STAGE PRODUCTION teams often work as hard, if not harder, than the artists appearing on stage and one can only admire the energy of the crews involved in the dismantling and setting up of the stage for “West Side Story”. The international touring edition of the musical finished its three-week run in Singapore on September 30 and travelled to the City of Angels for its six performances at Bangkok’s 19th International Festival of Dance and Music, arriving hot on the heels of Malandain Ballet Biarritz’s “La belle et la bete”. That’s an amazing feat for the production teams and it’s a fair bet that the coffee stands near the Thailand Cultural Centre did a roaring trade as sleep-starved crews rushed to finish the sets.

But it also meant that these frequent travellers didn’t have enough time to adjust to our venue’s wider-than-standard stage and audiences seated in the side sections had less fun than those in the centre, as it became evident that the set wasn’t designed and built for this stage.

And if the photos look familiar, that’s because it’s the same 50th anniversary production, produced by Mannheim-based BB Promotion, which festival organiser International Cultural Promotions (ICP) brought here in 2006.

While there are also many other productions of this classic American musical, this production is the only one holding the license of the original direction and choreography by American performing arts legend Jerome Robbins.

With New York-based choreographer Joey McKneely also doubling as the director in recreating Robbins’ work, the highlight of this production was his choreography, which is as robust now as it was six decades ago. Likewise, Paul Gallis’s set design with two main sets of New York-style apartments with fire escapes left ample room for it.

Vigorous and lively, the production is so “dancey” that one could be forgiven for thinking it’s a modern ballet, which is why it was presented at Sadler’s Wells, a London dance venue, twice.

And it’s so well done that one would still understand the whole story even if the dialogue and lyrics of Stephen Sondheim’s original songs were cut.

The international cast, comprising mostly American actors, was up to the task in dancing and singing, and the tunes brought back fond memories of the Academy Award-winning film and the 2006 production. That’s thanks to the fact that they’ve been performing together in different Asian cities for many months. In terms of acting though, they were less convincing and at times somewhat robotic as if waiting for the next cue to sing and dance. And in the end, this modern interpretation of star-crossed lovers set in multicultural New York’s Upper West Side didn’t move me the way productions of “Romeo and Juliet” have. This is notwithstanding the fact that it was another reminder, considering the ongoing conflicts, that in the land where all men are created equal, not all men are treated equal.

American music director and conductor Donald Chan, a “West Side Story” veteran, and his associate John Yun worked with our Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra and if the result of this small collaboration can be as pleasant as this, then the Festival should be able to bring in many international productions of musicals or ballets by saving the flight costs of the musicians.

It should also be noted that the performance here was supported by the US Embassy Bangkok who, with the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative, also organised the Conflict Resolution Workshop, a full-day programme for 40 students 16 to 25 years old concluding with free attendance at “West Side Story”. And that’s a deft way to create an add-on activity that makes sure that a Broadway musical is not just entertainment. Other embassies who take part in the festival might like to consider this.

I was too old to apply of course, but were I not I would have tweeted Mr POTUS to watch this musical and continue his relief support for Puerto Rico, the US territory from where the Sharks originated.

Bangkok’s 19th International Festival of Dance and Music is made possible through the kind support of Crown Property Bureau, Ministry of Culture, Bangkok Bank, Bangkok Dusit Medical Services, B Grimm Group, BMW, Dusit Thani Bangkok, Indorama Ventures, Nation Group, PTT Group, Singha Corporation, Tourism Authority of Thailand, Thai Airways International and Thai Union.

GRANDE FINALE

The last programme of “Bangkok’s 19th International Festival of Dance and Music” is the Stuttgart Ballet’s “Taming of the Shrew”, featuring the original choreography by the company’s founder John Cranko as well as elaborate set and costumes.

It’s on this Wednesday and Thursday at 7.30pm, at the Thailand Cultural Centre.

Tickets are from Bt 2,000 to |Bt 5,500 at ThaiTicketMajor.

Find out more at BangkokFestivals.com.

DESPITE MAKING numerous trips to the island state over the years, I have only stayed in two homes there, neither of which belonged to Singaporeans. Three years ago, as part of Singapore International Festival of Arts (Sifa), “Open Homes” took me to visit two condominium units in a northwestern district where owners shared their personal stories, with help from facilitating professional theatre artists. And so when I heard that “Open Homes” was back as part of this year’s Sifa, I made sure that my trip to the festival coincided with this latest episode.

