THAI DANCE, EXPLAINED
Two Thai dance dramas are on UNESCO's heritage list.
Khon, the masked dance drama of the old courts, was inscribed in 2018. Nora, the acrobatic dance theatre of southern Thailand, followed in 2021. Both tell long stories through movement, music and costume rather than spoken lines alone.
KHON + NORA UNESCO listed 2018 and 2021
THE SHORT ANSWER
Khon grew up in the royal courts.
Nora belongs to the communities of the south.
KHON
Khon tells episodes of the Ramakien, the Thai version of the Ramayana epic. UNESCO describes it as combining music, voice, literature, dance, ritual and handicraft.
Meet the rolesMASKS
Giants and monkeys wear masks that cover the entire head, and the colours and shape of each mask are unique to the character.
See the numbersMUSIC
Khon is danced to a piphat classical xylophone ensemble, with singing and narration. Nora uses a southern oboe, drums, gongs, cymbals and wooden clappers.
Read about NoraMEET THE ROLES
Pick a performer to see how they appear. The bar shows how much of the dancer is hidden behind mask and costume.
Based on the UNESCO Khon nomination file, the UNESCO and UN Thailand descriptions of Nora, and a V&A collection record.
TWO NUMBERS WORTH KNOWING
One figure on training for Khon,
one on the age of Nora.
8 years
Full-time training to master the repertoire
According to the Khon nomination file, boys and girls start at about eleven and take eight years of full-time training to become fully qualified dancers.
KHON TRAINING · UNESCO
500+ years
Age of the southern tradition
UNESCO's description says Nora is over five hundred years old and is still passed on by masters in homes, community groups and schools.
NORA · UNESCO
Khon was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2018, and Nora in 2021.
FOUR THINGS TO LOOK FOR
You do not need to know the whole epic to enjoy a performance. These details help you follow what is happening.
In Khon, mask colour and shape tell you which giant or monkey you are watching.
Khon is enacted through dance while singers and a narrator carry the words of the story.
The piphat ensemble or Nora's oboe and drums set the pace for every entrance and fight.
Nora lead dancers move legs, arms and fingers in vigorous, elaborate patterns, extended by long metal nails.
NORA, FROM THE SOUTH
Nora is dance theatre with improvised singing from southern Thailand. A performance usually opens with a long spoken invocation before the lead character dances, and the stories are often about the former lives of the Buddha or legendary heroes.
It is performed at community centres, temple fairs and cultural events, in regional dialect, music and literature, and UNESCO describes it as a practice that reinforces social bonds among local people.
Questions
Khon is Thailand's masked dance drama. UNESCO describes it as a performing art combining musical, vocal, literary, dance, ritual and handicraft elements, telling episodes from the life of Rama.
Khon tells the Ramakien, the Thai version of the Ramayana epic: Rama's journey in the forest, his love for Sita, his army of monkeys and his battles with Thosakan, king of the giants.
According to the nomination file, men dance the male characters, giants and monkeys, while women dance the female humans and deities. Students are selected for role types partly by physique.
Museum examples are papier-mâché, painted and gilt. The V&A's 19th-century mask of Rama is painted green with a gilt pointed crown inset with mirror glass.
Nora comes from southern Thailand and is community-based. It is lively and acrobatic, with improvised singing, a bird-like costume and a fast ensemble led by a southern oboe.
Sources
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