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Hi, this is View from Point of View channel.

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We're now at Suvarnabhumi Airport, again!

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I'm gonna give you a hint, we're going somewhere.

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But we're not traveling abroad this time, we're traveling in Thailand.

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We're going there because I've heard that,

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this particular show, which is exceptional, is taking place in Chiangrai Province.

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It's Khon Klang Plaeng everyone!

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So, I suggest that we got on the plane to Chiangrai Province

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and let's go see Khon Klang Plaeng.

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Let's see what it is

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and see if there's any difference from regular Khon that we've seen.

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Before arriving in Chiangrai Province,

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don't forget to follow me on social media.

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Okay, are you ready for the fun and the learning?

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If so, let's hit the road!

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We're now in Chiangrai!

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People might be wondering why must we come all the way to Chiangrai Province for Khon Klang Plaeng.

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Other provinces also have Khon, why are we coming here?

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Well, I must say that it's because this one particular event is taking place in Chiang Rai --

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which is International Balloon Festival 2019

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or Singha Park Chiangrai International Balloon Fiesta 2019.

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The festival took place in February 13 to 17

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at Singha Park in Chiangrai Province.

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Since it is an international balloon festival

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there must be balloon races

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and colorful balloon shows.

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But what does balloon have to do with Khon anyway?

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Well, for this balloon festival ---

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there isn't just balloons, but also other activities,

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like concerts of great singers.

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When I was at the concert, there was Palmy

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Nuvo

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Poly Cat

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Hugo was also there.

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Oh, please! There was too much to count.

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And apart from that, there's also food stalls around.

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This is truly a space for family gathering.

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The best part is that ---

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the organizers also value Thai identity.

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That's why they have Khon as one of their shows.

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And since there are foreigners everywhere, Khon is a great way to promote Thai culture.

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Moreover,

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Khon they're performing is also Khon Klang Plaeng.

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This year marks the second time of this festival.

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Last year was its first time,

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to have Khon Klang Plaeng performance in the festival.

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Are you guys seeing this?

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This festival has everything!

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Khon performance, concerts, great food

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and views for nice pictures

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which you guys might already see on my Instagram feed.

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That was very off-topic.

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There's only 2 rounds of Khon performance.

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But I'm in Chiangrai for so many days.

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Feeling so motivated.

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If you guys are ready, let's go see Khon Klang Plaeng!

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Okay everyone

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After 2 days in Chiangrai,

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I've done so many things.

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2 days at the balloon festival ---

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I went to the concerts, I flew on hot air balloon

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and most importantly, I already took a sneak peek at the rehearsal.

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And finally, the day has come.

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The day of Khon Klang Plaeng performance.

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And right now, we're here at Singha Park in Chiangrai Province.

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I'll take you guys to see Khon Klang Plaeng then!

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First off, this is the right venue for Khon Klang Plaeng

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because it needs space, like, big grass field,

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to play battle scenes. Khon Klang Plaeng's stories are always from battle scenes.

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And it's really rare these days.

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Even more than that, the performers for the show are the artists from Wang-Na!

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I already saw it last night.

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And I can tell you, it's gonna be an eye-opening experience.

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Let's go see Khon Klang Plaeng performance

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And I'll explain later --

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why must it be Khon Klang Plaeng

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, what's the difference between Khon Klang Plaeng and Khon we've seen often

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and how many types of Khon there are.

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Let's go see the performance!

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Right now, we're already in front of the stage.

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We're about to see Khon Klang Plaeng.

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But first, let's get to know how many types of Khon there are

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and how Khon Klang Plaeng is different from other types of Khon.

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Let's go!

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It's quiet inappropriate to do the explanation in the venue.

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We should be mindful of the performers

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because they are on the stage. We can't just talk all the time.

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And it also disturbs the others.

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So, it's best to do this outside.

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We all know that Khon is a dance-drama performance

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of which performers are wearing masks

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and dancing rhythmically with the music, right?

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But, actually, there are many types of Khon.

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There's more than one.

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I understand that we see Khon as

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a performance on stage, something like that, right?

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But, in fact, there are 5 types of Khon.

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The first one is Khon Rong Nai --

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what we're most familiar with

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since Fine Arts Department of Thailand often host Khon Rong Nai performance.

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Khon Rong Nai is a combination between Lakhon Nai and Khon.

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Apart from Khon movement,

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Khon narration and dialogue,

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there's also Thai traditional dancing.

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And it also features 2 Pi Phat orchestras.

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During these days, most of Khon performances by the Fine Arts Department,

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whether performed indoor or outdoor,

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are always of Khon Rong Nai style, because it is spectacular.

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There's traditional dancing, graceful movements.

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And since there's Khon Rong Nai, there's also, of course

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Khon Rong Nok.

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There's a slight difference between Khon Rong Nai and Khon Rong Nok.

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Khon Rong Nok's setting isn't as precise as Khon Rong Nai's.

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There's no proper setting.

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It's set on common stage or platform

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with bamboo rails set along its length.

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Imagine the stage...

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with bamboo rails laid from one side to the other.

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Normally, while watching Khon,

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we'll see a seat, some sort of thing like a bench...