The first programme, “Bak Serumpun Serai Yang Banyak Gunanya” (“Like the useful lemongrass cognates”), took me to visit a Housing and Development Board public housing estate in Clementi, owned by an elderly bachelor of Malay heritage Mohamad Mustain Bin Abdul Shukor. Outside in the hallway, he first showed us his plants, especially the lemongrass of which he’s most proud. Once inside, a collection of souvenirs he’s been collecting from his numerous trips, including many on a Japan-Asean friendship boat, spoke volumes about his personal history. In his kitchen, he showed us how he made lemongrass tea. But the highlight was his sewing room kitted out with antique sewing machines, inherited from his ancestors and still working, on which he makes traditional and modern clothes for himself and others. The programme ended with Malay snacks, desserts, salted eggs and of course lemongrass tea.

Three home-schooling mothers shared their passion for embroidery.

The afternoon programme titled “Tapestry of Love” took me to a small landed residence in Bukit Merah where three home-schooling mothers of different backgrounds – Tong May Yee, Evelyn Sam and Claire Lim – shared stories of how they got together. This was due to an interest in the art of embroidery, which has been passed down to them from the previous generations. They showed us simple daily objects, like blankets, that are filled with family history and which reflected the history of this young country. The third mother brought along her mother who’s originally from China and could only speak Mandarin. Admittedly, I have a very soft spot for kids and old people and so when their kids got up in the living room and sang a song that concluded their mothers’ stories, as melodramatic and predictable as they were, my eyes turned watery.

These performers in living-room theatres are not professionally trained, and yet thanks to their passion and sincerity in storytelling coupled with professional theatre artists’ guidance and Jeffrey Tan’s curation, their stories are worth our time and attention.

In his sewing room, Mohamas Mustain Bin Abdul Shukor shows us a historic wardrobe and what’s inside

And so,the notion of a multicultural and yet peaceful city state was also confirmed, though it must be remembered that its one political party recently won a landslide victory and that one needs to ask for permission before staging a demonstration. My Sunday morning and afternoon were indeed well spent, far away from where I might have been on a typical weekend, joining Singaporeans at shopping malls and looking for signs with the four-letter magic word “SALE”.

It’s noteworthy that Sifa is supported by the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, and “Open Homes”, intentionally or not, hit all the three keywords spot-on. The way that in different countries culture pairs with different aspects of the government system is also interesting – some with tourism, others with sports. I recall when ours was to about be founded, it was suggested that religion should also be in the name.

But as we all know, what’s in a name? Much more significant is the fact that culture is a way of living, not merely national heritage or high-brow foreign arts that not many people can understand or appreciate.

And if it needs the cooperation of more than two ministries to make this happen, let our tax money make sure it that does.

The writer’s trip was supported by Arts House Limited. Special thanks to Tay Tong and Mervyn Quek

ON AND OFF STAGE

SIFA now has a new director Gaurav Kripalani, artistic director of Singapore Repertory Theatre (SRT), who will be at the helm until 2020. Among his many exciting projects is “Monuments Series”, in which artists create site-specific works at some of the 72 buildings gazetted as national monuments.

Keep track at http://www.SIFA.sg.

OVER the past few weeks, art exhibitions have popped up all over town as Thais remember their beloved monarch, His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who passed away on October 13, 2016.

One of the latest to open is “In Our Hearts” (“Nai Duang Jai”) at new gallery Yelo House, which brings together some 30 leading artists to share their precious memories of the late King through drawings, paintings, prints, sculptures, photography, motion pictures, and music. Speaking at the opening, national artist Naowarat Pongpaiboon urged Thais to “revise, revive and disseminate” the teachings and philosophy of His Majesty the late King before reading his handwritten poem in front of a large portrait created in soil of the late King by Sompop Budtarad entitled “Phra Chao Paen Din”.

“His Majesty’s great works and commitment throughout his life are just as he declared at his Coronation, ‘We shall reign with righteousness for the benefits and happiness of the Siamese people’. When he was here, we [the Thai people] were warm and safe. But now without him, we felt as if we are adrift. Why? Because of what he did throughout his reign. By embracing and continuing his teachings, we will not feel so alone,” he said.

