The
Pongsan Mask Dance has been handed down from generation
to generation in Pongsan, Hwanghaedo.
It consists of nine parts including the street play
and the participation of spectators. It begins with
the street play to draw attention from the public by
playing the musical instruments. The first part is the
four chief Buddhist monks' dance. They appear wearing
white hats, on the stage and dance to the guardian spirits
in order to seek blessings from them.
The second part is the eight Buddhist monks' dance.
The eight monks dance by taking turns. They all hide
their face with a peach branch because they are ashamed
of their lives. The third part is the jester who stands
between the eight monks and an old Buddhist monk. The
eight monks chanllenge the old devout monk to apostatize.
It, however, is long and has no dance so it is often
skipped. The fourth part is the old devout Buddhist
monk's dance, consisting of the three sections.
The
old monk apostatizes and tries to entice a young girl,
which is followed the bargaining between a store owner
and the monk who buys a pair of shoes. And the third
section is the fight between a young servant and the
old Buddhist monk over the young girl.
The fifth part is the lion dance. A big lion which
the old monk only heard of appears on the stage to punish
the old monk. The sixth part is the noble man's dance.
A servant appears on the stage and criticizes the corrupted
noble class.
The seventh part is the tragedy of a family. When an
old man gets a young lover, the old man's wife is killed
after a fight. Then, the spectators are encouraged to
participate in the mask dance
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