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looking like a throne.

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Khon Rong Nok doesn't have these things on stage.

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They'll be using the rails as the throne.

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That's why this type of Khon is also called --

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Khon Nang Rao.

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Next, we have Khon Na Cho.

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Khon Na Cho is developed out of Thai shadow play or Nang Yai.

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Everyone might already know Nang Yai.

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The performers first put up the backdrop, right?

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Then they'll hold up the carved buffalo-skinned puppets

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and let the backdrop reflects the shadow.

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And there are also performers dancing.

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But, at that time, playing only with shadows became boring.

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That's why sometimes they incorporated Khon into Nang Yai performance.

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Like, while the puppet was being held up, a person walked out from behind.

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Bam, a performer in Khon costume appeared.

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But after a while,

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people felt that Khon performing is more exciting than Nang Yai's.

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It led to having Khon performances in front of the same backdrop.

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The puppets were removed.

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So, that is another type of Khon.

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And the fourth type of Khon --

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is the most developed one.

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It's called Khon Chak.

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Khon Chak emerged during the reign of King Rama V.

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There was first the opera-oriented dance drama --

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which is plays with proper stage and scripts...

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this and that...

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and there was also chants and dance.

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This kind of play inspired the adaptation of Khon.

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This is how Khon Chak emerged.

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But Khon Chak is slightly different from regular Khon.

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I mean, it requires separating the performance into independent plays.

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There couldn't be reversions

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, unlike Ramakien epic tales

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which were written specifically for traditional Khon performance.

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This one is more like a modern play.

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That's why they need to divide the stories into parts,

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each written particularly for Khon Chak.

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And the last type --

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which is in fact considered the oldest form --

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is the one we're getting to see today!

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Khong Klang Plaeng it is.

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Khon Klang Plaeng is performed outdoor, in an open-air space.

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No backdrop, nothing.

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Just the natural surrounding.

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Battle scenes are often depicted in Khon Klang Plaeng performance.

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Or it could be any scene which two camps are fighting.

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It's very convenient since they are performing in open space.

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So, I believe we know now what Khon Klang Plaeng is.

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Let's go see the performance.

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It's just started.

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I need to tell you guys that Khon performance always begins with a prelude.

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Let's watch this from the prelude to the main piece

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and the last set.

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For today,

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the performance is divided into 3 parts.

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The first is the prelude,

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which is Dhep Singhawatarn.

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It is newly and specifically composed for this show.

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And the second is the main piece --

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Intarachit War.

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The scene is about the fight between Intarachit and Phra Lak.

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Of course, Intarachit had no chance winning Phra Lak

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because he was very good at fighting.

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When Intarachit found himself losing,

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he took out his most nefarious weapon --

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the Nagapasha arrow.

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Nagapasha arrow would let out countless Nagas when shooted.

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You guys can see from this

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that Phra Lak loses his consciousness when hit with the arrow.

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But Phra Ram saved him at last

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by shooting an arrow calling the Garuda to help.

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The Garuda chased the Nagas away.

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Garuda is actually an all-time enemy of Naga.

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because it eats Naga as food.

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I've told you guys this before.

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And for the last set,

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they performed a dance piece for blessing King Rama X.

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We can see that Khon performance is a high art form of performance.

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In each performance,

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we get to see the union of art forms and great artists just for one show.

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Beginning with costume designs

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which also requires complicated embroidery.

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The orchestras also need to be Pi Phat orchestra.

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And the song or music needs to reflect the story, too.

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The performers themselves, --

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although they don't speak, their movements communicate particular meanings or emotions.

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For example, certain movements suggest that they're angry,

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some suggest that they're shy.

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If one has some knowledge of Khon,

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it's not that hard to understand what the characters are saying through their movements

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even without the narration.

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For literary aspects,

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the beauty of literature is reflected in Khon narration and dialogues

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which plays with words aesthetically.

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Most importantly, the performance we just saw today

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owes its perfection to the artists from Wang-Na

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who study the art of Khon, theatre, musical performance and Thai vocal music

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at the College of Dramatic Arts

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which is located in the area of the Front Palace (Wang-Na).

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Wang-Na used to be the residence of the Uparaja of Siam in each period.

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Pinklao, the brother of King Rama IV, used to live in the palace of which the area has become the location of the College of Dramatic Arts.

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Apart from this, the performers also include staffs or former staffs of the college,

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Bunditpatanasilpa Institute,

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or the Office of Performing Arts.

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They are truly expertise and it's such an honor to witness their talent through this show.

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A high art form, indeed.

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So, we've finished seeing Khon performance.

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How was it? Did you guys have fun?

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This might be a relatively new perspective on Khon performance

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because Khon Klang Plaeng is different from common Khon performance we've seen.

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If anyone has comments,

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or if I said anything incorrect,

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also, if you guys spot any special characteristics of any Khon character,

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please feel free to comment down below.

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And for those I met at the festival,

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don't forget to tag me in our photos.

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If you like this video, please give it a thumbs up

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and don't forget to click share, so your friends can see this too.

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Well then, see you next time!

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Bye-bye, Sa-wad-dee-ka.

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