Indian theater already existed in a fully formed form at the beginning of our era. Therefore, it had to undergo a long development, the history of which is, unfortunately, poorly known. Indian theater grew up on Indian soil and is quite original. Sketchy data historical legends and ethnographies suggest that an important source of its genesis were spectacular mass performances during religious festivals in honor of certain gods (especially Indra and Shiva); The theme of the performances was myths about the exploits of these gods. The holidays themselves went back to the archaic rituals of hunters and farmers and were accompanied by songs and dances. Another source can be considered comic scenes of an everyday nature, played out during the breaks of the main holiday and intended to amuse the audience.

Over time, such performances, which have changed and largely lost their religious character, begin to be played out not only during holidays, but also outside of connection with them - in market squares, in the palaces of kings and nobility. The court theater, intended for a narrow circle of spectators, and not for a mass audience, developed special forms of theatrical art, a specific repertoire and significantly moved away from its basis - folk art. It is about this theater that we have more detailed information.

The heyday of classical Indian theater was the first nine centuries AD. During the Gupta era, special treatises on theatrical art began to appear, in which the tasks of theater and theatrical performances were examined in detail, various genres theatrical works, etc. One of these treatises, the Natyashastra, attributed to Bharata and dated by scientists to the first centuries of our era, has survived to this day. Natyashastra is rightly called the encyclopedia of ancient Indian theater. It discusses various issues related to theatrical art. For example, about the origin and functions of natya - dramatic art and dance, about types of plays, body language, acting skills, the art of facial expressions, the architecture of buildings that housed theaters, stage technology, how plays were staged, makeup, costumes, music , as well as about various bhavas (feelings) and rasas (moods).

The play could have from one to ten acts. There were many varieties of one-act plays, for example bhana (monologue), when a single character talks with an invisible character, or prahasana (farce), which in turn was divided into two types: high farce and low farce. Moreover, the heroes of both high and low farce were courtesans and rogues.

Special theater buildings (natyashala) have not survived, although they existed. There was no scenery, the props were minimal. The viewer got an idea of ​​the environment in which the action took place from the actors’ remarks and facial expressions. In ancient India, plays necessarily had to be performed in a small room, since the actors' performances were based on a highly stylized sign language, consisting of subtle movements of the eyes and hands. Ancient Indian performing arts were characterized by this “... complex and carefully developed sign language, which was learned by actors over many years of training and was designed for a sophisticated audience.”

There were two directions in Indian theater: lokadharmi and natyadharmi. In lokadharmi, that is, realistic theater, man and his character were presented as they are in real life. The audience of this theater was the widest strata of the people. Natyadharmi, or stylized drama, used sign language and symbolism and was considered more artistic.

Structurally, ancient Indian drama was a complex work. The prosaic text was interspersed with poetry, especially lyrical monologues of the characters and moral maxims. Song numbers and dance scenes were frequent. There were no ideas in the unity of time, place, and action. Events that took place on the same day or that were distant from each other by many years could be depicted. The action took place either indoors, sometimes on the street or city square, sometimes in the forest or in heaven. The number of actors could be different. They belonged to very different strata; Celestials, jesters, kings, slaves, rishis, hetaeras, monks, wars, professional thieves, merchants, etc. could be shown on stage. All this gave great opportunities to the playwright to choose a plot and develop it.

But there were also restrictions for creative imagination playwright, corresponding to the type of drama he chose. There were several of these types, but the main ones were nataka and prakarana. The first was distinguished by its sophistication and was intended mainly for the court theater. Its subjects were famous heroic or love stories, borrowed mainly from the epic. The hero in the attack had to be a king or a deity in human incarnation. Murders, battles, and even more so such undesirable events for the selected audience as riots and palace coups. There were satirical plays, farces. All this indicates that in ancient times Indian drama was distinguished by a variety of genres and was associated with folk art, and was more democratic in nature than in the Middle Ages, when the Indian theater suffered creative impoverishment, and by the 12th century. - almost complete disappearance.

Plays were supposed to have a happy ending. Characters should have spoken different languages and dialects - according to their position and education. Kings, Brahmins, Kshatriyas were explained in Sanskrit. All women and commoners used the so-called dramatic prakrits. There were seven of them, and there was a certain order in which Prakrit was to be used by which character: Shauraseni was the language of women of high social status and men - average; Magadhi - the language of the lower classes; in Maharashtri those who spoke Shauraseni in prose were explained in verse, etc. Index high level development of theatrical art in ancient india- special theoretical treatises. One of them has reached us - "Natyashastra" ("Treatise on the Art of Theatrics"), probably compiled in the 2nd - 3rd centuries. AD and attributed to Bharata, of whom, apart from his name, nothing is known.

