Actors have many faces, many masks.
They can put them on or off at will;
Be happy, sad, excited or angry.
One hour they might be a king,
The next, a beggar
(Only as an actor, can a king be
Brought low within a single hour;
In reality it takes three).
But the thing about actors,
Is the mask comes off again.
They leave the stage and the king,
The priest, the hero, the beggar,
Is gone; leaving only the man.
My mask doesn't come off.
At first, it was too dangerous.
I didn't dare show my true face
Where anyone might recognise me;
Didn't dare forget that being
The legend leads only to my death.
I didn't dare face the face beneath.
Now, I can't remove it.
I don't remember where the mask ends
And the man begins.
I don't remember what it is like
Not to play a part.
I don't know which is real,
The legend or the mask.