Folk and Regional Theatre Traditions

a folk theater tradition of the Minangkabau ethnic group

Yakshagana is a traditional stage performance and semi-classical Indian dance, drama, found in Tulunadu

Peking opera, or Beijing opera (simplified Chinese: 京剧; traditional Chinese: 京劇; pinyin: Jīngjù), is the dominant form of Chinese opera, which combines instrumental music, vocal performance, mime, martial arts, dance and acrobatics.

Saang, also known as Swang (meaning "imitation") or Svang, is a popular folk dance-theatre form and a traditional style of storytelling in Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and the Malwa region of Madhya Pradesh.

Kabuki is thought to have originated in the early Edo period, when the art's founder, Izumo no Okuni, formed a female dance troupe that performed dances and light sketches in Kyoto.

a form of traditional Japanese puppet theatre, founded in Osaka in the beginning of the 17th century

The roots of drama in the Indian subcontinent can be traced back to the Rigveda (1200-1500 BCE), which contains a number of hymns in the form of dialogues, or even scenes, as well as hymns that make use of other literary forms such as animal fables

The Yuan zaju were poetic music dramas comprising four acts, with the "act" (齣, chu) defined as a set of songs following and completing a certain musical modal progression.

It is native to the Malayalam-speaking state of Kerala and is almost entirely practiced by the Malayali people.

Nautanki is most famous in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, and Bihar.

is a traditional form of Marathi theatre, often with singing and dancing, widely performed by local or travelling theatre groups within the state of Maharashtra, India.

Jatra is a popular folk-theatre from Bengali theatre and Odia theatre, spread throughout most of Eastern areas of the Indian subcontinent, including Bangladesh and Indian states of West Bengal, Assam, Odisha and Tripura.

Bhavai, also known as Vesha or Swang, is a popular folk theatre form of western India, especially in Gujarat.

It is a form of storytelling art that originated in the early Tamilakam, and served as an entertainment and a medium to educate the people about religion and history.

Ramlila is particularly notable in historically important Hindu cities of Ayodhya, Varanasi, Vrindavan, Almora, Una, Chamba, Solan, Satna and Madhubani

It survives in its glory at the Guruvayur Sri Krishna temple (Thrissur district, Kerala, India).

Pansori (Korean: 판소리) is a Korean genre of musical storytelling performed by a singer and a drummer.

Ottan Thullal (or Ottamthullal) is a recite-and-dance art-form of Kerala, India.

are a class of one act plays performed in Assam, India.

Bhagavata Mela is a classical Indian dance that is performed in Tamil Nadu, particularly the Thanjavur area.

is a traditional Java-origin dramatic performance

is a dramatic art form of Iran, performed by Shia Muslims

Khon has been performed since the Ayutthaya Kingdom.

Fāgogo is a word in the Samoan language to describe a type of storytelling of the Samoa Islands.

It is a verbal joust that highlights the participants' wit, humor, and mastery of the Filipino language and rhyming structures.

Aitysh is the name for the primarily folk-oriented, oral tradition of improvised singing and oratory between two parties referred to in Kazakh as akyns, though it is found among virtually all Turkic peoples.

a traditional Turkish shadow play

a form of generally satirical musical theatre, often encompassing dance, traditionally performed by Vietnamese peasants in northern Vietnam.

originated in Southern Vietnam in the early 20th century

generally believed to have originated in the Malay-inhabited regions of Southern Thailand

Xiangsheng is generally thought to have originated in the late Qing Dynasty, particularly during the rules of the Xianfeng Emperor and the Tongzhi Emperor in the mid-1800s.

Noh refers to the historical genre of theatre that originated from sarugaku in the mid 14th century

Commedia dell'arte was an early form of professional theatre, originating from Italian theatre, that was popular throughout Europe between the 16th and 18th centuries.