A Brighter Eclipse
3 April – 1 May 2010
By Pawit Mahasarinand
Photos by Boaz Zippor courtesy of Vic Hua Hin

The latest restaging in Hua Hin is meatier and even more relevant.
The media buzz may now be less, but the lights stay on—festival or no festival—at the Vic Hua Hin between the Fringe Festival and next month’s opening of Patravadi High School. Silpathorn Award winner Manop “Kru Nai” Meejamrat is restaging Eclipse –“a contemporary rhythm moving across the face of traditional Thai drumming and dance”–every weekend this month.

The interdisciplinary and intercultural performance premiered at Bangkok’s Patravadi Theatre in 2005 and appeared again at last year’s Bangkok Bananas, but now it’s crisper, a real feast for the ears, eyes and brain. Viewers of all nationalities will enjoy it thanks to the universal languages of dance and music, as well as frequent Thai and English narration.

Director and choreographer Kru Nai and music director Ratchasak Ruangchai, who’s also on flute in this performance, present a tale of the solar eclipse, a Thai myth about it, and the religious lessons that can be drawn from it. Deftly combining all elements, they’ve made things clearer, both in style and content. 

The sun is represented by a sole big drum upstage, played as invigoratingly as ever by Apinut Trichan. 

Zion Daoratanahong’s tuneful, operatic singing portrays the moon. She is never hard to comprehend, and her stage presence is truly striking. 

In a sandfilled circle, Kru Nai’s intriguing dance movements signify human suffering against a soundscape of electric guitar and drums.  

There are more video images in this production, and they bring out more connotations. 

Footage of last year’s Songkran riots fits right in, while another part of the video looks like a voyage through the solar system you might see on the Discovery Channel.

Young performers from Suan Silp Ban Din, Kru Nai’s arts centre in Ratchaburi, make their professional debuts in supporting roles, and their strong energy is backed up by both discipline and talent in dance, music and theatre.

That’s indeed a good sign for the future of Suan Silp Ban Din, the Vic Hua Hin and Patravadi Theatre. I’d only suggest that they have more fun, be less serious—it’s a play, after all, so enjoy it more. 

At the end of last Saturday’s (April 3) show, the audience, half of them expatriates and foreign tourists, gave the cast and crew a long standing ovation, which is something we rarely witness in our performing arts events. 

I couldn’t help thinking of the Mekong River Commission (MRC)’s inaugural conference taking place nearby. What kind of performance were the participants watching that same evening? Probably it was typical traditional Thai dance and music to accompany their dinner.
Obviously they weren’t seeing the best show in town. Our Culture Ministry and MICE office need to cooperate more to show our neighbours what’s really happening in Thai arts today.

I spent that night, for the first time, in a nicely designed clay hut at the Vic Hua Hin’s Art Camp. With no television and a low WiFi signal, it’s extra peaceful.
Knowing I could simply walk from the playhouse to my comfortable bed, I had a lovely night and woke refreshed and ready to drive back to the politically vibrating City of Angels the following morning.