This article offers insights into the leadership enactment of primary school heads in terms of the dramatis personae or "masks of the drama" they perceive themselves to portray during interactions with staff in their schools. The article draws on the reported identities and performances of ten heads in their day-to-day leadership of staff and reveals perceptions held about the presence of a dominant performance supplemented by a wide variety of sub-performances intended to meet particular circumstances. Heads convey reasons for the performances adopted and report on the real emotional cost involved in the portrayals they give in daily school life. The study begins to reveal implications for the ongoing study and practice of leadership, and in particular headship, within contemporary educational settings both in the United Kingdom and internationally. The article invites reflection upon the preparation and development of individuals seeking or already cast in this exacting role. (Contains 1 table.)