ASIA AND THE PACIFIC
BY JUSTIN CORFIELD
Ancient peoples throughout the Asian and Pacifi c region
used drama and theater to re-create the past, recount history,
and explain legends. Over time these enactments became
formalized into great pieces of work like the Mahabharata,
the Ramayana, and the life of Buddha and other important
fi gures. Although both the Mahabharata and the Ramayana
originated in India, they were adapted throughout Southeast
Asia and farther afi eld. Similarly, Chinese stories and Bud-
dhist epics were used to illustrate the triumph of good over
evil, with subplots off ering examples of love and betrayal,
battles won and lost, skill and stupidity.
Drama in the Indian subcontinent was overshadowed
by the two great epics: the Mahabharata and the Ramayana.
Th e former surrounds the clash by two groups of cousins
fi ghting for supremacy, and includes within it the Bhagavad
Gita, the most important Hindu text. Th e latter is about the
life of King Rama and his eff orts to free his wife, Sita, who is
captured by demons and taken to the island of Lanka (mod-
ern-day Sri Lanka). Th e Mahabharata, consisting of 100,000
couplets, is about seven times longer than the Greek Iliad and
Odyssey combined. Although performances of the entire Ma-
habharata or Ramayana took place, many groups of actors
performed only the more famous scenes as they traveled from
one village to another. Indian dance was also highly stylized
and has been traced back to the theory put forward by the an-
cient Indian sage Natya Shastra of Bharata Muni in about 400
b.c.e. Written in Sanskrit, this work gives, in vivid detail, the
precepts for actors and also playwrights. For the latter there
are nine major rasas (“emotional responses”) which can be
used: love, anger, fear, heroism, terror, comedy, pity, disgust,
and awe. However, one must always dominate any given play.
Th e costumes, the makeup, and the types of dance are also
listed precisely.
In China, at the court of the emperors, the theatrical per-
formances tended to be long and formal. Th e Chinese opera
of today, which oft en covers ancient stories, had its origins in
about 350 c.e. but did not attain its state of refi nement until
perhaps 300 years later. During the Shang Dynasty (1500–
1045 b.c.e.) court entertainers not only amused the emperor
and his retinue but also performed ceremonies to protect
the harvest and ward off evil spirits. Th e Imperial Music Bu-
reau was fi rst established by the emperor Qin Shih Huang (r.
221–210 b.c.e.) and was expanded by the Han emperor Wu
Di (r. 141–87 b.c.e.). As well as being played at court for its
own sake, music oft en provided accompaniment for theatri-
cal performances.
Th roughout the Chinese countryside bands of enter-
tainers wandered from village to village telling stories and
getting ideas for new ones. Some tombs from the Han Dy-
nasty (202 b.c.e.–220 c.e.) are decorated with scenes of en-
tertainers involved in acrobatics, mime, and other drama
activities. As shown in Chinese classical stories, these per-
formers were always much awaited by villages, and the roles
of actors, acrobats and professional musicians in Chinese
society were always highly regarded. In the Han Dynasty
capital there were special horse-drawn carriages for ac-
tors. However, on the stage many actors lost most of their
individuality, wearing very heavy makeup or using masks.
Actors were always male, with female parts oft en played by
young men or teenage boys. Th ere were also groups from
China’s minority peoples, especially from Central Asia, who
traveled the countryside telling stories of life from their
point of view and introducing their customs in towns and
cities throughout China. Most drama performances were
accompanied by music, and it was common for groups of
musicians to travel with actors.
In Southeast Asia most early drama and theater was In-
dian in origin, with some local variations. In Cambodia the
Naga snakes would make appearances; these were supernat-
ural beings with the attributes of both humans and snakes.
While most theatrical performances drew heavily from the
two Indian classics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana,
other legends were common, such as that of the birth of Cam-A 19th-century Indian painting depicting the climax of the epic the
Ramayana, where the hero Rama defeats the 10-headed demon
Ravana. (© Th e Trustees of the British Museum)
332 drama and theater: Asia and the Pacific