of Horrors,” and “The Drowsy Chaperone.” In high school, she did it with friends but found the idea of joining a new group on her own intimidating.
Jackson transferred to UAlbany in her sophomore year and doesn't enjoy traveling in the tunnels. She finds them confusing and easy to get lost in. She hasn't seen the mask before, and when shown a photo of the off-white mask she said if she saw it she would run in the other direction. "It looks like the Danny Darko mask without the ears," she said.
She finds the current, two-sided version of the mask significantly less scary and if seeing this version, she would likely get involved.
Lyons sees the mask as a “side door knocker” for people coming into the PAC from the tunnels, which isn’t the formal entrance. She finds that people who did theater in high school will see it and wander in looking to get involved, and in some cases, change their majors to theater.
The painting of the mask is seen as a legacy of the students who have worked there. The two-faced mask will likely keep its current form for years to come.