Singer Thanachai “Pod Moderndog” Ujjin, Manop Suwanbinta and Yossanan “Sunture” Wuthikornsombatkul have all contributed paintings and these are displayed alongside photographs by veteran lensmen from Chamni’s Eye, including Oh Singhasuvich. He told XP he had always dreamt of taking pictures of the late King but had never managed to do so. For this exhibition, he was inspired by an old Chulalongkorn University publication featuring the portrait of King Bhumibol. He took photographs of this old image against a grey screen using Polaroid film, then rephotographed the result using a viewfinder.

Artist Channalong “Dee” Krugoied put pen to paper to draw an abundance of flowers and fruit in the shape of the Thai numeral nine. “This drawing represents the prosperity and improved quality of life in the country brought about by the late King in a form that is immediately associated with the Monarch,” he says.

Passionate about art and fashion, Sanon Tempiem created six images of Their Majesties the King and Queen during their youth, using hand-drawings and computer graphics to present them from a more fashionable angle. “The real photograph was unclear and small, so I tried to enlarge it and give it a different perspective using vintage colours,” he explains.

Akaradech Rungpunyajinda offers woodcuts inspired by the toys and collectible items of the late King.

“I am showing four woodcut series, which I created the night the King passed away. I’ve always loved the old style of toys especially bikes and cars and this is what I show here,” he says.

The second floor of the gallery is home to several remarkable pieces including Daeng Buasand’s “Maharaj” painting, an enlarged interpretation in oil on canvas of the old picture of the same name. The portrait shows the King in full dress uniform.

Graphic designer Wee Viraporn of Conscious Ltd has covered one wall with Post-It stickers bearing a portrait of the King in a work called “3,254 Reminders, 2017”. “I have been creating art with these stickers for a while. In everyday life, we use Post-Its to remind us of things and this work thus acts as a reminder of King Bhumibol’s graciousness. We selected a portrait of the King that would suit the pop-art style and the picture of him taking a photo is perfect, especially as it will encourage visitors to take their photo with the King,” says Wee.

Different strokes

The exhibition continues through October 27.

Yelo House is on Soi Kasemsan 1, an easy walk from BTS National Stadium exit 3.

Find out more at Facebook/yelohouse and Instagram.

The show, organised by Essilor Distribution (Thailand) and the Essilor Vision Foundation, pays tribute to His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej through 56 photographs depicting the life and contributions of the late Monarch, his royal gestures, his royal duties as well as images reflecting the loyalty of Thai people.

Participating photographers are Somsak Patanapitoon, Boonthachai Chaiviroonjaroen, Suraphol Sukhumtus, Wasinburi Supanichvoraparch, Kamthorn Paowattanasuk, Kiti Kittiphongsathaporn, Puttitorn Promduang, Sanchai Lungrung, Phalat Chaipitakkoon, Nakit Jaroonsrirak, Jiratha Narapittayanart, Alizz Vichchou, Vanthanee Apiwattanasawee and Wannapong Surarochprajak.

A commemorative book featuring the photos from the exhibition will be offered to Essilor customers buying one pair of its Progressive Varilux X Series. The first 300 visitors to the exhibition will be given a tote bag,

Find out more at http://www.Essilor.co.th.

HIS MAGNIFICENT Phra Merumas, the royal crematorium, is almost complete but artist Kokiart Thongphud is not counting the days until it comes into use.

“While I know that this is the most magnificent and majestic structure I have ever designed, I am neither glad nor proud to see it become a reality. My heart is crying and I don’t want October 26 to come – the day when I will send my beloved King back to heaven,” says the 49-year-old artist with the Fine Arts Department, who started work on designing the crematorium only hours after His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej passed away on October 13 last year.

The royal crematorium of His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej is almost complete. 

Like all Thais, Kokiart did not let his grief and suffering keep him from his work. The elaborate royal crematorium for King Bhumibol is the tallest of any such structures since the reign of King Rama V.

