People went to one the big theatres in Rome to watch plays. Because the audience would not stay quite the actors had to wear costumes. The actors wore masks-brown for men, white for women, smiling or sad depending on the type of play. The costumes showed the audience who the person was - a purple gown for a rich man, a striped toga for a boy, a short cloak for a soldier, a red toga for a poor man, a short tunic for a slave etc.