- Origin
- Kerala
- Stories
- Ramayana and Mahabharata
- Instruments
- Chenda, maddalam, cymbals
- Where to see
- Temple festivals and cultural centres in Kochi, Thekkady and Munnar
How the story is told
There is no spoken dialogue on stage. The actors communicate through a detailed language of mudras (hand gestures), eye movements and facial expressions, and the text is sung by vocalists standing behind them, backed by chenda and maddalam drums and cymbals. By tradition, men play every role, women's parts included.
Make-up and costume
Getting ready takes several hours and is treated almost as a ritual. Each character type has its own colour scheme: green faces for noble heroes, red and black for villains and demons, and softer tones for women and sages. The costume includes a full, layered skirt, a heavy jacket, ornaments, garlands and towering headgear, and together these can weigh several kilograms.
Training
Kathakali artists usually begin as children and train for many years. Their schedule includes intense physical conditioning, massage, eye exercises and long practice of mudras and expressions. The aim is to show subtle emotion without a word, which requires great control and stamina.
Where to see it
In the old days shows ran all night in the open grounds of temples and villages, and some temples still host all-night shows during festivals. For travellers, the easiest option is a short evening show at a cultural centre in Kochi, Thekkady or Munnar, where you can often watch the actors apply their make-up before the show starts.
- Arrive early to watch the make-up being applied
- Read a synopsis of the story beforehand, since the sung text is in Malayalam-Sanskrit verse
- Sit near the front to catch the eye and facial movements
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