The National Theatre is a performing arts venue in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...

's Phra Nakhon District. It opened in 1965, and operates as a government agency under the Office of Performing Arts of the

Fine Arts Department The Fine Arts Department ( th, กรมศิลปากร, ) is a government department of Thailand, under the Ministry of Culture. Its mission is managing the country's cultural heritage. History The department was originally established ...

. Today, it is best known for traditional performances, especially of the ''

khon Khon ( th, โขน, ) is a dance drama genre from Thailand. Khon has been performed since the Ayutthaya Kingdom. It is traditionally performed solely in the royal court by men in masks accompanied by narrators and a traditional piphat ensembl ...

'' masked dance. The theatre was built from 1960 to 1965, beginning under the supervision of Luang Wichit Wathakan, the prolific author and playwright who contributed much to the development of

Thai nationalist Thai nationalism is a political ideology involving the application of nationalism to the political discourse of Thailand. It was first popularized by King Vajiravudh (Rama VI, reigned 1910–1925), and was subsequently adopted and adapted by variou ...

discourse during the mid-20th century. The building was designed in applied Thai style, with a

modernist Modernism is both a philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new forms of art, philosophy, an ...

plan superimposed with a traditional-Thai-influenced gabled roof. It sits on the corner of Rachini and Na Phra That roads, near the northern end of

Sanam Luang Sanam Luang ( th, สนามหลวง, ; lit: 'royal turf') is a open field and public square in front of Wat Phra Kaew and the Grand Palace, Bangkok, Thailand. Sanam Luang is in the Phra Nakhon District, the historic center of Bangkok. ...

, on the former location of the

Ministry of Transport A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government age ...

, and occupies grounds originally part of the

Front Palace Krom Phra Ratchawang Bowon Sathan Mongkhon , colloquially known as the Front Palace ( th, วังหน้า, ), was the title of the ''uparaja'' of Siam, variously translated as "viceroy", "vice king" or "Lord/Prince of the Front Palace", as ...

, next to the

Bangkok National Museum The Bangkok National Museum ( th, พิพิธภัณฑสถานแห่งชาติ พระนคร, ) is the main branch museum of the National Museums in Thailand and also one of the largest museums in Southeast Asia. It featu ...

and the Bunditpatanasilpa Institute.

References

External links

* {{coord, 13, 45, 32, N, 100, 29, 32, E, type:landmark, display=title Theatres in Bangkok Applied Thai architecture Sub-departmental government bodies of Thailand Theatres completed in 1965 1965 establishments in Thailand Phra Nakhon district Fine Arts Department (Thailand)