Long sticks to the fore

A traditional form of dance-drama known as lakhon phanthang that first made its appearance as commercial theatre under royal patronage in the nineteenth century comes back to life this weekend through an adaptation of the Thai literary classic “Rachathirat”. 
The production celebrates the 85th anniversary of the Sala Chalermkrung Royal Theatre, which was built on the orders of King Rama VII who funded it out of his personal budget as a gift to the Thai people. 
“The budget for the construction of the theatre was Bt9 million and it was built to mark the 150th anniversary of the founding of Bangkok. The framed pictures on the walls show King Prajadhipok and Queen Rambai Barni laying the foundation stone and inspecting the construction site,” says Narumol Lomthong, managing director of the royal theatre.

 

“At that time, Sala Chalermkrung was the most modern theatre in Southeast Asia. It had air-conditioning, a capacity of 2,000 seats, and had no pillars. It was renovated in 1992, with the stage widened and the installation of a hydraulic stage lift system, which reduced its capacity to 600 seats. The second floor used to hold two long balconies but these were made much shorter because of the instability of the walls. At that time, movie tickets cost just 25 satang.”
In fact, lakhon phanthang is a hybrid form of dance theatre, representative of non-Thai ethnic groups such as the Chinese, Burmese, Mon and Muslims and drawing on the costumes, movement styles and stereotypes of these ethnicities.
“Lakhon phanthang became a new kind of a play. Most were based on Asian chronicles. A member of Chao Phraya Mahintarasak-Thamrong (Peng Penkul)’s dance troupe, Luang Pattana Pongpakdee (Tim Sukhayang) was a playwright who adapted a chronicle into a play. The first adapted chronicle was “Rachathirat”, which is a Mon tale and used a mixture of Mon, Burmese and Chinese in the songs and dialogue as well as in the movements and costumes. The language was Thai but spoken with the accents of other Asian nations. There were many popular theatres during the reign of King Rama V, with “Rachathirat” and “Saming Phra Ram Arsa” the most played episodes of the Ramakien,” says Pramate Boonyachai, a specialist at Bunditpatanasilpa Institute.
Chao Phraya Mahintarasak-Thamrong lived through the reigns of three kings from 1821 to 1894. Born under King Rama III, he served as a government official under King Rama IV and died in the reign of King Rama V.
A confidant of King Rama IV and trusted by King Rama V, he played a key role in developing Thai dance theatre troupes to meet the tastes of Thai nobility. 

 

The creativity of Chao Phraya Mahintarasak-Thamrong’s dance theatre troupe, which was founded during the reign of King Rama IV and became popular while King Rama V was on the throne, can be seen in the new approach he adopted for the artistic dances and performances. This approach was associated with foreign characters and consisted of newly invented components in terms of plays, costumes, musical instruments, and performing places. Apart from the traditional royal dance passed on since the reign of King Rama II, a new kind of dance called “Chao Phraya Mahin’s approach” or “Ram Ok-Parsa” was initiated to suggest the nationality of each foreign character.
This approach contributed to the development of many new theatrical dance performances. The theatrical performance of Chao Phraya Mahintarasak-Thamrong’s dance theatre troupe opened the door to the world of limitless performances. It was also a precursor to the approaches later developed by the Fine Arts Department and dance education institutes, enabling Thai dance to remain a key part of Thai national arts even though the society was dramatically changing. 

 

After his death, his artists, among them his wife wife, Kru Krue, became dance teachers in Chao Khun Phra Prayurawongse’s troupe, a large ensemble that trained and produced many skilled theatrical artists. Four of them – Kru Phan Morakul, Kru Sa-Ad Saengsawang, Kru Charoenchit Pattarasewi, and Kru Yorsaeng Pakditewa went on to become dance teachers at the Fine Arts Department and were instrumental in preserving Chao Phraya Mahintarasak-Thamrong’s approach.
Krisana “Mom” Pakdeeteva remembers those days with fondness. “I used to work on the role of Kamanee with Kru Phan. To perform Kamanee, you must have a beautiful face and be smart and seductive. At that time, we would perform 110 rounds of “Rachathirat”. It all faded when the Fine Arts Department’s theatre burned down in 1960 and was rebuilt as the National Theatre in 1965. 
“For me the highlight of the performance as wielding the mai thuan, a long stick. I would practise moving with the stick with Khru Amporn Chatchakul from 7-8am before I went off to my studies. After lunch, I would perform in front of my teachers then return after dinner to work on the moves until 9. It was the heart of the play. It was through the play that I met Thanongsak Pakdeetewa, who was in the audience every Saturday,” recalls the 83-year-old, who performed as Kamanee back in 1952 and is directing this weekend’s production. 

 

In this new version of “Rachathirat”, Panot Pangsamut, an official with the Culture, Sports and Tourism Department, plays Kamanee while Phoomarin Maneewong, an instructor of Thai performing arts at Bunditpatanasilpa Institute, takes on the role of Saming Phra Ram.
“I’m one of Ajarn Krisana Buasuang’s students and as my instructor in performing art, he thinks I’m the most suitable to play Kamanee. In fact, I have performed in ‘Rachathirat’ before but in other roles. It’s very hard to fight with the long stick while dancing and singing and I’m still rehearsing two hours a day. Kamanee is a great Chinese warrior who is intelligent, valiant and strong,” says Panot.

 

“Saming Phra Ram must be nimble and small, smaller than the Chinese warrior. Saming Phra Ram is proficient in fighting with the thuan or long stick while on horseback and uses his intelligence to overcome the enemy. I’ve been working with Panot on the moves, which are far from easy as we have to hit each other’s stick with the same rhythm. I personally think the best scene is where we fight with the sticks in both Mon and Chinese styles,” says Phoomarin.
The play itself deals mostly with conflicts between the Mon and the Burmese as they fight for power and territory. The chronicle clearly portrays the virtues of the heroes, their gratitude and love for their country and the honour of Saming Phra Ram.

Two days of tradition

- The lakhon phanthang “Rachathirat” is being staged at Sala Chalermkrung Royal Theatre tomorrow and Sunday at 2pm.

- Tickets cost from Bt300 to Bt1,000 at Thai Ticket Major. Call (02) 262 3456 or visit www.ThaiTicketMajor.com.

- For more information, call the the¬atre at (02) 225 87578 and (02) 623 81489.