dance drama

…they are typically termed “dance-dramas.” Of these traditions, the wayang wong and wayang topeng (masked theatre) of Java and Bali, as well as the Balinese plays recounting the tale of the witch Calonarang, are among the most widely known. Since independence, Indonesian choreographers trained at the country’s performing arts…

…the main forms of classical dance-drama of India, other major ones being bharata natyam, kathak, manipuri, kuchipudi, and odissi. It is indigenous to southwestern India, particularly the state of Kerala, and is based on subject matter from the Ramayana, the

…to native Kannada and Telugu dance drama on mythological themes, called yakṣagāna. The form is comparable to kathākali in the Malayalam area and to terukkūttu (“street drama”) and kuṟavañci (“gypsy drama”) in the Tamil area. The earliest Telugu yakṣagāna text is Sugrīva Vijayam (c. 1570), by Kandukuru Rudra Kavi; the…

…folk traditions a type of dance drama that is a form of total theatre. The actor dances out the story through a complex gesture language, a form that, in its universal appeal, cuts across the multilanguage barrier of the subcontinent. Some of the classical dance-drama forms (e.g., kathakali, kuchipudi, bhagavatha…