HaP International Spring School 2024

Kathmandu Valley, March 20–25, 2024

Organized by Dr. Monica Mottin, Dr. Monalisa Maharjan, and Binita Magaiya

In partnership with Echoes in the Valley

ABOUT THE SPRING SCHOOL

  • Living heritage refers to the knowledge, practices and expressions that are handed down from generation to generation in communities across the world. But what makes heritage ‘living’, and what are the challenges and contradictions that communities face in trying to maintain heritage’s living dynamics? During the HaP Spring School, we use performance theory as a lens through which to explore heritage-making and the elements that keep heritage ‘alive’. Looking at heritage as performance means regarding heritage as a process —produced, reproduced, invented, re-invented—and exploring the messy paths of cross- pollination from the streets to the stage.

    The setting for examining these questions is Nepal’s Kathmandu Valley. Such a location is ideal for exploring dimensions of placemaking in performance and living heritage. The urban design of the valley is intricately woven into the social and cultural lives of its denizens. For example, any traditional settlement maintains designated areas of worship and performance (e.g. a raised platform, called dabu or dabali) that are vital for living traditions to flourish. During our Spring School, case studies such as masked dances and charya dance will be highlighted to investigate how performances are embedded in place, which we will explore not only through attending and observing performances but also by experiencing rituals in a guided context. Additionally, we will consider heritage performances from outside the Kathmandu Valley. Over the course of six days, participants will have the chance to explore events in Kathmandu, Patan, and Bhaktapur, where two days of the Spring School will be located within the Echos in the Valley Festival and will benefit from collaborative activities in a community setting.

FEATURED SPRING SCHOOL EVENTS

Public Lecture On Newar Towns and Placemaking with Padma Sunder Joshi

Thursday, March 21, 4:30 pm (All invited!)

As part of the HaP International Spring School, there will be a public lecture at the Jyapu Pragya Bhawan on Thursday, March 21, at 4:30 pm. The lecture is open not only to Spring School participants and teachers but also to the public. It will be held in English and Nepali, with a Q and A afterward.

Abstract:

“Newar towns are magnificent examples of people and the planet prospering through partnership—the sustainability agenda the present world is embarking on. History is not to live but to learn, to learn from successes and from mistakes for our common future. My presentation will try to dig into some Newar practices of life, how they live, live together among themselves and their resource base—the planet—and how they partner with themselves and their ecosystem. The tangible settlements with intangible practices have three dimensions: a spatial dimension—the liveable city; a process dimension—the responsible city; and a governance dimension—the participating city. Creating places: making them livable and turning into a vibrant live orchestra where each of the members is compelled to participate, but only of their own free will.”

A performance by Mithileshwar Jhijhiya

Part of the Echoes in the Valley Festival of Folk Music

Saturday, March 23, 2:30 pm

Mithileshwar Jhijhiya is a cultural team from Mithileshwar Mauwahi village, Dhanusha district, Nepal. Besides performing in their own village during Dashain, the group has been performing in Janakpurdham, the capital city of Madhesh Province in Nepal and at several other cultural celebrations throughout the same area. The group perform regularly at the Cultural Village. Managed by Incredible Mithila Pvt. Ltd. and located at Puranda village, Mithila Bihari Municipality-3, the Cultural Village is a live museum providing accommodation, food, and cultural tour services to preserve the intangible heritage of Maithili region in Nepal and creating business opportunities for the native community. Every members of the team is from the same locality. The Jhjhiya performance has created a sustainable source of income for at least 15 households.

The Jhijhiya performers have traveled to the Kathmandu Valley to take part in the Echoes in the Valley music festival as part of Heritage as Placemaking’s Outreach and Engagement initiative.

SPRING SCHOOL LEARNING OBJECTIVES

As a result of taking part in the HaP International Spring School 2024, participants will be able to...

  • Challenge assumptions that ritual and traditional practices remain stable in time and space

  • Explore how traditions are constructed

  • Experience how ritual performances are embedded in daily life

  • Understand tangible-intangible interconnectedness through space

  • Appreciate cross-pollinations between folk-contemporary stage performances

  • Recognize the complex agency of local communities, the state and international organizations in maintaining ritual and folk performances

  • Sharpen one’s sense of how dimensions of space and place impact performance and living heritage

  • Recognize placemaking as a tool for creating and maintaining heritage

  • Expand awareness of repatriation of sacred objects as performance

The International Spring School ‘Living heritage, performance and placemaking’ is organized by Dr Monica Mottin (Heidelberg University), Dr Monalisa Maharjan (Social Science Baha) and Binita Magaiya (Social Science Baha). It is part of the research project Heritage as Placemaking: The Politics of Solidarity and Erasure in South Asia, a collaboration between Social Science Baha (Nepal), SOAS University of London (UK), South Asian University (India) and Heidelberg University (Germany). The HaP International Spring School is funded by the Riksbankens Jubileumsfond.

Our Partners

 

Jyapu Samaj