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Intellectual Cultural Heritage
33
4.
Khon Rong Nai
“Screen-front mask dance
drama”-is a hybrid form of
Khon Na Cho
and
Lakhon Nai
(Court dance drama) i.e. It includes women performers and
non-narrative dance. The leading male, human characters
do not wear masks. It is accompanied by story narration and
dialogue narration and features
Lakhon Nai
-style singing,
music and non-narrat ive dance interludes. The
Khon
spectacles presented by the Fine Arts Department today,
whether they are performed outdoor or in front of a screen,
are of the
Khon Rong Nai
type.
5.
Khon Chak or Khon Rong
-“Mask dance drama
with scenery”-is a type of
Khon
performance that was
supposedly invented during King Rama V’s reign when a
painted scenery was first introduced to the Khon spectacle
on stage in a theatre.
Khon Chak
spectacle shares some
similar characteristics with the Lakhon Duekdamban. The
spectacle is divided into acts and scenes, decorated by the
scenery as proper to the place where the action takes place.
It adopts the same form as that of
Khon Rong Nai
, with
singing, dancing, and
Na Phat
music.
One key characteristics of
Khon
is the costume, which
is divided into three principal lines: costume for characters
portraying the humans and the deities (male and female
leading characters), the demons, and the monkeys; and
three categories: headdresses, costume proper, and other
decorative accessories and costume jewellery.
Khon
narrat ion is an art in i tsel f alongside the
dramatic dance performance. It narrates the story and
contributes to the emotional expression of the characters.
Used to accompany the performance,
Khon
narration
part is composed of verses in the
Kap Chabang 16
type or
Kap Yani 11
type. Each narration part is named after the
episode of the story it tells. Dialogue narration parts use the
rai yao
verses, which are used for the dialogue of any
character in the story and can contain as many lines as is
required. Narrators are men and no less than two are
required to deliver the dialogue part promptly. After the
story narrator or the dialogue narrator finishes his part and
requires the
Pi Phat
orchestra to play music, he will call the
tune. This is called “
Bok Na Phat
” (“calling the tune”).
The
Pi Phat
orchestra that accompanies the
Khon
performance can be of any of the fol lowing types as
appropriate: “Five-Type
Pi Phat
orchestra”, “Paired-Type or
Double
Pi Phat
orchestra”, and “Grand
Pi Phat
orchestra”.
Khon
performance can be presented in various
occasions, for example, during religious ceremonies such as
the funeral ceremonies of royalty, dignitaries or well-
respected persons; during the festivities or celebrations such
as the celebration of a religious monument or temple, the
ordination of royalty, the birthday celebration of the king or
high-ranking royalty.
Khon
is performed as an entertainment
in a variety of occasions.
Khon
integrates elements of several art forms into an
artistic whole. In addition to its artistic value,
Khon
also
provides food for thought, maxims, morals and ethical values
that the viewers can apply in their daily life.
Presently, new sets of
Khon
and
Lakhon
costume are
being created by royal command of Her Majesty the Queen,
who is concerned that
Khon
performances are in decline
today and less attention is paid to the elaborate details of
costume making, embroidery, and facial make-up. The old
costume is worn-out and ill-repaired. As a traditional
performing arts form of Thailand,
Khon
represents the
national identity and therefore there is a need to preserve
the traditional craftsmanship of
Khon
mask-making, costume
embroidery, silver and gold decorations and accessories, and
the traditional art of stage make-up. These traditional crafts
excellently represent Thailand’s national art and culture.
The agencies that prominently preserve the art of
Khon
are the Fine Arts Department and the Bandit Phatthana
Sin Institute, Ministry of Culture.