Khon Workshop – Classical Thai Dance
Immerse yourself in the heart of an ancient art with this professional training in Thai dance-theatre: Khon!
Looking to push the limits of your stage expression? Discover the fascinating world of Khon, Thailand’s sacred art form that blends dance, theatre, mask, and acrobatics. This 35-hour intensive training, offered by Masq’Alors! in partnership with the Conseil de la culture de l’Estrie, invites you to explore one of its most iconic roles: the monkey — acrobatic, mischievous, and deeply symbolic.
Guided by Benjamin Tardif, a Canadian artist trained in Bangkok, you’ll learn the technical and aesthetic foundations of Khon: animalistic movements, combat choreography, gestural language, and the art of masked performance. The training culminates in a public presentation, where you’ll shine in this unique form of baroque dance-theatre.
Open to performing arts professionals — in dance, circus, or theatre — this training offers a rare, embodied, and profound experience at the crossroads of cultures and emotions.
Join an artistic journey that will transform you — balancing grace, tradition, and boldness!
About the Training
Khon is Thailand’s sacred royal masked dance-theatre, in which the monkey plays a leading role among humans and demons. It calls for agility and acrobatics — both physical and moral — and its courtly mischief often echoes that of Western jesters.
This workshop offers an introduction to this form of baroque musical theatre, focusing particularly on the monkey role, and concludes with a public stage sharing, in the form of a performance or open workshop.
Introduction to the Monkey Role in the Khon Tradition – Principles and Techniques of Thai Classical Masked Dance
We will explore monkey dance techniques, including animal traits, the more military aspects, and the aesthetic qualities of Thai dance. Topics covered include:
- Monkey walking and movement styles
- Learning a combat choreography, with lift techniques and the integration of circus-style acrobatics according to participants’ skill levels
- Gestural language for communicating concepts and emotions
- Head movements and the use of the mask to convey different emotional states
Learning Objectives
By the end of the training:
- Participants will have a general understanding of Thai classical masked dance.
- They will have learned a traditional training approach and will be able to draw inspiration from the monkey’s animalistic movement, choreographic excerpts, and gestural language to create their own choreography.
- Most importantly, they will have gained mastery in performing with a Thai mask — across its many aspects — and will understand the stage strategies involved in its effective use.