Glass Mask (1997)

Original title: ガラスの仮面

The Glass Mask drama is based on a very popular manga of the same name by Suzue Miuchi, about a young girl named Maya whose dream is to be an actress. A legendary former stage actress, Tsukikage Chigusa, watches Maya as she reenacts drama episodes she's seen on TV. She approaches Maya and has her join her acting company, Tsukikage Theater. Tsukikage holds the production rights to a legendary masterpiece called "The Crimson Goddess," in which she had played the title role until a terrible accident burnt her face beyond surgical repair. She's been searching all of these years for someone to play the role which only the most talented actress could play, and maybe she's found that someone in Maya... --synopsis by awrittensin