Nang yai is a form of shadow play found in Thailand

Thailand

Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

. Puppet

Puppet

A puppet is an inanimate object or representational figure animated or manipulated by an entertainer, who is called a puppeteer. It is used in puppetry, a play or a presentation that is a very ancient form of theatre....

s are made of buffalo

Bubalus

Bubalus is a genus of bovines, whose English name is buffalo. Species that belong to this genus are:* Subgenus Bubalus** Water Buffalo, Bubalus bubalis*** Carabao, Bubalus bubalis carabanesis...

 hide

Hides

A hide is an animal skin treated for human use. Hides include leather from cattle and other livestock animals, alligator skins, snake skins for shoes and fashion accessories and furs from wild cats, mink and bears. In some areas, leather is produced on a domestic or small industrial scale, but most...

, while the story is narrated by songs, chant

Chant

Chant is the rhythmic speaking or singing of words or sounds, often primarily on one or two pitches called reciting tones. Chants may range from a simple melody involving a limited set of notes to highly complex musical structures Chant (from French chanter) is the rhythmic speaking or singing...

s and music.

Nang Yai literally means "large shadow puppet". It is a high art form that originated the beginning of the fifteenth century CE

Common Era

Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...

. Nang yai performances were a popular means of entertainment during the Ayudhaya period and are mentioned in a poem called Bunnovat Khamchan written by the Buddhist monk Mahanag sometime around the years 1751 to 1758 CE, at the end of King Boromakot

Boromakot

Somdet Phra Chaoyuhua Boromakot or Somdet Phra Boromaracha Dhiraj III was the king of Ayutthaya from 1732 to 1758. His reign was the last blooming period of Ayutthaya as the kingdom would fall nine years after his death....

's reign.

Nang Yai is the source of modern mask dance, and incorporates various episodes of an Indian epic called Ramakien

Ramakien

The Ramakian is Thailand's national epic, derived from the Hindu epic Ramayana....

 in Thai and Ramayana

Ramayana

The Ramayana is an ancient Sanskrit epic. It is ascribed to the Hindu sage Valmiki and forms an important part of the Hindu canon , considered to be itihāsa. The Ramayana is one of the two great epics of India and Nepal, the other being the Mahabharata...

in India. Nang yai performance also adopts the Ramayana as a leading story and the performance is episodic in each show.

The performance of large shadow puppet is traditionally held in open spaces such as a lawn or village dirt space.

The main components of Nang Yai are a 6 by 16 white screen held by four bamboo or wood poles on each side. The screen is trimmed by red strip. Behind the screen strands a tinder or a bonfire lit up to reflect the shadows of the puppet. During the course of the show there is a Thai music band that plays music in accordance with each episode of the performance. Also important in each shadow is a dubber.

The puppet figures are made from perforated cow or buffalo hide, each weighing about three or four kilograms. The biggest puppet is one which characterizes a place, weighing around five to seven kilograms.

Nang Yai can be found presently throughout Thailand. For example, in central Thailand, Nang Yai is performed at Khanon in Rachaburi, Wat Plub in Petchaburi, Wat Sawang Arom in Singburi, and Wat Pumarin in Samut SongKram, while in eastern Thailand it can be found at Wat Donin in Rayong Province.