DP Theatre - Research Presentation (first assessment 2024): Kathakali, India

This is a comprehensive introduction to Kathakali stage conventions. Information on make-up, music, acting, and training is also provided, to make this a useful volume for both the specialist and non-specialist reader. (Link is to WorldCat.)

the author K. K. Gopalakrishnan takes us on a journey of Kathakali form of Indian traditional dance, covering its evolution during the last two centuries. Kathakali originates from Kerala in South India. It brings up an energetic performance equipped with a typical set of elaborative costumes and drumming exercise. The artistic composition of each dance-theatric performance is a matter of hard practice and commitment. Thus, the author elaborates the process of dance-drama making, where visually appealing make-ups and costumes for each main character get a high attention. A comprehensive account of traditional as well as neo-classical forms of Kathakali dance. (Link is to WorldCat.)

Personal experiences of a kūṭiyāṭṭaṁ performer from Kerala, India

Contains librettos for twelve Kathakali plays, eight based on stories found in the epic Ramayana and four based on stories from the epic Mahabharata. Link is to PDF on Pilaar's website for Kathakali Plays in English.

Volume 2, Daksha Yaga and Nala Charita, contains librettos for five plays: Daksha Yaga and Nala Charita, First Day, Second Day, Third Day and Fourth Day. For Daksha Yaga (The Sacrifice of Daksha), a long play of many moods and characters written in the early Nineteenth Century, Pilaar's collaborator/translator was Kalamandalam John. Link is to PDF on Pilaar's website for Kathakali Plays in English.

Volume 3, Tales of the Pandavas and Other Great Kings, contains librettos for five of the longer and/or more complex plays based on the epic Mahabharata and written between the late 17th and the late 19th Centuries. They all feature the five noble Pandava princes and their wicked cousins, the Kauravas. Link is to PDF on Pilaar's website for Kathakali Plays in English.

olume 4, Tales from the Bhagavata Purana, contains librettos for ten Kathakali plays which celebrate the power and glory of Bhaghavan Mahavishnu, the “preserver” god of the Hindu trinity of great gods (Siva, Vishnu and Brahma), called “bhagavan” because he possesses the six bhagas or majesties. Vishnu’s preserving power is manifested in ten incarnations, the most beloved being the human avatar Lord Krishna. Seven of these plays are based on stories in the Bhagavata Purana about Lord Krisha, while one is about Vishnu’s fourth incarnation, the man-lion avatar Narasimha. The other two plays are based on ancient puranas that portray the way deep devotion to Vishnu helps a man to vanquish the temptations posed by worldly desires and untruthfulness. Link is to PDF on Pilaar's website for Kathakali Plays in English.