They say that to create Natyashastra, it is considered the fifth Veda, Bharata took the word from the Rig Veda, the gesture from the Yajur Veda, the music from the Samaveda, and the inner state of mind from the Atharva Veda. It must be said that representatives of lower castes did not have the right to read the Vedas, and therefore Brahma ordered the creation of the fifth Veda for them, i.e. treatise on theatrical art. However, it can be assumed that theater existed in India long before the advent of Bharata, otherwise it is difficult to find logical explanation the fact that a treatise on drama was created, if its creation was not dictated by the need, to explain the spontaneous existence of the theater.

A simple village resident could not do without music, dance, and acting. His simple art was connected with and at the same time complemented daily rituals, festivals that occurred at one time or another of the year, and was an integral part of the rituals associated with natural life person: birth, maturity, wedding, death.

The People's Theater is nothing more than a reflection ordinary life people inhabiting the vast subcontinent. The main instrument of communication with the audience in this theater is the actor himself, his body and those states of mind, which he can express with a unique orchestration of arms, legs and torso, voice, gesture, and emotions. Of course, the goal of a traditional theater actor is for the viewer to feel the feelings that the actor is trying to portray. To do this, he selects material that can evoke aesthetic empathy, and uses all the means available to him on stage to achieve contact with the audience.

The main purpose of the theater was to provide aesthetic pleasure (rasa) to the audience. Ancient Indian drama in general is not characterized by open staging of acute public issues. There are rare clashes of characters, outbursts of feelings, castigating satire or angry denunciation. The general tone in the surviving plays is soft and subdued. But even at the same time in the best dramatic works the authors were able to show the truth of life, the complexity of its manifestations and the dramatic tension of situations

One of the most interesting in ancient Indian drama is Shudraka's play (IV-V centuries) "The Clay Cart" ("Mrichchhakatika"), which provided the author with an honorable place in the history of ancient Indian theater and literature. The drama tells about the love of the impoverished brahman Charudatta and the hetaera Vasantasena, a love that overcame all social obstacles erected by difficult life circumstances. The plot is taken not from mythology, but from life itself; the main characters are not gods and kings, but ordinary people. The author holds the idea that true nobility, honesty, devotion and sublime love inherent not only upper layers society, but also no less to ordinary people. The humanistic and democratic thrust of the play, which belongs to the prakarana type, is clearly opposed to the complacent style of the nataka court drama. In addition, “The Clay Cart” also describes events that other ancient Indian playwrights tried to avoid: there is an attempted murder, the overthrow of a king, and popular unrest. It is unknown who the author of this wonderful work was, but the drama itself provides sufficient grounds to consider him a truly popular writer.

One of the pearls of ancient Indian literature are the works of Kalidasa (late 4th - early 5th century AD) - a poet, playwright and writer, whose work is a bright page in the history of world culture. Translations of Kalidasa's works became known in the West in late XVIII V. and were immediately enthusiastically received by the readers.

The end of the ancient period saw the flowering of religious poetry. The poems praised the ideal of ascetic life, detachment from everything worldly, and the illusory nature of existence. Kalidasa, chanting life with all its joys and sorrows, opposed the religious ascetic ideas of his time. An entire movement of Indian literature that followed humanistic ideas about harmony human personality and an optimistic outlook on life, is associated with Kalidasa. Without breaking with the previous tradition, Kalidasa acted as an innovator in many respects. That is why his work has been so understandable and close to the people of India for many centuries.

When Europe became acquainted with the first examples of ancient Indian drama, many scientists wrote that Indian theater ancient Greek origin. However, it has now become completely clear that theater in India arose independently, regardless of external influences. Moreover, the Indian theatrical tradition is older than ancient times and theoretically much richer. Indian theater differed from Greek theater in its temperament and production concept. The Trinity, which the Greeks strictly followed, was completely unknown to the Sanskrit playwrights. Sanskrit drama with her side stories and with numerous characters and moods it took up more time than the three tragedies and farces that the Greek theater successively offered its audience. The Greeks gave priority to the plot and lines of the characters, while the Indian theater focused on the four types of performing arts, plasticity and gestures. For the Greeks, people were a participating audience, for the Hindus they were third-party spectators. Aesthetic canons were also different. The Greek concept of tragedy is completely absent in Sanskrit drama and also aesthetic principle, according to which the viewer should not see the death or defeat of the hero on stage.

