31 May - 1 June 1996
SOAS, London, UK
By S. Blackburn
The lectures presented were as follows: A Critical Survey on Performance Studies in
South India (S. Blackburn, SOAS); The Evolution of the Kuravanci Genre
(I. Peterson, USA); The Catu Tradition in South India (D. Shulman, Israel, and
V. Narayana Rau, USA); Storytelling in Performance (V. Naidu, Birmingham);
The Evolution of Bharata Natyam (R. Nagaswamy, Madras); Performing
Arts in Visnu Temples in Tamilnadu (F. Hardy, King's College); Performance
in Dalit Visual Art (G. Tartakov, USA); and Procession in a Medieval Tamil
Poem (D. Ali, SOAS)
Papers and subsequent discussions focused on three primary questions. The most heated
debate centred on the invidious distinction between "folk" and "classical" in the performing
arts. Several speakers pointed out interactions, borrowings, and mutual influences between
these supposedly separate traditions, although few were able to dispense with these labels
altogether. Realizing that some distinction is useful we explored possible criteria for
classification by posing a series of questions: Are there formal, intrinsic criteria for
differentiating performing arts? Or, should we group them according to public perception of
their social status? Similarly, are there regional patterns of performance that are distinct from
patterns in other regions? Is there, indeed, anything like a "South India" pattern to
performing arts? The second question concerned the value of a sociological versus a religious
approach to performance: some speakers favoured an event-centred approach, whereas others
preferred to seek meaning in the ritual and religious significance of a performance. For
example, is a Bharata Natyam performance an important part of a young woman's marital
eligibility as well as an expression of religious devotion? Does the one cancel or supersede
the other? A third issue discussed was the need to orient research to the performers' and
patron's perspective; examples from the teru kþttu folk theatre of Tamil Nadu
and the Dalit artists of the northern Deccan provided evidence of the value of such an
orientation in order to identify the intentions and aesthetics of the performers or makers of
art.
Drummers
"One performance is worth ten papers," remarked one participant after everyone viewed two
spectacular performances held during the symposium in the new Brunei Gallery at SOAS.
In the morning of the first day, Sankaran Mara's troupe of thayambaka
drummers from northern Kerala displayed their virtuosity; the four cenda (barrel) drummers
and two illatþlam (cymbal) players demonstrated complex patterns and remarkable physical
coordination. In the afternoon, Shambu Hegde and his troupe from Uttara Kanara District
in Karnataka performed Yaksagana theatre. Selecting the gadþyuttam episode
from the Mahabharata, the company of nine actors and three singers and musicians held the
audience spellbound for two hours with their sensitive portrayal of the "villain" (Duryodhana)
and the overweening pride of the victorious Pandavas. Following each performance, the
performers answered questions from the audience (sometimes in translation). These sessions
provided the audience with valuable information about the historical development of these
arts, the performers' perspective on audience, and various technical issues. Much more of
this sort of dialogue and understanding between scholars and performers, it is obvious, would
refine our understanding of performing arts.
The two-day symposium was followed by yet another two-day event, a conference on the
Sacred and Royal Art and Architecture of Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu, hosted by
the British Museum and the Cambridge Project on Kumbakonam (see page 21). Both these
conferences were held in conjunction with the larger Festival of India's South which was held
through London during May and June.
Dr S. Blackburn is affiliated to the Centre of South Asian Studies of SOAS, London. He can be reached by email at: SB12@SOAS.AC.UK