“My respected master Prince Naris – Prince Narisara Nuvadtivongs, considered the great master of Siamese art – once said that the highest and widest structure of Phra Merumas signified the greatest dignity. My first design had the structure standing 80 metres high on a 120-metre-wide base, but it was too large for Sanam Luang as it is today. I eventually had to settle on a practical structure 55.18 metres high and 60 metres wide,” says Kokiart, who was the right-hand man of the celebrated late architect Arwut Ngernchuklin, designer of the royal crematoria for HRH the Princess Mother, HRH Princess Galyani Vadhana and Princess Bejaratana Rajasuda in 1996, 2008 and 2012 respectively.

This sketch of the royal crematorium of the beloved monarch was prepared by Kokiart Thongphud on the night of his passing, a year ago today.

Kokiart prepared five draft designs of the royal crematorium in the busabok style in line with the structures sketched by the old masters since the reign of King Rama V. These showed elaborate pavilions with ornately decorated tiered roofs topped by one, five and nine spires respectively. The five drafts along with other artists’ sketches were presented to Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, the president of the Royal Funeral Committee, and the Princess selected his design featuring nine pavilions, each standing independently of the others.

The royal crematorium comprises nine busabok-style pavilions sitting on a three-tiered, square shaped base with a staircase on each of the four sides. On the topmost tier is the seven-tiered, spire-roofed principle pavilion, which will house the royal urn, while each of the four corners on the second tier have five-tiered, roofed pavilions called sang, which will be used by monks to chant scriptures during the ceremony. The remaining four pavilions are located at each of the four corners on the first tier.

Kokiart also marks the centre of the royal crematorium from where two axes intersect – one from the spire of the Phra Si Ratana Chedi pagoda in the adjacent Wat Phra Kaew and the other from the middle of the phra ubosot or ordination hall in the nearby Wat Maha That.

The structure is in three key colours of gold, white and grey. Gold doesn’t just symbolise kingship, but is also used as a substitute for yellow – the colour of Monday, the day on which the King was born. White represents both purity and righteousness and grey – a shade known as “dove-grey” – is the shade King Bhumibol chose for the structure of the Bangkok City Pillar Shrine and the roof of Wat Praram Kao Chalerm Phrakiat, built at his initiative.

Kokiart Thongphud

“There is very little difference in the design shown in the first draft, which was completed on the night the beloved Monarch passed away, and the structure that is nearly complete,” says Teerachat Virayuttanond, an architect with the Fine Arts Department, who translated Kokiart’s hand-written sketches for the computer-aided design program and also helped with designing the architectural landscape of the supplementary structures in the ceremonial ground.

Unlike the previous royal crematoria that were mainly made from wood, new construction technologies in the computer age have allowed the Phra Merumas structure to be built with pre-fabricated steel. These have been produced away from the funeral ground then transported to Sanam Luang for assembly. The inner steel structures are covered with wood that’s intricately decorated with an elaborate design. It can accommodate more than 7,000 people.

“Without the references of the old masters like Prince Naris, Phra Phrombhichitr, Ajarn Praves Limparangsi and Ajarn Arwut, I probably wouldn’t have been able to complete this task,” says Kokiart who was among the speakers in a recent talk “Phra Merumas of HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej” at Silpakorn University, held as part of the exhibition “Phra Merumas of the Rattanakosin Period”.

As the royal crematorium symbolises Mount Sumeru, the centre of the universe, to where the late King will return, the base is decorated with auspicious animals and mythical creatures to represent the Anodard pond in the heavenly Himmaphan Forest. 

“Ajarn Arwut always taught me that in design, we must first think who we are designing for and the end user. I therefore tried to translate the late Monarch’s greatest contributions to the country into a magnificent visual structure while ensuring it was functional for those coming to bid a final farewell to their beloved King.”

The works of the masters referred to by Kokiart can be seen in the exhibition that continues until October 31. Visitors will be able to admire reproductions of the architectural designs of the royal crematoria built for King Rama VI by Prince Naris, for King Rama VIII by Phra Phrombhichitr, for Queen Rambai Barni – Queen consort of Rama VII – by Praves, and for HRH Princess Galyani Vadhana by Arwut.

Thai architectural students of Silpakorn University create a model of the royal crematorium of King Rama VI that follows the design of Prince Narisara Nuvadtivongs.

Silpakorn University’s architecture students have added to the grandeur of the exhibition by building models of the royal crematoria of King Rama VI, Queen Rambai Barni and Princess Galyani Vadhana.

