In this critical volume, leading scholars in the field examine the performance of Shakespeare in Asia. Emerging out of the view that it is in "play" or performance, and particularly in intercultural / multicultural performance, that the cutting edge of Shakespeare studies is to be found, the essays in this volume pay close attention to the modes of transference of the language of the text into the alternative languages of Asian theatres; to the history and politics of the performance of Shakespeare in key locations in Asia; to the new Asian experimentation with indigenous forms via Shakespeare and the consequent revitalizing and revising of the traditional boundaries of genre and gender; and to Shakespeare as a cultural capital world wide. Focusing specifically on the work of major directors in the central and emerging areas of Asia – Japan, China, India, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines - the chapters in this volume encompass a broader and more representative swath of Asian performances and locations in one book than has been attempted till now.

The Puppetry for All Times Seminar held in September of 2013 in Ubud, Bali, was one of the most enchanting of events of its kind held anywhere in recent years. Its success revolved around the fantastic locale, the overwhelming response from performers as well as the paper presenters, and the generous support of Rumah Topengthe House of Masks and Puppets Setiadarma. In Puppetry for All Times, editor Ghulam-Sarwar Yousof offers a unique collection of papers presented at this weeklong seminar by academicians as well as performers of various traditions of Asian puppetry. The papers cover a wide range of interests and perspectives in puppetry and theater including history and tradition; heritage, preservation, and conversation; tradition and modernity; and digital puppetry and media. Puppetry for All Times recaps a key international event in the realm of puppet theater, marking the beginning of such endeavors as Rumah Topengs maiden academic publication.

The Trial of Hang Tuah the Great, a prize-winning play, uses an ancient story of the Malay hero, Hang Tuah, to re-examine of some of the issues connected with identity prevailing in Malaysian society over the past fifty years or so since the independence of Malaya and the establishment of Malaysia. It is an imaginative retelling of the story of Hang Tuah, associated with the Melaka Sultanate of the fifteenth century who, myth and legend maintains, never died, while historians, time and again questioning Hang Tuahs very existence, have recently declared that such a figure never actually existed. The Trial of Hang Tuah the Great takes both these theories into consideration and through them, examines the traditional idea of a hero in the Malay psyche, linking him symbolically to certain individuals, such as Maharaja Lela, and a spectrum of events, mythical, legendary and historical, based on the hypothetical question of who Hang Tuah would have been if he had lived beyond 15th century Melaka right up to our own times and even beyond the present until the year 2020. The plays text is a powerful and stunning confrontation of myth in the manner of Grotowski (Poor Theatre). In terms of staging, as envisioned by its author, The Trial of Hang Tuah the Great is based upon modern western theories and techniques, such as those of Bertolt Brecht (Epic Theatre) and Antonin Artaud (Theatre of Cruelty). In both senses, The Trial of Hang Tuah the Great is a groundbreaking Malaysian play.

This book offers an integrated study of the texts and images of illustrated Malay manuscripts on magic and divination from private and public collections in Malaysia, the UK and Indonesia. Containing some of the rare examples of Malay painting, these manuscripts provide direct evidence for the intercultural connections between the Malay region, other parts of Southeast Asia and the rest of the world. In this richly illustrated volume many images and texts are gathered for the first time, making this book essential reading for all those interested in the practice of magic and divination, and the history of Malay, Southeast Asian and Islamic manuscript art.

This publication brings together current scholarship that focuses on the significance of performing arts heritage of royal courts in Southeast Asia. Royal courts have long been sites for the creation, exchange, maintenance, and development of myriad forms of performing arts and other distinctive cultural expressions. The first volume, Pusaka as Documented Heritage, consists of historical case studies, contexts and developments of royal court traditions, particularly in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Following the tradition and style of the acclaimed Index Islamicus, the editors have created this new Bibliography of Art and Architecture in the Islamic World. The editors have surveyed and annotated a wide range of books and articles from collected volumes and journals published in all European languages (except Turkish) between 1906 and 2011. This comprehensive bibliography is an indispensable tool for everyone involved in the study of material culture in Muslim societies.