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Tibetan Secular Theatre: The Sacred and the Profane

Ache Lhamo (or A-che IHamo, to use the Wylie system of transliteration), the secular theatre of Tibet, has the unique distinction of being the oldest living theatre in the world, for its origins date from at least the eighth century A.D. and the performances we see today are the product of a virtually uninterrupted development.' This alone-together with the fact that it is perhaps the last Oriental theatre form not yet studied in detail-makes the Ihamo (as it is known today) of particular interest to theatre scholars as well as to students of Tibetan culture. Furthermore, given the current interest in intercultural dialogue, the Ihamo, by virtue of its retaining a long-standing tradition deeply rooted in and nurtured within an ancient culture, is well-positioned to initiate inquiries into the nature and practice of interculturalism, particularly in relation to Western theatrical practices. This essay does not set out to describe the lhamo,2 but attempts to indicate some grounds for dialogue between Tibet and the West, drawing on this ancient theatre to better focus on a cultural question that is central to late modernity: the context of theatre within our community or, to put it another way, the (unrecognized) sense of theatre in our world.