Lakhon Phanthang: In Between Traditional Theatre And Educational System In Thailand

Abstract

In the past, lakhon phanthang emerges as a commercial theatre in Siam in the nineteenth century however  at  present  it  is  named  as  a  Thai  traditional  theatre.  Under  the  Thai  traditional  theatre label,  lakhon  phanthang  has  been  selected  to  present  on  the  various  Thai  dance  curricular  in Thailand  in  order  to  preserving  and  developing  the  traditional  dance-drama  form.  This  paper examines  the  transmission  of  lakhon  phanthang  to  the  young  generations  through  the  dance educational  system  in  Thailand  by  focusing  on  the  existing  of  lakhon  phanthang  at  three universities;  1)  Bunditpatanasilpa  Institute  2)  Suan  Sunandha  Rajabhat  University  and  3) Chulalongkorn  University,  which  are  the  prominent  institutions  in  providing  traditional  dance and  theatre  education  in  Thailand.  The  finding  represents  the  reflection  of  the  role  of educational institutions in the codification of performance. The process of learning and teaching lakhon  phanthang  are  proposed  as  a  set  routine  rather  than  a  creative  opportunity.  Dance  and theatre  education  in  today‘s  educational  system  does  not  encourage  the  development  of traditional forms but is seen primarily as a means of preserving them.