Indian theater belongs to oldest theaters world: its theory and practice were developed around the 2nd century. BC e. He is not only original, but also carried this originality through the thickness of centuries. The mastery of classical Indian theater is so delicate that it is almost impossible for representatives of other countries and peoples to master it.

IN general outline Indian theater in historical and factual terms can be divided into classical Sanskrit drama, folk theater and European theater.

There is an opinion that classical Sanskrit drama is to some extent connected with classical Greek art, which penetrated into India as a result of the campaign of Alexander the Great (backdrop on theater stage the period of formation of classical Sanskrit poetry was called “yavanika”, that is, “Greek”). But there is no direct evidence of this. Be that as it may, but in the 2nd century. BC e. the fundamental work of the sage Bharata appears, “Treatise on Theatrical Art” (“Natyashastra”), which examines such issues as artistic and expressive means of ritual and stage actions, including movements and chants, musical accompaniment of dances and songs, description of musical instruments, principles of creation dramatic works, theory of versification, history of performing arts, etc. Natyashastra is written in the poetic form of couplets.

Classic drama (attack) had ten canonical varieties:

1) actually attack with a plot from popular tales;

2) prokarana with a plot invented or revised by the author;

3) samvakara with a plot from tales of gods and demons;

4) Ikhmrita with a plot borrowed or partially composed by the author about a hero who seeks to unite with his beloved;

5) Dima s a borrowed plot about various mythological creatures;

6) vyayoga - one-act drama with a borrowed plot of comic or erotic content;

8) prahasana - a one-act farce play with a plot from everyday life;

10) vithi - a one-act play, differing from bhana in the number of performers (two or three).

The first Indian playwright is considered Ashvaghosha(II century AD). But classical drama reached its greatest flourishing during CaliDase(IV century AD). Besides Kalidasa, the names of five other famous playwrights are mentioned: Shudraka, Harsha, Visakhadatta, Bhasa and Bhavabhutna.

Classical drama reached its peak period in the 4th-5th centuries. n. e. By the 8th century. it fell into disrepair. However, the oldest continues to live today traditional theater Kerala they're talking there, while maintaining his own actor training school.

Folk theater is another specific phenomenon for Indian theatrical art. Most likely, it arose as a kind of synthesis classical drama, patronized by rulers, and folk mysteries, supported by ordinary people.

European-style theater in India has its own specifics, which distinguishes it from European theaters in our understanding of the word. In India there are no opera, no ballet, no stationary drama theaters with their permanent troupe, extensive repertoire and long-term existence.

European-style Indian theater is heterogeneous and extremely unstable in terms of acting troupe and repertoire. According to Indians, real date The foundation of a European-style theater in India dates back to 1831, when Prasanna Kumar Thakur opened the “Hindu Theater” (“Hindu Rangmanch”) in Calcutta, staging an English translation of the Sanskrit drama “Uttar Ramcharitam” by playwright Bhavbhuti (7th century AD).

The first European theaters staged only English plays and only for Englishmen (Indians were prohibited from entering). However, in 1852 the first " Theater company Parsis", and although the performances of these and some other theater troupes were performed mainly on English language In order to attract the English-speaking public, their content was based on material from Indian classical literature.

A special role in the development of modern theater was played by the Parsi community, which dominated theater business almost the entire 19th century. The Parsi theater sought to become mass, so it staged plays that met the interests of the general Indian public. Along with prose plays, musical dramas were also staged. The literary material of the first plays left much to be desired. They were sometimes replete with naturalistic episodes when they cut people up on stage, cut off their heads and hung them. In addition, the characters in the plays often committed suicide. Such bloody melodramas were reminiscent of modern horror films and pursued the same goals - to greatly tickle the audience's nerves. However, with the advent of authors whose native language was Urdu (Parsi theater performances were staged in Gujarati), there was a noticeable improvement in the literary content of the plays.

