Cultural Heritage Innovation Through Performing Arts: The Creation of Pa Sin Tin Chok Isan Dance Performance to Promote Traditional Silk Weaving
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Abstract
Background and Objectives: There has been a decline in the interest of traditional Thai weaving practices that necessitates the implementation of promotion mechanisms to encourage the preservation of these traditions. This study examines the integration of traditional silk weaving techniques into Northeastern Thai (Isan) folk culture through the creation of Pa Sin Tin Chok of Isan, a choreographed performance inspired by weaving practices in Nong Bua, Mahasarakham Province. The objective of this research is to revive and preserve the cultural wisdom heritage of silk weaving by providing opportunities for younger generations to participate through performing arts, while respecting the interpretive authority, meanings, and aesthetic values of the local community. The interpretation and creative development of this work are grounded in several theoretical frameworks, including body movement theory, aesthetic theory, performance success theory, and cultural diffusion theory.
Methods: Using a creative practice–based methodology, the research combined documentary analysis, field observations participant and non-participant, and expert/performance interviews. Co-creation workshops with master weavers in Ban Nong Bua mapped weaving gestures and narratives, which were translated into movement phrases, music, costume motifs, and stagecraft. The resulting work integrates traditional Isan dance vocabularies with weaving actions, and employs both traditional and modern musical instruments. All activities conducted in this study received ethical approval, and voluntary informed consent was obtained from all participants.
Results: The performance successfully translated weaving gestures into dance, generating a narrative that highlights the cultural significance of Isan silk traditions and demonstrating that performance can function as both a medium of knowledge transmission and a mechanism for cultural innovation. Co-creative processes foregrounded local interpretive authority and produced movement idioms legible to community audiences. The project also reflected the structural challenges—labor intensity, market pressures, and environmental problems—relevant to long-term sustainability of the craft.
Application of this study: The model offers a replicable approach for performance-based heritage work:
1) embed co-creation with artisans, 2) convert craft processes into movement pedagogy, 3) integrate workshops (basic loom setup, thread/dye practice) into rehearsal, and 4) disseminate via festivals, curricula, and digital media to reach youth and broader publics. It is adaptable to other crafts and cultural contexts.
Conclusions: This study demonstrates that performing arts can serve as an innovative means of preserving and transmitting cultural heritage. Its key contribution lies in transforming the traditional silk-weaving process of B
an Nong Bua community into a language of dance through the creative integration of choreography, music, costumes, and performance structure that reflect the stages and cultural meanings of silk weaving in the Isan context. Unlike conventional forms of knowledge transmission that occur within families or among artisans, this approach converts traditional craft knowledge into a performance-based learning medium accessible to a wider audience. The creative performance Pa Sin Tin Chok Isan functions as both a platform for cultural communication and a means of engaging younger generations, while enhancing the cultural visibility and value of the community. Strategically, this approach can be applied in conjunction with cultural activities, creative tourism, and learning activities in educational institutions to support the sustainable preservation and development of local wisdom heritage in the future.
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