Archipelagic Perspectives on Staging and Archiving Shakespeare in Southeast Asia: A Case Study of Mak Yong Titis Sakti

Since the late 18th century, with the expansion of British colonialism in Asia, Shakespeare’s plays have entered into a profound intertextual dialogue with the Asian performative system. Over centuries of cultural exchange, Asian theatre has not only provided a multicultural interpretive space for Shakespearean texts but has also developed a distinctive paradigm of adaptation that is defined by the creative integration of local performance aesthetics and the assertion of cultural subjectivity. Contemporary intercultural adaptations exemplify this shift by transforming Shakespeare from a colonial cultural instrument into a medium through which Asian artists express artistic agency and cultural autonomy (Kennedy & Yong, 2010, pp. 10-11). This evolution reflects a broader postcolonial reconfiguration of cultural hierarchy, demonstrating the paradigmatic transition from Shakespeare’s Asian reception to Asia’s Shakespearean reinvention. For instance, in Japanese director Satoshi Miyagi’s Othello in Noh Style (2005-2006), the female body on stage disrupts the male centred convention of Japanese noh theatre, while the narrative temporality shifts to Desdemona’s ghost, allowing a contemporary reimagining of traumatized Asian female subjectivity (Yip 56). In addition, Singaporean director Ong Keng Sen’s Lear (1997) employs a polyglot dramaturgy that juxtaposes xiqu

Text 127554.pdf Restricted to Repository staff only Download (7MB)

Actions (login required)

View Item