- 1. Makyung is a form of Malay traditional dance theatre
combining acting, dance, singing, drama, romance and comedy in a
single presentation. This form of dance theatre is believed to be
originated from the old Malay Kingdom - stretching from the Patani
region of southern Thailand through Kelantan, a north eastern state
of West Malaysia.
2. The art ofMakyung performance is handed down through the
generations, whose teaching were memorised by a handful of actors,
musicians and comedians. One of the unique features of this dance
theatre is that the main characters are all women, and the men play
the peripheral characters to add humour and side relief to its
intricate web of multiple plots. 3. Most roles are performed by
women. The performing troupe usually has four leading actresses who
play the parts: King, the Hero, the Queen and the Heroine. Female
actors played the roles of the court attendants or even the roles
of prince as well as princesses. The men were usually given the
parts as of The comedians Ogres or demons. Two of these men would
play lead comedians, while the others would act in a supporting
roles. 4. A typical Makyung performance opens with an offering
followed by, dances, Acting music as well as improvised monologues
dialogues. A single story can be presented over several consecutive
nights in a series of three-hour performances. 5. In the
traditional village setting, the performances are held on a
temporary open stage build of wood and palm leaves. The audience
sits on three sides of the stage. The fourth side being reserved
for the orchestra consisting of the Rebab (a three-stringed spiked
fiddle), a pair ofGendang (double-headed barrel drums) Tetawak (a
pair of hanging knobbed gongs). The stories in Makyung are based on
ancient Malay folk tales consist of royal characters, divinities
and clowns. Makyung is also associated with rituals in which
shamans attempt to heal through song, trance-dance and spirit
possession. 6. A favourite form of entertainment in the palace
courtyard of Kelantan and Patani. Makyung was often performed for
members of the Royal family and aristocrats. However, it wasnt
until the beginning of the 19th century that the court performance
of Makyung was made available to the public as well. 7. MAK YONG
RITUAL There are two ritualistic performances in Makyung theatre.
The opening and closing sections of the play are the only parts
that contain these rituals. In the case of multiple performances,
each troupe would need to conduct their own individual offerings.
The origins of Makyungs rituals are rooted within an animistic
beliefs framework. Over the course of time, these rituals witness
the influence of Islam as practitioners are mostly Muslims
themselves. 8. Mak Yong used to be performed outdoors in the space
known as Bangsal a heightened platform/ proscenium stage with
audience facing one side of the stage. Normally, these outdoors
performances for the general public. Indoor performance is also
possible, for court performances and recently various social
events. MAK YONG TYPE OF SPACE 9. In general, the nature of stage
space has not been standardised. The performance of Mak Yong does
not require specific stage space as the nature of the performance
could be flexible. The space/ soil upon which the platform is built
should be cleansed by the troupe leader who is normally the Peran
Tua or any other appropriate individual. 10. MAK YONG TYPE OF SPACE
11. INSIDE THE COURT 12. MODERN SPACE 13. STAGE SETTING There is no
backdrop in a Makyung performance. Very often, the same backdrop
will symbolise a general setting of the entire play. There are no
set changes from the beginning till the end of the performance.
This reflects the symbolic / anti-realism nature of the play. 14.
ACTOR PAK YONG 15. PERAN TUA DAN MUDA 16. THE WISE MAN 17. PRINCESS
18. COURT ATTENDANT 19. MAK YONG PROPS ROTAN BERAI 20. WOOD DAGGER
21. DANCE AND DANCER There are various dances in the play. For
instance, during Menghadap Rebab, only thePak Yong, Mak Yong and
Jung Dondang take part. In Sedayung Mak Yong, the queen will sing,
whose dance is accompanied by the rest during that particular
section. Other dance sections include wedding ceremonies, various
specific character dances of the play such as those by the Pak
Yong, Peran Tua and Peran Muda. 22. MENGADAP REBAB 23. SEDAYUNG MAK
YUNG 24. ACTING AND TECHNIQUE OF MAK YONG The acting technique
employed in Makyung performances is mainly based on improvisation.
There is no script for the dialogue. 25. MAK YONG REPERTOIRE There
are 15 stories: Dewa Muda Dewa Pecil Raja Besar Senyanya Endeng
Tejeli Anak Raja Gondang Raja Bongsu Sakti Gading Bertimang Raja
Tangkai Hati 26. Dewa Indera Indera Dewa Raja Dua Serupa Raja Muda
Lakleng Dewa Panah Raja Muda Lembik Raja Besar Raja Timun Muda 27.
MAK YONG TEXT Traditionally, there are no actual written scripts
for the Mak Yong Theatre. The texts, referring to scripts and
songs, are handed down orally, similar to most Asian traditional
theatre. However, when Mak Yong was adopted into the academia,
scripts began to exist mainly for teaching and studying purposes.
There are two textual concepts in the play. 'Ucap Tetap are fixed
dialogues whereby the texts are standardised in all the plays
utilising old classic Kelantanese language and is not colloquial.
The other textual concept are non-standardised dialogues and songs
that could be varied by the actors. The latter textual concept
could consist of simpler texts based on current street language
which is less formal in nature. 28. MAK YONG PERFORMANCE
PERFORMANCE STRUCTURE ( IN SEQUENCE ) Performance structure (in
sequence) : Bertabuh Menghadap Rebab Sedayung Pak Yong Sedayung Mak
Yong Pak Yong summoning Peran Tua Peran Tua summoning Peran Muda
Pecah Cerita The End 29. The performance structure here refers to
the narrative of the play which excludes Buka Panggung and Tutup
Panggung which are standardised performance rituals. The Buka
Panggung are not necessarily an opened performance for the public.
It is much more elaborated compared to Tutup Panggung in which the
audience get to view but may not necessarily comprehend. 30. MAK
YONG SONG Music in Mak Yong consists of songs - accompanied vocal,
and purely instrumental music. The songs function to explain the
content of the Mak Yongs narrative, introducing the characters and
various dramatic and theatrical elements. Instrumental music is
purely incidental to portray various dramatic moods as well as
accompaniment to various dances. The opening music known as Lagu
Bertabuh, functions as an overture, a form of instrumental warm up
and indication of the beginning of the performance - a call to
performance. 31. MAK YONG INSTRUMENT 32. REBAB 33. GENDANG IBU DAN
ANAK 34. TETAWAK IBU DAN ANAK 35. MAK YONG TYPE OF DANCE A Mak Yong
performance often begins with Lagu Menghadap Rebab which is an
opening song for the performance and ends with any optional dance
such as Tarian Ragam (for a wedding scene or a happy ending). 36.
MENGADAP REBAB 37. MAK YONG MOVEMENT AND GESTURE The movement
postion of a Makyung dance is primarily influenced by and related
to the natural environment as well as its surroundings. This
movement position when integrated with the movement of the head,
torso and legs form the basis of Makyung movement repertoire as
listed below: Duduk bersila tangan sembah (Anjali) Tangan susun
sirih Tangan burung terbang Tangan gajah lambung belalai Tangan
ular sawa mengorak lingkaran 38. Tangan seludang menolak mayang
Tangan sulur memain angin Tangan liuk kiri longlai ke kanan Berdiri
di tapak tiga mengadap ke timur jaga Tangan sirih layah dijunjung
Kirat penghabisan Langkah turun dari kayangan Langkah naik ke
kayangan Pak Yong berjalan
