Showing 31 - 40 of 110
A Thai twist on the Bard
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 14/09/2017
» Who wouldn't be excited when some of Thailand's greatest living comedic actors gather for a Shakespeare romp? And even though the vivacious and capable cast of Dreambox's Thai-language production of Twelfth Night (or as it's alternatively known, What You Will), deliver a generally entertaining show, the play at times suffers from its own inhibition and faithfulness to the Bard's text.
Chit Phumisak, on stage
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 07/09/2017
» Splashing Theatre returns to the stage with Teenage Wasteland: Summer, Star And The (Lost) Chrysanthemum, a play inspired by the life and work of Chit Phumisak. At times moving, at times frustratingly obscure, Thanaphon Accawatanyu's ambitious new creation makes a subtle statement about institutional violence against Thai youth and political dissidents.
A story for our times
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 07/09/2017
» Under oppressive regimes, artists are often forced to turn true stories into metaphors or disguise them in the stories of others to escape censorship, or much worse fates. The atmosphere of fear and the sense of stagnation perpetuated by such rule can have such insidious effects that the practice of wrapping true stories in the safe veil of the cryptic sometimes crosses into self-censorship and becomes habit-forming.
Life's agonies, magnified three-fold
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 24/08/2017
» Theatre director Bhanbhassa Dhubthien may not be known for novel or subversive interpretations of plays, but she has always worked with good actors, from whom she draws out the kind of nuanced performances we don't often see here in Thailand. She has also worked with texts of varying degrees of difficulty and ripeness. So even when the writing fails, her actors can always steer the production from complete disaster.
Intensity-free performance art
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 10/08/2017
» A performance can sometimes feel like a celebration or a smashing party where friends revel in each other's presence, acquaintances deepen their bonds and strangers plunge into engaging conversations with one another. As a gathering, OTW Theatre and For What Theatre's Sand Castle Party: A Journey Performance succeeded.
Beaming a light on human absurdity
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 10/08/2017
» The latest adaptation effort by playwright-director Parnrut Kritchanchai revolves around the Moon, or rather, around five lonesome souls one Full-Moon night. It is also Parnrut's continued exploration of the melodrama genre in all its manifestations.
A slow death
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 03/08/2017
» When Tassakorn Seepuan staged his adaptation of the Greek film Dogtooth at Take-off Festival 2015, a curated platform that showcases work by new graduates, he impressed with strong choreography and clever handling of taboo political topics.
Touch, move, interact, open up
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 20/07/2017
» Even when they're about violence, Dujdao Vadhanapakorn's shows always feel inviting. Perhaps it's because of her therapy background (Dujdao is Thailand's first dance movement psychotherapist) that she likes to create the kind of space -- physical and emotional -- that invites you to touch, move, interact or open up.
The joyful, melancholic plastic dance
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 15/06/2017
» Without much direct contact with the human hands, French multidisciplinary performing-arts company Non Nova breathes life into plastic bags. And slowly, a ballet emerges.
Something in the air
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 08/06/2017
» When Phia Ménard and her company Non Nova first came to Thailand in 2011 with P.P.P., they were playing with ice. This time, they are playing with wind. As part of La Fête, Non Nova is presenting L'Après-midi D'Un Foehn, a ballet of plastic bags set to Claude Debussy's composition of the same title, and Vortex, a performance exploring identity and transformation. The two shows continue today and tomorrow at the Sodsai Pantoomkomol Centre for Dramatic Arts, Faculty of Arts, Chulalongkorn University.