Based on the original design by Arwut Ngernchuklin, a model of the royal crematorium of Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana is created by Silpakorn University students.

“The monarch is highly revered as a divine king, a tradition influenced by Hinduism and Buddhist beliefs. Therefore, the royal crematorium hall must be a grand and imposing building designed to ascend to heaven – a symbolic representation of Mount Meru, which is the centre of the universe in Buddhist cosmology.

An old photo shows the grandeur of the royal wood crematorium of King Rama IV in prang (Khmer-style tower) style and was taller than the central prang of Wat Arun.

“During the early Rattankosin era, no crematorium was grander, taller and larger than that of King Rama IV whose crematorium hall reached a height of more than 80 metres, making it taller than the central prang (Khmer-style tower) of Wat Arun,” says Patsaweesiri Preamkulanan of Silpakorn University’s Faculty of Archaeology.

King Rama V, however, considered that the massive size of the royal crematorium required tons of wood and wasted both manpower and money and ordered that his own crematorium be scaled down so that it fitted better with Siam’s opening to the world.

King Rama V scaled down the size of his royal crematorium, which was designed in busabok style and became the model for the crematoria of his successors. 

“Instead of the usual prang-style pavilions, King Rama V’s royal crematorium was done in shape of |busabok and served as a model for later Kings.

“Though the late King Bhumibol’s funeral brings great sadness to the entire nation, it’s a rare occasion for all of us to witness a revival of Thai traditional arts and architecture and thus be able to pass that knowledge on to the next generation,” says Patsaweesiri.

Splendours of the past

The exhibition “Phra Merumas of the Rattanakosin Period” continues until October 31 at Silpakorn University’s Wang Tha Pra campus. Call (02) 623 6115-21 or visit http://www.Su.ac.th.

Learn more about King Bhumibol’s royal crematorium and the cremation ceremony at http://www.KingRama9.th.

The figures, who project an air of innocence and a pollyanish sense of contentment, look to be in the midst of living happy and prosperous lives, but there is something amiss lying just underneath the surface of the paintings. The most easily distinguishable signal is given in the form of the twisted branches of the peach blossom trees featured in many of the paintings. They are in full bloom, which brings associations of spring and renewal, but the unnatural positions of the branches suggest a conscious contortion that has distorted what was once beautiful and pure.

Tam chooses to use Dong Ho folk paintings in the background of many of his works as an overarching symbolic representation of traditional Vietnamese culture. The traditional themes of these paintings include good luck signs, historical figures, folk allegories and popular stories. The compositions tend to reflect the lifestyles and concerns of a rural people living in close commune with nature. Most commonly associated with Tet, Dong Ho paintings have long been used in Vietnam by craftspeople to express their concerns about social, political and cultural issues. As a metaphor for cultural loss, Tam’s choice of these paintings is an apt one. Once produced by hundreds of craftspeople in a number of villages of Northern Vietnam, the practice has all but died out.

While Tam’s is an essentially conservative vision, his work should not be viewed as an indictment of Western culture, which he calls “civilised, progressive and compelling.” Rather, the artist is disturbed by the less positive side effects of Vietnam’s modernisation including the rampant consumerism and narcissism the process has engendered.

Find out more at http://www.CThomasGallery.com http://www.CThomasGallery.com.

THE WHOLE world will have its eyes trained on Thailand on October 26 as the country pays a final farewell to His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej in a ceremony that can trace its roots back to the Ayutthaya era.

As tradition demands, the Royal Cremation will be held on the open field known as Sanam Luang to the north of the Grand Palace, which has served as the royal cremation ground since the founding of Bangkok on April 21, 1782. The event will not only stun international viewers with its splendour but make its own mark on history with the grandest royal crematorium ever constructed, solemn ceremonies as well as public performances designed to pay a final tribute and farewell to the former monarch and accompany his soul to heaven.

About 3,000 artists will take part in public performances portraying the greatness of the monarch in front of the crematorium and on three stages on the North side from 6pm on cremation day until 6am the next day and signal the end of the official mourning period.

“The traditions disappeared after the reign of the King Rama VI but were revived during the reign of King Rama IX. Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn ordered that the tradition of all public performances be preserved for the Royal Cremation. These traditions first reappeared during the royal cremation of the Princess Mother in 1996,” says drama expert Chaovalit Soonpranon, chairman of the performance committee for the Royal Cremation.

In the Rattanakosin period, public performances took place for the first time during the Royal Cremation of Somdet Phra Pathom Borommahachanok, the father of King Rama I, in 1796. They were discontinued in the reign of King Rama VI for the Royal Cremation of King Rama V, according to the government website, Rama9.net.

Records show that public performances for the occasion have included the khon masked drama, apuppetry, shadow plays, Chinese opera, Mon dances, thep thong dances, stunt shows and acrobatics. For this occasion, the government is not only sticking to tradition but also adding more unique performances as the country honours the late Monarch’s artistic talents.

“In order to preserve our rich culture, Princess Sirindhorn this time ordered the Culture Ministry to revive all our artistic traditions to honour the late King as the Supreme Artist. His literature is being adapted into traditional Thai dance and modern ballet, while live orchestras will again play his compositions,” Chaovalit explains.

The most significant of these unique arts include the revival of the centuries-old royal puppet performance, the grandest outdoor khon mask dance, a neo-classical ballet based on the King’s musical compositions and traditional dance based on the King’s literature.

There will also be a special khon performance of the Ramayana epic at the ceremonial ground in front of the Royal Crematorium and the Songtham pavilion. His Majesty King Vajiralongkorn, Princess Sirindhorn and other Royal Family members will witness the historic performance up close.

More than 300 dancers will stage the “Phra Ram Crosses Over the Ocean” and “At the Battlefield” episodes of the ancient epic and wrap their performance with the “Blessing Dance” in a tribute to the late King’s dedication to the country.

Dozens of live music, puppet shows and dances will be performed on the three stages set up at the northern end of Sanam Luang.

The highlight is the royal puppet performance, which will take place at the side nearest the Supreme Court. The puppets will be performing for the public for the first time in 150 years, since the reign of King Rama IV. The newly made puppets, created using ancient methods by artisans at the Fine Arts Department, will proudly showcase a tradition that was first performed during royal cremations in the Ayutthaya period.

The Fine Arts Department, with the help of young puppet expert Kamol Karnkitcharoen, has played an important role in reviving the art form.

“Work on recreating the four main characters – Phra (actor), Nang (actress), Yak (demon) and Ling (monkey) actually started last year in the hope that we would be able to perform in front of King Bhumibol. Unfortunately, he passed away before we had a chance to do so,” Kamol says

“This show will be the first public performance since the preservation process was completed. We are grateful to be able to revive this almost extinct heritage and perform to pay our greatest respects and honour to our beloved King Bhumibol who preserved our arts and culture throughout his life. This will preserve our heritage for the next generation too,” says the 40-year-old puppet master.

The performance, which is based on the Ramayana, will see three traditional khon dramatists manipulate the synchronised dancing of the five-metre-tall wooden puppets with 20 strings during a 20-minute prelude. The puppeteers and their assistants are hidden behind the moveable stage and all the audience can see are the puppets dressed in beautiful costumes as they dance.

This will be followed by the telling of Sunthon Phu’s romantic epic “Phra Abhai Manee with hun khrabok (hand-manipulated small puppets).

Breaking the tradition of the royal puppet show being performed only by men in the court, Ancharika Noosingha, 43, is the first Thai woman to preserve this art form.

“As they are heavy with complex strings, the puppeteer must be able to skilfully manipulate the puppets in synchronising the dance movements. When I perform, I become the puppet,” says Ancharika, who has been training hard over the last few months.

“We are grateful to be given this rare performance to deliver the soul of our beloved monarch to the heavens,” adds Pairoj Thongkumsuk, his eyes brimming with unshed tears.

A theatrical adaptation of the Monarch’s popular literary work “Mahajanaka” will also be staged as well as the “Gold and Silver Flower” Thai classical dance, the classical court drama (Lakhon Nai) telling the story of Inao, a legendary prince in East Java, and a play based on the supernatural kinnaree (half-bird and half-human) princess called Manorah.

A live orchestra made up of almost 1,000 musicians, singers and choral singers will present a classical music concert entitled “Tha Keu Doungjai Thai Tua La” (“His Majesty is in the hearts of all Thais of the Land”) featuring the music composed by the late King as well as songs written to honour him on the stage in front of Thammasat University.

This too is the venue for the highly anticipated ballet “Manorah” based on the late king’s 1961 composition of the same name.

Leading choreographer Suteesak Pakdeedeva has given the one-act ballet a neo-classic style and auditioned the best ballet principals from all over the country for this special show. The 29-minute-ballet will performed by 99 dancers to the sound of music performed by 89 members of the orchestra and 89 choral singers.The number is based on the age of the King when he died.

“The Royal Ballet Manorah is recognised as an East-meets-West masterpiece. Our king was very talented, effortlessly blending the classical dance ‘Phra Suthon-Manorah’’ a play from Thailand’s south with modern ballet. He composed the “Kinnaree Suite” featuring five tunes, namely the ‘Nature Waltz’, ‘The Hunter’, the ‘Kinnaee Waltz’, ‘A Love Story’ and ‘Blue Day’,” Suteesak says.

The King then ordered Khunyiing Genevieve Damon, a French ballerina married to an American diplomat, to choreograph his ballet, while Pierre Balmain designed the extravagant costumes for the main characters. It was staged at Suan Amporn near the King’s Rama V statue in 1962 and has since been restaged on special occasions. Suteesak, 58, performed a cameo in the ballet more than a decade ago.

“The new performance will bring a contemporary look to the show. The audiences will see marigolds, the King’s flower, and the vetiver grass he used to protect the land from flooding and drought. The dancers will be dressed in outfits designed by Tube Gallery, which blend the modern with classic Thai costumes,” he adds.

The stage, which is at the northern end of Sanam Luang, will also present a shadow puppet show and a khon performance by artists from the Office of Performing Arts, along with teachers and students from 12 Colleges of Dramatic Arts and the Bunditphatthanasilpa Institute. Other khon performances of episodes from the Ramayana organised by the Foundation of the Promotion of Supplementary Occupations and Related Techniques under royal patronage will also be staged.

This year, the royal khon troupe will for the first time perform for two hours on an outdoor stage in the northern part of Sanam Luang. The performance is a type of khon chak, meaning it is performed in a theatre with the elegantly painted backdrops changing as the story proceeds. It will feature about 1,400 performers and crew.

The exhibition will feature more than 400 portraits and sculptures of the beloved Monarch by National Artists the late Sawasdi Tantisuk, Pratuang Emjaroen, Tawee Rujaneekorn, Preecha Thaothong, Vichok Mukdamni and Chuang Munphinit as well as Jitsing Somboon, Chatchawan Rodklongtan, Chusak Wisanukamron, Thanom Chantakruea, Tawee Kesangam, Sanan Rattana and Prateep Kochabua.

The event also features a series of special works on the theme “Painting Number 9” created by Tawee Rujaneekorn, Vichok Mukdamni, Chuang Munphinit, Sakwut Wisesmanee, Prateep Kochabua, and Prasong Luemuang. They will be on sale at Bt9,000 apiece.

Some of the paintings on display will also be reproduced on paper and canvas. The limited edition of 99 pieces on paper will go on sale for Bt999 apiece while the limited edition of 19 reproductions on canvas will go for Bt6,999. All proceeds will be used to purchase medical equipment for Siriraj Hospital’s Navamindrapobitr 84th Anniversary Building.

The official opening will take place tomorrow at 4.30pm at the Fountain Court on the Ground Floor of Seacon Square Shopping Centre on Srinakarin Road.

Dating from around 1500, “Salvator Mundi” — which depicts Jesus Christ as the world’s savior — was long believed to be a copy of an original by the Italian master, until it was eventually certified as authentic.

Fewer than 20 works by Da Vinci, whose art was already highly sought after during his lifetime, have survived to this day — all of them held in museum or institutional collections, with the exception of “Salvator Mundi.”

As a general rule, very few pre-19th-century artworks remain in private ownership, and it is extremely rare for one of them to be offered at auction.

“For auction specialists, this is pretty much the Holy Grail, no pun intended, but it doesn’t really get better than that,” said Loic Gouzer, co-chairman of Christie’s Americas post-war and contemporary art department.

A third party guarantee has been arranged for the painting, which ensures it will sell for around the estimate of $100 million on November 15, said Francois de Poortere, head of the Christie’s old masters department in New York.

The work will travel to Hong Kong, San Francisco and London, before spending three days on display in New York leading up to the sale.

According to Poortere, “Salvator Mundi” — which measures 45×65 cm (26×18 inches) — was last sold to an unnamed European collector following a historic Da Vinci exhibition at London’s National Gallery in 2011-12.

Mining a common theme, next month’s auction will begin with the sale of the massive “Sixty Last Suppers” by pop artist Andy Warhol — which depicts Da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” 60 times over, and is offered with a $50 million estimate

THE LIVE and ephemeral nature of theatre means that no matter how hard the actors attempt to repeat their performance on different evenings, one will always different from the others. And as the artists and the audience share the space and time, whatever one does affect the other.

In my three decades of theatergoing, I have experienced a number of “magic moments” and their effects last a long time afterwards – as does my memory of them. Thanks to Japanese-Thai actor-playwright-director Shogo Tanikawa’s “No Moon Night No Moon Day 2017”, which ended its run at Blue Box Studio last weekend, another has just been added to this list.

The director (Thanee Poonsuwan, right) discusses how theatre works with his struggling actor (Shogo Tanikawa, left).PHOTO: NAPHATRAPEE SUNTORNTIRNAN

The date was October 13, 2016, in the early evening. A new play was about to premiere, news arrived via smartphones and the director had to cancel the performance. An actor stood up and started singing the royal anthem – and the surtitle read exactly so – and the other three actors and the director joined him.

My theatregoing companion suddenly turned to me, whispering, “Should we stand up?” And as our legs were moving, we saw two audience members in the second row already up. The house lights were not up, to prompt our participation, but all members of the audience that Saturday afternoon stood. It was a special moment more memorable than peculiar as it connected with our lives.

Three evenings later, I was attending the German Unity Day reception organised by the German embassy. Before the speech by the German ambassador, a minute of silence was called in remembrance of our late King and was followed by a choir’s singing of our royal anthem and the German national anthem.

Kanokwan Intharaphat was the most subtle and the most effective.

The “No Moon Night No Moon Day 2017” effect was still strong and the singing exceptional: I found myself listening to and interpreting each word very carefully, as if I had never heard our royal anthem before. In recent years, I’ve heard people question why at such an event our royal anthem has replaced our national one. Also, I’ve witnessed more and more Thai people not standing up for the royal anthem in the cinema and more theatre performances without the royal anthem, all for various personal, artistic and political reasons. In this regard and in a country governed by a constitutional monarchy, “No Moon Night No Moon Day 2017” was clearly the opposite.

Actress (Nithiwadi Tanngamtrong) made special somtum for her director and fellow actors before the play.

That said, the two-hour-and-20-minute play, heartfelt as it was, could have been much shorter, had the director found time to vary its pace and tighten some pauses, which were more abundant than necessary and led to occasional boredom. That’s easier said than done, though, as his character was onstage almost the entire time, and to solve this Tanikawa might have had to ask another director to stage it. This director would also be able to help hone the acting styles to better fit this intimate theatre studio, with actor Kanokwan Intharaphat being more natural than the others ?.

Tanikawa’s signatures in playwriting and directing remained intact here. They ranged from placing emphasis on the surtitle screen making sure that the various nationalities in the audience could understand and enjoy his play in Thai, English and Japanese and that his character faced upstage in silence for a while to that his heavily accented Thai could be mocked by other characters. In another touching moment that was not at all political, this play, like his previous ones, was also partly auto-biographical as his character wasn’t ready to declare his love for a younger actress although he looked very ready.

Stages will go dark in the next few weeks out of respect for the late King and the government’s curb on entertainment, though the “tourist shows” are still on, business as usual. That doesn’t mean Thai theatre artists will stop working, though: the year’s biggest event will start exactly one week after the royal cremation.

A MAJOR FEST COMING SOON

“Bangkok Theatre Festival 2017: Sharing Moments” is from November 2 to 19 at Bangkok Art and Culture Centre (BACC), Sodsai Pantoomkomol Centre for Dramatic Arts, Democrazy Theatre Studio and a few other venues.

A more international part, the inaugural “Bangkok International Performing Arts Meeting (BIPAM)” is from November 14 to 18.

For more details and tickets, visit http://www.BangkokTheatreFestival.com