A special place in the theatrical life of India is occupied by the musical and poetic dramaturgy of R. Tagore, who tried to combine traditional Indian drama with its canonical musical accompaniment with elements of Western music, introducing into his first play “The Genius of Valmiki” (premiered in 1881) the melody of a march, which became the leitmotif of the action. In Tagore's play for the first time in the history of Indian theater female role performed by a high-caste girl (Tagore's niece). In a similar vein, R. Tagore wrote several more dramas, some of which are still included in the repertoire of Indian theaters, especially Bengali ones.

According to experts, modern Indian drama has concentrated on covering the following issues: main problems human existence in India, the decline of morals and morals, the relationships of individual people in modern society. In some places there is a merging of folk and modern theater. Plays in regional languages ​​break language barriers and become a pan-Indian event. There are also talented playwrights writing in English. Thus, the play received international recognition Manjuly Padmanabhan"Bitter Harvest"

Despite many existing difficulties, modern Indian theater undoubtedly lives and develops.

Painting, music, theater of India.

World artistic culture, 10th grade.

• What is unique about Indian art?

Art of painting

Main rules for artists:

• observe the scale and proportions of objects in the outside world,
• achieve expressiveness in depicting psychological experiences and emotions,
• convey the beauty and grace of the surrounding nature.
• Main – to cultivate sublime feelings in people and best qualities character.

Murals in 29 cave temples of Ajanta - a panorama of Indian life.

Murals in the cave temples of Ajanta

• The main place in the paintings is occupied by episodes of the life of Buddha and Jaitaka, stories from previous lives Buddha.
• We see princes, ceremonial rides on elephants, receptions of ambassadors, walks. Life is also captured here. ordinary people: peasants, beggars, hermits.
• Bright, colorful, noisy life, among lush vegetation, surrounded by exotic animals, deities, celestial dancers and musicians, is filled with jubilation and the joy of being.

A young man with a lotus flower.

Botisattva is the supreme deity

Jaitaki -stories from previous rebirths of Buddha

Book miniature India

Indian epics - "Mahabharata" and "Ramayana"

Features of the book miniature:

• accurate rendering of the plot
• multi-figure composition
• background – conventionally decorative landscape

The works of Indian miniature artists differ

• richness of shades,
• clarity of the drawing,
• artistic sophistication

taste.

• “A person who knows neither music, nor literature, nor any other art is an animal, even without a tail and horns.”
• Classical music dates back to 1500 BC.
• The hymns of “Rogneda” were used to create songs about the change of seasons.

• At the core Indian music lies- raga(passion, color, affection)
• Raga is a melodic idea with appropriate intonation (mood).
• Raga (diurnal cycle) is associated with a specific time of day and is intended to evoke a state or feeling common to man and nature.

• Main instrument - human voice.
• Guilt (musical instrument) – the queen of instruments, resembles the human voice with its sound.

Music of India

Metal plates

• Drums

• Tabla

• The theatrical art of India originated several thousand years ago. Bronze figurine dancing girl, found during excavations in the city of Mohenjo Daro, dates back to the 3rd millennium BC. e. It was ritual dance that became the core around which Indian classical theater was formed.

• Indian tradition connects the beginning of the theater with the name of the legendary Bharata, directly inspired by the god Brahma: at the request of the gods, Brahma decided to create the fifth Veda, accessible to all classes; combining Word, Mode, Action and Feeling, taken respectively from the Rig Veda, Samaveda, Yajur Veda and Atharva Veda, Brahma created and wrote down through the medium of Bharata this “Veda of Dance and Drama” in the Natyashastra.

Veda (Bharat)

aesthetics

• recitation

Highest goal: achievement race- that is, aesthetic pleasure

• Main tasks : to teach and entertain.

• Reasons : Religious holidays, court celebrations, births, victories, etc.
• Subjects : folk legends and legends, heroic deeds, love.
• Troupe: main actor, singers, musicians, dancers.
• Role: heroes and heroines, ministers and jesters.

• Actors, having lost state support, became storytellers, acrobats, jugglers and singers. Appeared puppet theaters: shadow, puppets, cane, rag dolls.

• A characteristic feature of the Indian performance is the unity of music, singing and dance.

• Dance from Sanskrit (ancient Indian literary language) – "tandi", "tandava" - means " hit, clap.Hence the German "tans""English "dance" and Russian "dance".

• Dance was born from God Shiva - the cosmic king of dances.
• The connection between God and people was carried out through dance.
• During the construction of the temple, premises for dancing were provided.
• Among the paintings of temples there are images apsaras - heavenly dancers .

