This is the lonely, love seeking, bird-catcher servant of the Queen of the Night, known as Papageno. There are lots of interesting interpretations of the character, ranging from a guy dressed in a hunting outfit, covered in feathers, or even a half bird man (I even came across one where he was part penguin http://i4.ytimg.com/vi/w4KQBSrGJ5I/mqdefault.jpg). For the face covering, I was inspired by Venetian masks.
I love Papageno's aria, particularly the way Simon Keenlyside sings it (actually the words make him seem like a total creeper even though he's a sweet, somewhat comedic character)
This kiddy one is pretty stunning with all the bird puppets visually, but I prefer the singing in the first link:
Process work:
