The good, the bad & the beautiful

Back in Bangkok, after touring the Netherlands and Norway, where they entertained dance fans with “Tam Kai” and “Nijinsky Siam”, the Pichet Klunchun Dance Company is now busy preparing to stage “Black and White” for a local audience.
The piece, which had its world premiere at the Esplanade - Theatres on the Bay’s “da:ns festival 2011”, has been seen in Groningen, the Netherlands and Zurich, Switzerland but never in Thailand.
“Those who have watched ‘Ganesh’ and ‘Tam Kai’ will find ‘Black and White’ very different and may not like it as much,” Pichet says. “However, those who enjoyed ‘I Am a Demon’ will enjoy it very much.”
Programme notes describe “Black and White” thus: “Inspired by the battle scenes of Ramayana murals, Thai choreographer and dancer Pichet Klunchun explores the inherent human struggle between good and bad. To Pichet, the poses in these murals depict pivotal moments in the characters’ endeavour for balance. This work embarks on a search for the delicate equilibrium of opposing forces, which must be found to achieve inner peace.”
The first work ever commissioned by the Esplanade from a Thai company, “Black and White” saw the troupe spend a month in Singapore as artists-in-residence putting the final touches to the piece.
“I’d been talking to the Esplanade about the concept even before ‘Nijinsky Siam’ [which premiered at the Singapore Arts Festival 2010],” Pichet recalls. “I wanted to create a contemporary work based on classical Thai dance. Design-wise, it’s all in black and white, in accordance with the theme of balancing the good and the evil, and choreography-wise it’s completely new.
“That one month in Singapore was a significant phase for our company. Not only did the members become more tightly knit, the increased financial stability meant that when we returned to Bangkok, everyone was able to receive a monthly salary.
“We received tremendous artistic support from the Esplanade’s programming team who came to watch the rehearsals and gave us their comments. I also got to work with dance dramaturg Lim How Ngean for the first time, and he was very helpful. In addition to supplying me with a lot of research materials, he would ask me questions at the end of each rehearsal and this helped make the work communicate my ideas better. We had arguments from time to time, of course, but in the end, he allowed me the final say.
“Although I got my choreographic inspiration from the ‘Ramakien’ [Thai version of Ramayana] mural paintings, I’m not retelling the original story in this work, which I think is easy to understand. That’s because the movements would look familiar for those who have watched classical Thai dance, but the way they’ve been put together would not be as familiar.”
With our Intangible Cultural Heritage law soon to become reality, the audience might wonder if images of dancers donning briefs and tights performing what look like classical Thai dance movements could become a problem.
“The work is about the balance as imagined in one’s mind and so the dancers need to be reduced to their neutral state. Those who have a problem with this may assume they own these gestures and no one can do anything with them. Historically, there’s also evidence of traditional Thai dance in the North in which the dancers were not fully clothed,” Pichet points out.
Watching the world premiere back in 2011, I noted how Pichet, portraying a demon character, was always prancing around, holding a metal rod, the most wicked of all. He disappeared offstage with a female character who seemed fragile despite her long, sharp nails, and indeed it was only her who reappeared – with his weapon and mask.
Through this movement, “Black and White” showed balance – Pichet's key word for this work – not only between good and evil but also between traditional and modern.
“In the next two years, I will reduce my role as a dancer and increase that as a choreographer. This is to further develop our company and to pass on the baton to the next generation.”
For this Thailand premiere, Pichet hopes that “‘Black and White’ will be seen as an alternative to the solution of our political deadlock, which has been going on for almost a decade now”.

BETTER BOOK NOW
“Black and White” will be performed at 7.30pm on November 22 and 2 and 7.30 on November 23 at the Sodsai Pantoomkomol Centre for Dramatic Arts at Chulalongkorn University. Tickets are Bt500 (Bt200 for students and Bt 300 for professional artists and under-27s).
(02) 218 4802, (081) 559 7252 or check www.PKLifeWork.com. Or look on Facebook for “Pichet Klunchun Dance Company” and “Drama Arts Chula”.
The Pichet Klunchun Dance Company will give a workshop on November 21, from 6 to 8pm. Admission is free. Register at [email protected].