Photo - Kathakali Theatre

We attended a Kathakali Play in Cochin. It is one of the greatest art forms of Kerala which originated in the 17th century. It is a Play, which tells a story, without the use of words. Instead they use body movements, eye movements, music and acting to tell the story. All the actors and musicians are male therefore some of them play female characters in the play. It takes 6 years to train to be actor or musician. The first hour was taken up with the actors on stage applying their make-up. It was great to watch the transformation of their faces, which took the full hour for them to complete. Their make-up was made from coconut oil, ground into different stones to make the different colours. After their make-up was applied they demonstrated various eye and body movements and explained their meanings. Then they performed the Play. Surprisingly we were able to follow it because they had given us the explanations of the body and eye movements. It really was an enjoyable evening.