The phenomenon of Ramleela/Ramlila theatre in Trinidad
Trinidad and Tobago is home to 240,100 Hindus who are descendants of immigrants who had migrated as labourers from India during the 19th and early 20th century. They keep Hinduism alive in the Afro-Christian-dominated region mainly by participating in religious activities such Divali, Phagwa/Holi, S...
| Authors: | ; |
|---|---|
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
|
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Univ.
2015
|
| In: |
Nidān
Year: 2015, Volume: 27, Issue: 1_2, Pages: 1-21 |
| Further subjects: | B
Ramlila / Ramleela
B Indentured labourers B Theatre B Hinduism B Ramcharitramanas B Indenture |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) |
| Summary: | Trinidad and Tobago is home to 240,100 Hindus who are descendants of immigrants who had migrated as labourers from India during the 19th and early 20th century. They keep Hinduism alive in the Afro-Christian-dominated region mainly by participating in religious activities such Divali, Phagwa/Holi, Shivraatri and Ramleela/Ramlila. As a form of free open-air theatre, Ramlila is staged only in Trinidad (and Tobago), although there are thousands of Hindus living in neighbouring Guyana and Suriname. Accordingly, Ramlila in Trinidad has become the oldest surviving form of outdoor folk theatre in the Caribbean. It also holds the unrivalled record of being the only play to be performed at dozens of venues for over 100 consecutive years in the region, and it is the only drama of its kind in the Western Hemisphere. This paper focuses on the emergence and evolution of Ramlila phenomenon as a cultural art form and socio-religious event and its dramatization as an open-air village theatre in the present time. The phenomenon is discussed within the theoretical perspectives explaining the concepts of "sacred spaces", "frames of analysis", "hyper-reality", "liminality" and "deep play". Furthermore, the paper expounds on the faith element, patriotism, cooperation and harmony as factors of preservation of Ramlila over the years in the new diasporic environment and its impact on the social and religious fabric of the East Indian community in Trinidad. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 2414-8636 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Nidān
|
| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.58125/nidan.2015.1 |