THE MASTERS THE PERFORMING
ARTS
The smell of candles and incense and
chants in Pali combined to make the atmosphere sacred at an ancient ceremony
held at the National Theater recently.
With serious faces and attentive eyes, in
the ceremony, with all attention centered on what was happening on stage.
The annual ceremony was held by the
College of Dramatic Arts to pay homage to masters of performing arts in various
fields. The ceremony has been faithfully observed for such along period that no
one seems to remember how it originated.
On the stage were dozens of masks
arranged in order of their importance. On top were masks representing the
heavens, comprising Siva, Narayana and Brahma. Next were the divine musicians,
Vishnu, regarded the master of all craftsmen, and Ganesha, the God of Arts.
Representing the earth were the giants, monkeys and male and female characters
of the Ramakien, the Thai version of the Indian literary classic Ramayana.
The disciples came to pay their respect
to the art masters represented by the masks. As they paid homage, they asked for
forgiveness for any offences they had made both knowingly or unknowingly.
The highlight of the event was the
putting of masks on the disciples. Craftsmen were given the mask representing
Ganesha was given to followers of the performing arts. No two masks had the same
features, but it was this difference that distinguished each mask. The
white-faced Siva, for example, wore a gourd-like crown, while Narayana wore a
victory crown. Brahma, with his four faces all painted in white, wore a
two-tiered victory crown, while Ravana came with two heads, one with a face in
three shades of gold and the other green, each head wearing a victory crown.
The ceremony ended only when all the
disciples had been masked. The ritual gave masks a significant role in the
artistic circle, as representatives of art. Masters since ancient times.
The masks representing the characters in
the Ramakien are classified according to their importance. Ravana is regarded as
the most important of all the characters as the epic is about him; therefore the
College of Dramatic Arts has never presented a masked drama, or Khon, that
centers on Ravana being killed in battle. It has become a Thai tradition through
generations not comply with the tradition is believed to face premature death.
The importance of masks as the masters of
Thai folk arts is well underlined in the minds of Thai performers. To them, the
masks are the center of faith and play a leading role in creating pride in Thai
identity, like the one witnessed in the ancient homage-paying ritual held
recently a the National Theater.
02. December 2004