Over two recent weekends Kath­mandu saw its first and fabu­lous cabaret. Featuring dance, music, mime, and one-act plays it prompted me to think about all the wonderful art and cultural events that happen here. I think many people do not realize just how talented the Nepalis are as a nation. With an ancient tra­dition of wood and stone carving, thanka and religious paintings, architecture, bronzes, pottery etc, Nepal, and particularly, Kathmandu Valley, is a place with art and culture in its blood.

 

It’s no surprise then that there is so much talent among the youth as well. Art, music, drama, to name just a few, are not only vibrant but positively electric. I can say, and frequently do say, I am not an artiste (no talent, sob!). But I am what every artiste needs, the audience. And at that I am extremely experienced and talented!

 

Having said that, however, it can be so hard to keep up with all the social events happening around town. Maybe I should become a critic of the arts and actu­ally get paid to attend events. Now there’s a thought! I love to attend the theater and was really disappointed when my favorite, and ‘father’ of modern theatre in Nepal, Gurukul, had to give up its premises some years ago.

 

Meantime, Mandala, Shilpee and a few others are still going and have opened their doors to other groups to use their premises. While most of the theater groups produce in Nepali, there are one or two who do produce in English. But there is something refreshing about the audiences who go along to the Nepali productions.

 

They are, in general, young and enthusiastic with no pretentious intentions we often see at the the­aters in the West. They are there purely because they enjoy it. My lev­el of understanding varies depend­ing on the difficulty of the subject matter but regardless as to how much information I gain through my ears, the acting is of such a high standard, my eyes provide enough information to keep me engaged!

 

Sometimes there are stunning performances and theater events, such as ‘Arjuna’s Dilemma’ staged at Patan Museum, a collaboration of actors, musicians, dancers and opera singers from Nepal, US and Europe. Based on a text from the Bhagavad Gita this production was the first opera in Nepal and outdid itself visually and musically.

 

In the past Gurukul was host to an annual International Theater Festival with theatre groups coming from all around the globe. More local productions I have loved include an interesting adaptation of ‘Swan Lake’, and one where a char­acter zip-lined above the audience in a replica ropeway crossing the Karnali River.

 

Painting and installation art is another genre populated by very talented artists, and whether it is images of landscapes, portraits, or more contemporary styles such as a huge red rectangle painted onto the buildings of Kirtipur, there are frequent exhibition openings hap­pening around town. One of my favorites has come firmly onto the Kathmandu scene after a bit of a rocky start—street art.

 

A few years ago Color Kathmandu took to the streets with dozens of local and international street artists and created murals to represent the 75 districts of the country. These beautiful works were somehow not very popular with the author­ities that took a dim view of street art appearing overnight on public buildings. Thankfully, with two embassies entering into the spirit of brightening up the city streets, the local authorities have accepted that street art can be beautiful, enlight­ening, and educational.

 

Festivals celebrating art such as Photo Kathmandu, Kathmandu Triennial, and the International Tattoo Convention, cover more styles that I can fit in this short column. But you get the idea. So much talent, not enough time to enjoy it all! And then there is the music scene in Kathmandu, which must, I feel, wait for another week to write about…