Myanmar Marionette Theatre offers a “revival” show of an ancient art, Yokthe Pwe, that has historical origins connected to Pagan reign, in XI century. Its golden age dates back to some century later and it was under the royal court of Konbaung dynasty (1752-1885). As in many other parts of the world, this show had an educational purpose and was the expression of local culture and history, but in the same way the characters acted as real “messengers”, as spokespersons concerning social questions inside the royal court. The themes of the marionette shows were referred to Buddhist tradition, in particular Jataka corpus (Buddha’s preceding lives).

The show offered by the Mandalay Marionette Theatre is structured in different parts and is an expression of both the traditional puppet art and other more creative experiments, such as “comparative dance” performed by a human and a….wooden dancer.

The first recording above has been realized during the introductory moment of the show, a vocal song accompanied by percussions and saung, a 16-string arp considered the national Burmese instrument. 

The following recording is a part of the puppet show and the photo we chose represents a demon in one of the “Himalayan scenes”: in fact, in the ancient Burmese tradition, it was believed that Himalaya’s mountains were inhabited by magical animals and demons.

The photos below represent a character during a ritual dance and a puppeteer, in one of those moment when the curtain is open so the audience can observe the work these artists carry out with so much mastery.

Ne abbiamo parlato nel nostro Podcast Ermete, puntata numero 6, che puoi ascoltare here.