Classic system dance (treatise "Natyashastra")

• Rules: special types of gaits, gestures, postures and facial expressions.
• Conveying emotions:happiness, anger, disgust, fear, sadness, courage,

compassion, wonder and peace.

• Dance sign language- wise :37 hand positions, 13-head, 9-neck, 10-body, 36-eye.

Syncretic nature of the dance (music. poetry, dramatic art. pantonym)

• Topics: conveying the state of nature, emotions, religious and secular.
• Ritual (temple ) WITH Vetskie .

• How true is the statement that performing arts of India is a synthesis of literature, music, facial expressions and dance?
• What are the features of the development of the art of music and dance in India?

India has the world's longest and richest theater tradition, stretching back at least 5,000 years. The origins of Indian theater are closely linked to the ancient rituals and seasonal festivals of the country. The Natyashastra (2000 BC - 4th century AD) was the earliest and most complex treatise on drama and dance worldwide. Traditionally, the Natyashastra asserts that Indian theater is of divine origin, and its origins are attributed to the Natyaveda, the holy book of drama created by Lord Brahma.

In the Natyashastra they were collected and codified different traditions dance, pantomime and drama. Natyashastra describes ten classifications of drama, ranging from one-act to ten-act. No book of ancient times in the world contains such an exhaustive study of drama as the Natyashastra. It has guided playwrights, directors and actors for thousands of years, as in Bharata Muni these three were inseparable in the creation of the Sanskrit drama Natyaka, the name of which is derived from the word meaning dance. In traditional Hindu drama, the expression of the content of the play was achieved through music and dance, as well as through action, so any production was essentially a combination of opera, ballet and drama.

According to legend, the very first dance was performed in heaven when the gods, having defeated the demons, decided to celebrate their victory. Hindu theorists have staged two types of dance performances since ancient times: lokadharmi (realistic), in which the dancers on stage depicted human behavior, and natyadharmi (conventional), which used stylized gestures and symbols (this type of dance performance was considered more artistic than realistic) .

Theater in India began with a descriptive form and therefore recitation, singing and dancing became integral elements of theatre. This emphasis on narrative elements led to theater in India beginning to embrace all other forms of literature and visual arts in its physical manifestation: literature, pantomime, music, dance, movement, painting, sculpture and architecture - all mixed together and began to be called "natya" or "theater".

THEATER OF ASIAN COUNTRIES. Theaters in Asian countries are not alike. Each country has its own language, its own culture, its own national traditions. And yet, there is something in common that brings the theatrical art of these countries together.

The culture of India, China and Japan evolved over thousands of years, preserving the main features of the previous ones in subsequent stages. That is why theatrical art is called traditional, revealing in it even today features of an earlier time.

In India, China, Japan and other countries at the dawn of mankind, a number of similar ideas about the world around us and about man developed. Then Heaven, Earth and Man were perceived as a single whole, where the laws of the Cosmos dictated their own conditions, which man sought to comprehend and follow. Following these laws, theatrical art was formed. To embrace the immensity, to demonstrate the unity, the completeness of the world, is not an easy task. She required a special system expressive means, which was based on the principle of symbolization. The stage gesture, musical accompaniment, stage space, makeup and decor of the stage costume were symbolic. Unity was also expressed by a special form of theater - musical drama, which combined speech, singing and dance. This synthesis formed the stylistic device of the grotesque, subordinating stage movement, dance, and manner of singing and speech.

A special role was played by the system of religious beliefs, especially Buddhism, which came from India first to China and then to Japan, enriching Chinese and Japanese literature and poetry, and, of course, drama with Buddhist stories. Buddhism influenced the style of symbolic gesture, expanding its semantic palette.

The origin of theatrical art in India, China and Japan is closely connected with religious ritual, which influenced the formation of the theatrical canon. He established strict rules of stage art and actor's skill, requiring the performer to master all types of acting techniques.

Indian theater

Early evidence of the emergence of theatrical art was a bronze figurine of a dancing girl, found during excavations in the city of Mohenjo-Daro in the 3rd millennium BC. It was ritual dance that became the core around which Indian classical theater was formed. The model for the dancer was the image of the dancing Shiva, in whose dance the creative and destructive energy of the Universe was manifested.

