This monograph aims at portraying an introductory framework of this traditional Indian theatre form of Yakshagana, its history/ structure/ elements of its music/ components and their interactions, with a focus on performatics (pradarshanada vijnyaana)- the transformation of the dramatic text into a performance. This monograph is intended to be a prelude to my forthcoming book on the rhythm of Tenkutittu chende- the vertical drum popularly known as the Asura vaadya.

Yakshagana belongs to the class of recursive triple exposition format (Triguna punaraavartita pradarshana shailee). Each recursive cycle consists of successive dispatch of:

• Rendering of the song set to shruti vaadya/chakra tala/ chende and maddale by the Concert Master in falsetto (eru dhvani).

• Dance cum theatrical action by the stage artists.

• Dialogue (interpretative of the song) by the stage artists.

Yakshagana is a cyclic artform (chakragatiya kalaakriti) and the entire whole-night performance is composed of numerous (typically 140-200) micro-cycles (aneka chikani avarta) of 2-5 minutes each in the recursive triple exposition structure (Triguna punaraavartita pradarshana shailee).

The first Chapter presents an introduction to what is Yakshagana/ its origin/ etymology/ historical origin/ influences of other arts/ forms and formats, and people who mattered in the course of its evolution in the last century.

The second Chapter dwells on the performatics (pradarshanada vijnyaana) of Yakshagana. Understanding Yakshagana requires knowledge of the basics of traditional theatre/ Natya Shastra/ the Indian theatre and theatrical production. Technical aspects covered are structure/ oral tradition/ dramatic text/ themes/ lingual media/ plot/ enacting time/ troupe size/ calendar of event and economic model. The components of Yakshagana are covered in the third Chapter which include the storyline/ characters/ sequence of events/ songs/ abhinaya (communication)/ rhythm/ dialogue/ percussion/ costumes and supporting gear/ directing/ enacting stage and the oral form of Yakshagana (tala maddale). The concept of semiosis is also elaborated.

The fourth Chapter deals with facets and issues associated with this artform in its long history. The historical perspective giving the life of artists 60 years back and earlier/ health and occupational hazards/ welfare measures/ technical support/ research/ training/ issues beyond the world of Yakshagana; and change cum outlook are discussed in this Chapter.

The fifth Chapter is about melody and rhythm of Yakshagana. This Chapter covers a historical perspective of Indian music/ Indian ragas/ distinctive features of story-centric Yakshagana music vis-à-vis aesthetic-centric Karnatic music which covers in detail almost twenty different characteristics (lakshanas). The Yakshagana talas are also described briefly.

The rest of the Chapters, viz., Chapter 6 to 11 are in the form of Annexures as these are more in the nature of catalogues and archiving, rather than running material, except in the case of the Annexure 1 (Chapter 6) on shruti (operational pitch). This Annexure 1 covers almost 15 different items including shruti/ ranges of musical scales and pitches/ melody (swaraanukrama) and harmony (swaramela)/ base pitch (aadhaara shruti) for musical synchronization of the ensemble/ translocation/ consonance (samvaada) and voice synchronization. The Annexure 2 (Chapter 7) attempts to list the dance-drama forms of India. Annex 3 (Ch. 8) gives a list of ragas used in Yakshagana music with their primary tune signatures. Annex 4 (Ch. 9) gives a list of the dramatic texts (prasangas) and their uttarangas (second halves) to hint at their meaning. Annex 5 (Ch. 10) gives a list of the troupes (melas and mandalis) and Annex 6 (Ch. 11) brings out a glossary (shabdakosha) of terminologies in vernacular (paribhaashe) relevant to this artform.

This monograph contains around 67 Figures, 42 Tables, and 3 Equations. Besides there are around 70 pictorial illustrations. The book contains around 242 references and around 1500 meanings of vernacular terms.