History
 The years between 2500 to 1500 BC were years of mass migration into Southeast Asia.  These prehistoric travelers, or immigrants, migrated along the river valleys and along the coastline.  They would settle in places where they could fish, grow rice, and establish communities, focusing on river basins and on plains of Java and Bali.  “…prehistoric culture was of considerable development and, as far as theatre is concerned, its most important elements were: the cultivation of rice, the practice of animism, possession of a common fund of myths, and bronze manufacture”(Brandon 1967: 9).   The cultivation of rice led to the communities having periods of leisure a couple of times a year.  And, this period of leisure led to the development of theatre as entertainment.  “Leisure time is an essential precondition for the creation of theatre of any degree of sophistication.  A performer must have leisure time in which to develop his artistic skill and an audience must have leisure to attend a performance”(Brandon 1967: 9).  The harvesting of the rice also gave way to festivals celebrating it.  To this day Southeast Asia performs dances, songs, and special plays honoring the rice spirit for the bountiful harvest.
 Which in turn leads to animism, which was the common religion of the prehistoric immigrants.  Animists believe that spirits reside in everything from the grain of rice to a river.  They also believe when one person acts selflessly for the good of others that the act becomes a magic ritual.  Shadow figures used in Javanese wayang kulit dramas were developed out of this belief, and used to make contact with ancestors of the tribe.  Spirits are often thanked by the Thai people with theatrical performances, “…it is not even necessary for a human audience to attend”(Brandon 1967:11).  These performances were crude, however, involving rudimentary movements that non-performers can learn easily.  Theatre became more sophisticated in these communities when Indian culture spread to Southeast Asia.
 What is interesting to note is that Indian culture didn’t spread through hostile takeover. Traders, missionaries, and scholars slowly brought it to Southeast Asia.  Indian culture and knowledge was respected, as they had made achievements in art, mathematics, science, and, they were literate.  Animism also helped the spread of Indian culture.  “Because the animist believed that spirit resided in everything and that man could accumulate the spiritual power of other things and people for his own use and protection, it followed that the king, as ruler of the state, was expected to amass more spiritual power than anyone else”(Brandon 1967:14).  Theatre throughout Java, Bali, Malaya, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos was affected for all time when Indian culture was assimilated.
 Hinduism, practiced by Brahmans, provided religious basis for theatrical performances, where a king is considered a living god, usually a reincarnation of Shiva or Vishnu, who were Hindu gods. Adoration and devotion to the god-king were shown with dances, music, and acting.    This belief in a god-king fit in well with animism, as both believed heavily in ancestor worship, “…animism and Hinduism combined to support the development of theatre art”(Brandon 1967:18).
 The Ramayana and the Mahabharata provided dramatic material in the Indian influenced courts of Southeast Asia. Microsoft Encarta 97 Encyclopedia best sums it up:
The Ramayana tells of the birth and education of Rama, a prince and the seventh incarnation of the god Vishnu, and recounts his winning of the hand of Sita in marriage. Displaced as rightful heir to his father's throne, Rama goes into exile, accompanied by Sita and by his brother Lakshmana. Sita is carried off by the demon king Ravana. With the aid of the monkey general Hanuman and an army of monkeys and bears, Rama, after a long search, slays Ravana and rescues Sita. Rama regains his throne and rules wisely. In the probable addition, Sita is accused in rumors of adultery during her captivity. Although innocent, she bears Rama's twin sons in exile, sheltered by the hermit Valmiki, said to be the author of the poem. After many years Rama and Sita are reunited.
 Java and Bali let the Mahabharata provide dramatic themes for early court theatre.  The Microsoft Encarta 97 Encyclopedia also best sums this up:
The Mahabharata, more complicated and four times lengthier than the Ramayana, provided the basis for hundreds of plays. The central theme of the Mahabharata is the contest between two noble families, the Pandavas and their blood relatives the Kauravas, for possession of a kingdom in northern India. The most important segment of the poem is the Bhagavad-Ghita, a dialogue between Krishna, the eighth incarnation of the god Vishnu, and the Pandava hero Arjuna on the meaning of life. It has influenced devout Hindu believers for centuries. The Mahabharata was composed beginning about 300 BC and received numerous additions until about AD 300. It is divided into 18 books containing altogether about 200,000 lines of verse interspersed with short prose passages. The Harivansha, one of several late appendixes to the poem, discusses at length the life and genealogy of Krishna.
   The rulers of Southeast Asia used these plays to their advantage. The plays dramatized the belief that a king’s power is absolute power, and his subjects are to serve and obey him.  “Just as the mystery plays of the Middle Ages dramatized the life of Christ and so taught illiterate peoples of Europe to believe in Christianity, the Hindu epics showed the lives of the Indian gods and of their descendants and so taught the people of Southeast Asia to believe in Hinduism”(Brandon 1967: 18).  Southeast Asia’s mainland let the Ramayana provide not only the basis for dramatic material, but also for dances.
 Then, in 1000 AD, Sanskrit Drama stopped being performed, and its original style was lost, much like the tragedies of the Greeks.  India would contribute to Southeast Asian theatre no more.  India’s influences had been swallowed and digested by Southeast Asian Theatre.
 Although miniscule compared to India’s contributions, Chinese performing arts entered Southeast Asia by 1287.  “Throughout Burma, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia one sees Chinese musical instruments…”(Brandon 1967: 28).
 Chinese opera had great influences on the opera of Vietnam.  The Vietnamese directly adapted Chinese operas to suit Vietnamese culture, adding Vietnamese melodies and language, but keeping Chinese models and heavy use of make-up.
 Also during this period Islamic culture was introduced into Southeast Asia.  Islamic culture believes that most theatre is blasphemous, and in Indonesia and Malaya, where they settled, theatre was suppressed.  They replaced Hindu based theatre with Islamic based theatre, “…popular theatre troupes avidly dramatized Islamic stories, as much because they were exciting tales as because they were Islamic in content”(Brandon 1967: 33).
 In the next three hundred years, the Spanish, English, and Americans came to Southeast Asia bringing not only missionaries, merchants, and armed forces, but their Western cultural influence as well.  “The impact of the West was felt on the theatre of every country of Southeast Asia…”(Brandon 1967: 35).  Colonial governments of the West drastically cut funding for local kings and princes, who in turn found it impossible to finance court theatre.
With court theatre diminishing, Southeast Asia developed theatre troupes, which would perform in public.  These troupes found an audience willing to pay for theatre.   Western drama, however, found very little acceptance.  Even today, Western motion pictures have more influence in Southeast Asia than its theatre.

 Index
Characteristics of Southeast Asian vs. Western Drama
Conclusion