In Ancient India theatrical performances- part of a holiday dedicated to the gods, for example, the thunder god Indra. A “banner” was erected in his honor, which symbolized a tree brought from the forest. After the ceremony, he was drowned in the river to give strength to the earth and water. The festival was attended by musicians, magicians, wrestlers, tightrope walkers, and funnymen, who were called “ nata" Later, this was the name given to professional actors, mention of whom has been found in Indian literature since the second half of the 1st millennium BC.

Long before new era In India, a folk theater developed, which is still popular today. One of the most common forms of such theater in northern India is music and dance drama ( Leela– translated from Sanskrit as “game”). According to Hindus, all actions of God are a game. At the core lil two Indian epics were written Mahabharata And Ramayana, consisting of collections of myths about the deeds of powerful gods, their struggle against evil demons. Next to God Rama is always his assistant - the monkey king Hanuman. Ethnic cloth Mahabharata tells about the struggle of two warring clans - the Pandavas and the Kauravas. The struggle lasts until the god Krishna intervenes on the side of the offended, ending the enmity with the victory of justice. Performers perform in colorful costumes and masks. The action takes place without scenery. Ramalila and Krishnalila are popular in India even in the modern period.

In the south of the country, another form of mystery theater developed, associated with the art of temple storytellers - Chakiars. They recited verses in Sanskrit and then explained the text in the local language. The narrator used facial expressions and gestures. Later he was replaced by an actor, accompanying the recitation with dancing. The performance was called kutiyattam(Sanskrit “collective dance”).

In the middle of the 1st millennium BC. classical Indian theater arose. Its heyday was between the 1st and 9th centuries, when famous works of Sanskrit drama were created. The most famous playwrights are Bhasa, Kalidasa, Shudraka. The dates of their lives are approximate; the information of researchers sometimes differs by centuries. Of the thirteen works of Bhasa (2nd or 3rd centuries), the best are considered Vasavadata appeared in a dream- a play about the love of a king for his wife Vasavadata.

Authorship of the famous Clay cart(presumably 4th century) attributed to King Shudraka. The play was performed on the stages of many theaters around the world even in the 20th century. The play tells the story of the love of an actress-courtesan for the Brahmin Charudatta, a man belonging to the highest caste and also married. This plot went beyond the traditional. After many trials, the lovers were reunited.

The pinnacle of dramaturgy of Ancient India - drama Shakuntala Kalidasa (in some sources Sakuntala). The plot of the play about Shakuntala's loyalty and love for King Dushyanta came from Mahabharata, but was supplemented and expanded by Kalidasa for more dramatic development of the storyline. The performance has been preserved not only in modern theaters India, but also went around the stages of theaters around the world: it was staged in Berlin; in 1914 in the chamber theater of A. Tairov; in 1957 - in Beijing.

A special form of Indian theater is classical dance, which includes speech and sometimes singing. It was through dance that God Shiva created the world. One of the temples has a famous image of dancing Shiva. The columns depict 108 of his dancing poses, which are mentioned in the theatrical treatise Natyashastra.

One of the most ancient styles - bharat natya reached us thanks devasi – temple dancers who dedicated their lives to the deity. Over time, dance became a means of entertainment for the feudal aristocracy and the name “devasi” became synonymous with courtesan. The dance was a combination nritya(dance-story) and snritta(dance in its purest form). Then an interlude was performed ( paddam), in which the dancer conveys with gestures the content of a song performed in Sanskrit. The semantic polyphony of the interlude was born from the singer’s repetition of the same line, to which he gave different interpretations, and from the dancer’s various interpretations of the same text.

BHARAT NATYA – classical dance South India

ODISSI - classical dance of eastern India

In the 15th century in Northern India there is a classic dance style Kathak. By that time, a state had emerged in which the Muslim conquerors had assimilated, giving impetus to the fusion of Muslim and Hindu art kathak was the result of the fusion of two cultures. The dance was performed in Persian costumes, but was a continuation of the legends about the love of Vadha and Krishna. Unlike bharat natyam, where the movements of the legs are synchronized with the movements of the arms and eyes, kathak built on improvisation. It is characterized by skillful foot movements, variety and complexity of rhythms. To test the dancer's skill, the drummer masks the main rhythm from time to time. In turn, the dancer strives to change her rhythm, trying to throw off the rhythm of the drummer. The play of rhythms ends with the general agreement of dance and rhythmic accompaniment, which is always accompanied by the delight of the audience.

