Nora Thailand
Nora is a form of
traditional, folk performing arts that is popular in the southern region of
Thailand. The main elements and characteristics of Nora are the costume and the
music.
(Nora Photo)
Nora costume
comprises a soet for the principal performer–the “nora yai”. The costume is
made of beads in various colours arranged in patterns and motifs, to be worn as
a shirt. Other components and decorations are the pik nok aen or pik neng (a
pair of wings attached to the costume), thap suang (pendant), pik or hang hong
(a decorative tail wing), pha nung (wrap-around skirt), sanap phlao (a pair of
calf-length trousers), pha hoi na (front-hanging pieces of cloth), pha hoi
khang (side-hanging pieces of cloth), kamlai ton khaen (armlets), kamlai plai
khaen (bracelets) and lep (“fingernails”-fingertip extension pieces). These are
the costume and decorations for the principal character, who is called the nora
yai or nora yuen, while the khrueang nang or the costume for the female
characters does not have armlets, pendant, or wings.
Nora orchestra
comprises mostly percussion instruments: a pair of thon or thap Nora (tuned
onesided drums) with slightly different sounds, which are beaten by one
drummer. This pair of drums is the most important instrument in the orchestra
because it controls the tempo and leads the orchestra when the tempo has to be
changed to accommodate the performer’s movements; a drum, to complement and
provide counterpoints to the sound of the thap Nora drums; a pi chanai (a kind
of Thai oboe); a pair of mong (medium-sized gong) or double gongs; a pair of
ching (a pair of small cymbals); and a pair of trae (a pair of claves [hardwood
sticks]).
Nora is divided into
two types: Nora for ritualistic ceremony, called Nora Rong Khru, and one for entertainment.
Here are the different characteristics:
(Nora Photo)
Nora for ritualistic
ceremony or Nora Rong Khru is a very important ritual dance for the Nora professionals.
It is performed to invite the spirits of the Nora past masters to the
ceremonial stage during the rite to pay homage to them, to make votive offering
to them, and to initiate novices–the new generation of Nora performers. This
type of Nora is further subdivided into two kinds: Nora Rong Khru Yai and Nora
Rong Khru Lek. The Nora Rong Khru Yai is the full version of the ritual dance,
which lasts three days and nights. It usually starts on a Wednesday and ends on
a Friday and it must be performed every year or every three or five years, depending
on the belief of different Nora schools. The ritual performance of Nora Rong
Khru Lek lasts one day and one night. It usually begins on a Wednesday evening and
ends on a Thursday.
The distinctive characteristics of Nora for entertainment
1. Each Nora
performers must show off his or her dance skill and talent by blending the
various steps and poses together seamlessly without corrupting or deviating from
the correct poses and steps; proficiently change the steps or movements in
response to the musical rhythm/ tempo; dance gracefully slow or swift as
appropriate. Some performers may show off their special talents such as the contorted
movements of the body and the limbs, or their invented movements.
2. Nora performers
must show off his or her singing talent in various ways. They must sing the
verses in a clear voice, correct tempo, with emotion, and must be able to improvise
the verses quickly, with good content and good rhyme. They must be able to
improvise and sing witty verses in response.
3. Nora performers
must show their skills in interpreting the sung passages into dance steps or postures.
The sung part and the dance movement must match well, and must use a wide range
of dance vocabulary to capture every nuance of the sung verses. The singing and
the dancing must correspond to the musical tempo and style perfectly.
Interpreting the sung passage into a dance movement, which is called Tham Bot,
therefore represents the epitome of Nora art.
4. Nora performers
must also be skilled in the “specific dances” which may be performed in some occasions
such as in the rite to pay homage to the past masters or in Taeng Phok Phuk Pha
Yai rite. Some specific dances are performed only in a competition; some in
Long
Khru or Rong Khru ceremony, some in
votive offering. Examples of the specific dances are: Ram Bot Khru Son, Ram
Phleng Thap Phleng Thon, Ram Phleng Pi, Ram Kho Soet, and Ram Khlong Hong.
5. Normally Nora
performances do not focus on telling a story. However, with enough time to
perform, a story might be told to entertain the audiences. Episodes from
well-known stories might be depicted, but the costume does not correspond to
the story. More focus will be paid to the comic interludes and Nora-style verse
singing to tell the story.
(Nora Photo)
In the performance of
Nora for entertainment, each Nora troupe has its own customary sequences of the
piecesto be performed for each occasion, starting from:
●
Tang Khrueang (playing an invocation music; after setting up the orchestra in
place, music will be played to invoke the deities and spirits in that place in
order to ask for permission to perform Nora at that place);
● Hom
Rong (overture);
● Kat
Khru or Coen Khru (a song to pay homage to the teachers, past masters and
benefactors and to tell the history of Nora development);
●
Entrance of the female dancers (there might be 2 to 5 dancers), which has the
following sequence:
- Kiao Man or Khap Na Man, in which
the performers sing the verses from behind the curtain, without being seen by
the audience;
- Ok Rai Ram (“Entrance of the Dancers;
Beginning to Dance”), in which the performers come out to show off their skill
and special talents;
- Nang Phanak (“Sitting on the
bench”);
- Wa Bot Rai Trae;
- Tham Bot (interpreting the sung
passage into a dance movement);
- Wa Klon (showing skill in
improvising verses, dance skill is not emphasized), which will be called Wa
Kham Phrat if the verses were prepared and are recited from memory, and Wa
Mutto if they are improvised;
- Ram Uat Mue (“Showing dance
talent”) and exit;
(Nora Photo)
● Ok
Phran (“Entrance of the Hunter [Comedian]”) is the entrance of the comedian, an
important character that adds humorous moments to the show;
● Ok
Tua Nai Rong (“Entrance of the Principal Performer/Character”) Nai Rong or Nora
Yai is the troupe owner/manager and principal performer. He will show off his expertises
and talents in dance, singing, and in improvising verses as befits his position
as the principal performer. In case of a competition, the Nai Rong will perform
the rites of Khian Phrai (“Flogging the Sprites”) and Yiap Luk Nao (“Stepping
on Lime Fruits”) as a hex or spell on the rivals and to boost the troupe’s
morale;
● Ok
Phran–this is performed again to tell the audience what story will be depicted;
● Len
Pen Rueang (“Depicting a story”); Today, both types of Nora are still
performed. Nora’s costume and dance steps and postures have unique identities.
Besides its entertainment and the ritualistic values, Nora also serves as the
media to disseminate news, messages and information to the people, because it
can easily access and communicate with the people. Nora therefore remains the
preferred type of performing arts for the southerners and continues to be
popular even in the fast-changing world of today. Examples of prominent Nora
troupes are: Khruen Noi Dao Rung of Trang Province, Nora Nom Boran Sin of Phatthalung
Province, Lamai Si Raksa of Songkhla Province.
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