Our free exhibition delves into the world of shadow puppet theatre from Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. Full of movement and mythology, shadow puppet performances have endured for a very long time – some of the puppets in the display date from the 18th century!
Shadow theatre uses numerous stories, including the epics that originated in ancient India, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Puppeteers also create original stories based on characters from these epics or in response to current affairs, as well as dramatising local tales. The Ramayana story was once a favourite – it follows the story of Prince Rama and his wife Sita, the white monkey Hanuman and the demon-king Ravana. When Sita is kidnapped by Ravana, Hanuman assists Rama in rescuing her. These puppets below of Rama and Ravana are from Malaysia.
To provide a balance in shadow theatre, ogres, ghosts, demons and zombies appear regularly alongside gods and humans in performance. Fearsome beings must be controlled within the stories in order to maintain spiritual harmony. These three below come from Bali, Java and Thailand. They date from the late 1700s to the 1960s – shadow puppets and the stories associated with the performances have endured and evolved for a very long time.
Animals play important roles in Southeast Asia and in shadow puppet theatre, from creatures essential to agriculture to being symbolic or relating to the spirit world. Animal puppets can be static or articulated, depending on their roles in performance. Below, a composite animal and Anila the monkey from Hanuman’s army show the differences between the two styles.
Shadow puppets from Southeast Asia include a huge range of characters. Clowns are popular in performances as they add humour and fun. They also speak in dialects, adding local relevance to the main story. These clowns from Java are made from animal hide with handles made from buffalo horn. They are decorated with paint and gold leaf. The different types of articulation can be seen in these two puppets of Semar (short and stout) and Petruk (tall and skinny but with a pot belly). In additon to moveable arms, Semar also has a moveable jaw.
Hung be the heavens with black, yield day to night! Comets, importing change of times and states, Brandish your crystal tresses in the sky, And with them scourge the bad revolting stars.
Because they don’t get as much camera time and not nearly enough credit, here are some beautiful pictures of our co-writers ofNot Another Princess Musical!
Nathan’s fiancé and a lead performer at the Hot Box nightclub. She loves Nathan more than anything in the world and desperately wants to get married. Pretty, outspoken, stubborn.