MANIPURI - classical dance of North-East India

In the 17th century Theater is born in South India Kathakali. A pantomime dance drama about gods and demons, their love and hate. The performance is given either in the temple courtyard or under open air. Its spectators are peasants from the surrounding villages, who leave their nightly worries and affairs as soon as they hear the sound of the drum. The theatrical performance is given against the black background of the night. Characters in bright makeup - green, red and black - appear from the darkness and disappear into the darkness. Make-up and its drawing have symbolic meaning, well known to the viewer.

CLASSICAL DANCE OF SOUTH INDIAN

Characters kathakali are divided into seven types: paccha– noble heroes; catty – arrogant and arrogant; redbeards- villains and ambitious people; white-bearded, most often these are advisers to the monkey king Hanuman - a noble and heroic image; blackbeards– forest people and hunters; kari – evil giantesses and female demons; minukku – sages, hermits, brahmins and women.

KATHAKALI CHARACTER – Monkey King Hanuman

Mastery kathakali learned from childhood under the guidance of a guru. The actor learns to understand the inner essence of what he is portraying, be it a person, a flower or a bird.

As for theatrical theory, the first Sanskrit treatise on theater was the work of the ancient sage Bharata Natyashastra (Treatise on the Art of the Actor). Scientists date the appearance of the treatise to the 3rd–4th centuries. Until now, the rules established in this book remain the law for Indian actors of all generations.

According to the treatise, there are four main means of expression: angika,mudra,Wachika,aharya.Angika – a language of conventional gestures of the hands, fingers, lips, neck and feet. Thirteen movements of the head are prescribed, seven movements for the eyebrows, thirty-six for the eyes; six for the nose, six for the cheeks, seven for the chin, thirty-two for the legs. Various leg positions and various gaits are provided - a stately gait, mincing or weaving, etc. Mudra - a gesture that has symbolic meaning. There are twenty-four basic gestures, each of which has over thirty different meanings. . Wachika– diction, intonation and pace of speech that create a certain mood. Aharya – canonized color and details of costume and makeup. For the gods and heavenly maidens - orange makeup, for the sun and Brahma - golden, for the Himalayas and the Ganges - white. Demons and dwarfs wear horns - deer, ram or buffalo. People's makeup depends on their social status and caste. Representatives of the highest castes - Brahmins and Kshatriyas - have red makeup, Sudras - dark blue, kings - pale pink, hermits - purple.

MUDRA - a gesture with symbolic meaning

Theatrical component sattvika- these are mental states conveyed by the actor (bhava), and the mood of the audience after what they saw on stage ( race). An actor must get used to the feelings of his character and be able to convey the subtlest experiences, for which he must master the acting technique. The ability to shed a tear, to show how the skin of the face tightens from the cold, how a shiver runs through the whole body from fear, i.e. masterful acting technique can evoke a certain mood in the viewer. The entire aesthetic concept of Indian performing arts is based on the teaching bhava And race. Literally, the word "rasa" means taste or taste, i.e. the mood that remains with the audience after the performance. Race There are nine kinds: erotic, comic, sad, angry, heroic, terrifying, disgusting, amazing, soothing. Each race indicated by a specific color: in order - transparent greenish, white, ash gray, red, light orange, black, blue, yellow. Nine race match nine bhava, which in turn can be stable or transient.

Natyashastra written in a difficult-to-read archaic form and has been accompanied by many commentaries over the centuries.

In the second half of the 19th century. A new dramaturgy and a new dramatic theater are emerging in India. The first attempts to create a new dramaturgy belonged to the Bengali playwrights Dinobondhu Mitro, Modhushudon Dotto, Ramcharainou Tarkorotnu. Their works were distinguished by their social depth and anti-British orientation. At the same time, theater groups appeared in other provinces of the country. The formation of Hindi drama is associated with the name of Bharatendu Harishchandra, whose work combined the traditions of national and Western European drama.

The ideas of the national liberation struggle and the demand for independence are reflected in the works of S. Govindas ( Path of Service, Why suffer? and etc.). In the 1940s theatrical life countries has become significantly more active. Association is being created folk theaters India, whose activities had a significant impact on the development of theatrical culture in the country. After independence was established in 1947, conditions for development were created in India, as traditional forms theatrical art and for dramatic theater. The Indian Academy of Music and Drama has been established, which carries out scientific work in the field of theatrical art. The best works of world drama are staged in Indian theaters, including Shakespeare, Ibsen, Moliere, Turgenev, Gorky, and Chekhov.