Theatre is the strongest genre of art that has represented Nepali cultural dynamics for many centuries. It has done so by its sheer kinaesthesia, through the performance of the cultural traditions which are kept alive by the denizens in the Nepal Mandala. The UNESCO in its definition of intangible cultural heritage, adopted with the consensus of nations in 2003 and effective from 2006, put performativity or kinaesthesia as the key element. In Nepal this dynamics is represented by theatricality, performativity and a constant renewal of ancient traditions. We theatre practitioners found this to be a highly important discovery because the very soul of Nepali cultural dynamics lies in performativity. In my book about Nepali theatre entitled Nepali Theatre as I See It (2006) I have made a survey of Nepali theatre from the early Malla period to the present and found a continuum in the traditions of performance and theatre. I will give a short presentation of the history of Nepali theatre to show its changing nature, as it includes serious, religious, popular and ethnic aspects. I will also share my own experience as a playwright and theatre practitioner. But the main thrust of my presentation will be to give an overview of Nepali performative culture that has a symbiotic relationship with theatre of various orders. I will also present briefly the contradictions, paradoxes and dialectics involved in the various performative forms practised in the current times – including modern theatre.
Changing Cultural Dynamics Represented by Nepali Theatre
25.11.2015 18:00 - 20:00
Organiser:
Institut für Südasien-, Tibet- und Buddhismuskunde
Location:
Seminarraum 1, AAKH, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2.7 1090 Wien
Verwandte Dateien
- 2015-11-25_-_Subedi.pdf 156 KB