MAN’S artistic expressions are a reflection of his physical, spiritual and intellectual environment. Changes in these environments will impact his expressions.
Such changes can be natural and gradual, or enforced and abrupt.
In the normal pace of change, the process of acculturation of new and even foreign elements is gradually phased in without much cultural shock or upheaval.
The community accepts this as they are involved and are instrumental in effecting these changes.
On the other hand, when changes occur abruptly as a result of official or religious persecution that imposes restrictions, new standards of performance that are alien to the artistic forms, they disrupt the artistic tradition, forcing alterations to aesthetic expressions.
In the case of traditional theatres, such imposition changes their aesthetic and performance structure.
Traditional Malay theatres have experienced these natural and enforced changes.
Makyong is one of them.
In fact, from its inception as a court of entertainment, believed to be at the court of Patani, now located in Southern Thailand, Makyong was then relegated to a folk form of entertainment as a result of a change in the policy of royal patronage.
Thus, Makyong had to reorientate itself to a new audience, which was different from the court audience.
It adapted itself to the new environment by changing its dramatic and structural elements to be in consonant with the rustic sentiments of the folk audience.
The finesse of the court Makyong gave way to the rustic bawdiness of the folk life. Nevertheless, glimpses of court etiquette and decorum were still displayed but in folk style.
From just a secular court form of entertainment, Makyong expanded its applications to include ritual and healing performances.
It was performed as part of a thanksgiving celebration after a good padi harvest. At the same time, it also served as a therapeutic healing ritual called Main Puteri to heal maladies caused by spirit infestation as well as psychosomatic illness.
Initially, Makyong performances were sponsored by individual patrons or by the village. Later, they evolved into commercial Makyong, performed in an enclosed area restricted to a paying audience.
Makyong was a popular form of performance in the rural hinterland before the advent of alternative modern entertainment such as movies, then television and now a host of digital and electronic entertainment that eclipsed the traditional forms associated with rural agricultural life.
It, however, had to migrate to urban areas as a result of political and religious restrictions enforced upon it.
Enforced change was effected by the Kelantan Pas government in the guise of Islamic piety, thus had undermined the existence and survival of Makyong.
And the action is in direct confrontation with the Federal Government’s policy of promoting Makyong and getting Unesco’s recognition of this traditional theatre as a Heritage of Humanity.
But when the Kelantan Pas government banned Makyong on the grounds that it is un-Islamic because it involves male and female performers on the same stage and also because of the invocation to the various spirits in the ceremony at the start of the performance, Makyong had to seek a more tolerant sanctuary where the arts are viewed not as sinful activities but as aesthetic expressions.
Thus, when Makyong moved to the urban areas, it began mutating to be consonant with urban sensibilities by adapting the urban theatrical conventions.
The kampung performance’s staging, structure and aesthetics for a rural audience have to be modified to suit the performance venue and the artistic tastes of the metropolitan audience.
Instead of the makeshift kampung stage, Makyong is performed in a proscenium setting using western technical conventions.
Costumes are luxurious compared with the kampung performances, where except for Pakyong, the rest of the cast wear everyday clothes.
Realistic props and abstract settings instead of symbolic ones are used in the urban Makyong performance.
Unlike in the kampung setting where the audience is free to move about, the urban Makyong audience is rooted to the seats until the end of the performance, observing western theatrical etiquette and decorum.
Music remains the same. Its dramatic structure and structural elements remain intact.
But the latest urban Makyong performance titled “Titis Sakti” completely departs from the traditional Makyong aesthetic.
It is based on western aesthetics, negating the traditional Makyong elements. It uses western staging conventions to suggest locations, entrances and exits from the wings and from the house (audience).
It also uses a non-traditional musical ensemble that incorporates a violin, keyboard and chimes to the rebab, gendang and gong.
Titis Sakti is based on Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream. The language for the performance combines the Kelantanese dialect (the original language of Makyong), standard Malay and English.
The two male lovers in the play converse in English while their respective female partners speak in Malay throughout the performance.
Obviously, this is an experimental production using Makyong elements in combination with western theatrical idioms.
Traditional practitioners and Makyong aficionados would not be disposed to accept such performances as Makyong.
They would consider it blasphemy. Even the normal audience would be uncomfortable with such a performance that desecrates the aesthetic and soul of Makyong.
Another production that ignores the aesthetic and sanctity of Makyong is a performance of Raja Besar Maha Gading by The School of Arts, Universiti Sains Malaysia, which was staged on Feb 28 and March 3 at Dewan Budaya.
In the vein of Titis Sakti, it employs western theatrical convention in using proscenium staging, lighting and setting. However, unlike Titis Sakti, which observes the dramatic aesthetics, Raja Besar Maha Gading eschewed dramatic dynamics and sensibilities and turned the play into farcical slapstick low comedy in which almost all the characters with the exception of the lead, Pakyong and Makyong, portrayed comic rather than their designated characters.
As such, their acting turned serious scenes into comical ones. Then there is the overwhelming references to trite and mundane incidents and matters, that destroy the beauty and poetry of Makyong language, replacing it with mundane colloquial chatter.
Another debacle that affects the sanctity of Makyong is the insertion of an unrelated scene into Raja Besar Maha Gading, which shows how artistic integrity has been bastardised and sacrificed.
It would seem that university politics overrides the sanctity of a traditional performance. It is sad that this happens in the oldest department of performing arts in the country, which had pledged to preserve and conserve, and promote the authenticity of the traditional performing arts.
Its current practice, however, has quite alienated the original mission of upholding the sanctity of traditional arts as well as excellence in performance.
These experimentations that go against the grain of traditional Makyong performance aesthetics may contribute to the loss of identity and integrity of this traditional genre.
This would reflect badly on the Heritage Department of the Culture and Tourism Ministry that was instrumental in getting Makyong recognised as a Unesco World Heritage.
It is not enough just to get recognition but more important is to ensure its continuity and preserve its originality.
This responsibility of preservation and conservation should also be shouldered by the institutions of higher learning that have a performing arts department.
Although the universities are now enamoured with the 4.0 Industrial revolution that emphasises STEM subjects and industrial engagement, they must, not eschew their role as the custodian of traditional heritage.
If there is no concrete strategy forthcoming to ensure its continuity, Makyong would face a bleak future as performances such as Titis Sakti and Raja Besar Maha Gading would pollute its original form and eventually bring about its demise.
Mohamed Ghouse Nasuruddin is a professor of the School of the Arts, Universiti Sains Malaysia