FROM KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA: It was as if the dancers were flying in the air, standing on one foot. As the show started, holding the air captive, they began dancing like dolls as they wanted to keep time still.

On the evening of Saturday (September 12) I arrived at the KuAsh Theatre Hall at the Tuanku Bainun Creative Centre in Taman Tun Dr. Ismail along with a friend Saiful Islam, a Bangladeshi youth who has established himself in a software company here in KL. Initially, Saiful seemed bored accompanying me. Perhaps it was natural that a stage performance by Burmese artists may not appear attractive to those unfamiliar with the art.

But soon, Saiful bhai became amazed at the flying performance of the Burmese artistes. His joy reverberated, surpassing everything.

The show began at 8.30pm Kuala Lumpur time. First, the musicians came on stage. The audience was simply charmed by their surprising and varied performance. The musicians transformed the night into something heavenly. The hall was filled with joy by their tunes. It was as if the sound of the bass-metal instruments and the tune of flutes were taking us in the deep heart of Myanmar.

This variety of dance of Myanmar is known as ‘Zat Pwe’. The famous dance theatre troupe Shwe Mann Thabin of Myanmar took part in the DiverseCity Kuala Lumpur International Art Festival, as part of the traditional programme curated by PUSAKA.

The dance performance ‘Zat Pwe’ included themes that ranged from Buddhist meditation and the invocation of the "Nat" spirits to the Ramayana of Hindu mythology. It also included courtly and folk dances.

‘Zat Pwe’ is an artistic presentation of Myanmar’s rich traditions, cultures, history and imagination. It emerged as early as the end of the 18th century. Actually it is a mixture of acting on themes of Buddhist mythology and life, opera, music and dance. The traditional folk culture of Myanmar is also presented through ‘Zat Pwe’, through the specialized performance of ‘hna pa thaw’. ‘Hna pa thaw’ is the total chronological presentation of performance, music and farce.

‘Shwe Man Thabin’ is an integral part of this tradition. The legendary Burmese artist U Shwe Man Tin Maung founded this troupe in Mandalay in 1933.

Within a short time, a combined troupe of several generations started presentation of Myanmar’s unique cultural heritage. They enchanted the audience with their songs, performance and farce.

The performance of the prayer dance began with the kindling of lotus-shaped oil lamps, much like the ‘mangal pradip’ of our Tagore, presented by Burmese artist May Tin Maung San Win and Malaysians Pauline Fan and Lilianne Fan. This revered dance begins showing regard to Lord Buddha through the kindling of ‘mangal pradip’ and the making of offerings.

Traditional dances of ‘Lamini pu zaw’, ‘Two pote par princes’ and spiritual dance ‘Pa khan kyaw’ were also staged at the show.

The next dance presented five types of Burmese dance. It was almost like a doll dance, based on the fairy tales of Jataka, which used to be presented in the Burmese royal court. The dances reflect the lives of the Buddhists. But the artists take part in the dance instead of dolls. Their dancing was doll-like, joyous and enchanting.

The costumes of the performers irrespective of men and women of this troupe are similarly decorated, with dazzling dresses and ornaments.
Next was the colorful duet doll-dance, which was like watching a human puppet show. The dancers mimicked puppet movements, standing on one foot, dance-flying while keeping another foot in air. Puppets have a special place in Burmese traditional dance, as it is believed that humans learned to dance from puppets.

Besides, the dances of Three Seasons, dance of relativity of time, the 'Bagan dance’, a medicine-man dance and dances of expressing the comic pleasure of villagers were also staged.

After intermission, the show continued with a presentation of excerpts of the Ramayana, known as Yamayana in Burmese. Scenes of the exiled life of Yama (Rama), Thida (Seeta) and Lakna, the enchantment of Thida by the golden deer, the abduction and seduction of Thida by the demon king Thadagiri (Ravana) hypnotised the audience.

The Ramayana has a great impact in Indian culture. In KuAsh hall, the presentation of the Ramayana simply kept the whole audience of two hundred captivated.

It was as if this troupe of Burmese dancers and musicians had the whole world in their grip by their skillful performance. The artistes seemed to fly in the air, in a world of magic and dazzling beauty. The New York Times has termed this presentation as a beauty that surpassed time.
After the show I could not talk much with the world famous dance master U Win Maung.

However, I had the privilege to meet this great artist at Medan Pasar of Kuala Lumpur a few days later on Sunday. He told banglanews that traditionally Zat Pwe performances used to start in the evening. The audience was kept in enjoyment throughout the night by the skillful dazzling performance of the artistes. Only when the sun begins to rise did the Zat Pwe end.

Master U Win Maung said that if he ever gets any invitation from Bangladesh for a dance performance he would be keen to accept it. He is also very knowledgeable about Indian dance and was also familiar of the songs and dance inspired by our great poet Tagore.

Video Link:

http://m.youtube.com/watch?list=PLMNP3yvy3ud8yq029BVPNMp7JVvFcWjXN¶ms=OFIAVg=eU2qVR31Wel&mode=NORMAL.

BDST: 1414 HRS, SEPT 20, 2015
Shahjahan/RR