A Show Of Support For Wayang

Jakarta - Javanese puppeteer Ki Joko Edan will perform wayang kulit (leather puppetry) in the atrium of Cilandak Town Square, South Jakarta, from 7 p.m. today.

The show “Bale Segala-gala” (“Community House”) is the second of five performances from the Bima Series. The show is being supported by the Lontar Foundation, which promotes Indonesian culture, the Center for Development Studies (CIDES) and the Indonesia Puppeteers Association (Pepadi) Jakarta.

The Bima Series is being performed by five well-known puppeteers. The first part of the series, “Bima Bungkus” (“Bima the Mighty”), was performed by Ki Anom Suroto, in the photo, at the Dharmawangsa Hotel in March.

“Bale Segala-gala” is the story of a political crisis in the land of Astina after the death of leader, Prabu Pandu Dewantara. The majority of the Astina people want to see the five Pandawa brothers become the next leaders, but while preparations are underway for the Pandawa knights to make into kings, the son of the palace‘s caretaker plans a mission to murder them.

Today‘s show will be delivered in Javanese, with a live-translation by American Kathry Emerson. It will also be delivered in three hours, a much shorter length of time than traditional wayang shows, which can take more than five hours.

Rohmad Hadiwijoyo, the executive director of CIDES and the head of Pepadi Jakarta, said he hoped this would make it easier for more people to watch the whole thing in one sitting.

“That‘s also why we decided to hold this show in a hotel or a mall, to get a bigger audience.”

Rohmad says that wayang was often used as a propaganda tool, especially during the New Order era, but can now serve a more educational role.

“Right now, our mission is to introduce wayang, especially to youngsters, because it‘s a part of a traditional culture that has a lot of good morals in it,” Rohmad said.

Wayang is good because it encourages positive attributes.

“In wayang, you get to learn to accept defeat and to accept diversity,” he said.

The Bima Series is also aimed at nurturing wayang so that other countries cannot claim it as their own, he said.

Rohmad said the rarity of wayang performances was something that needed to be worked on.

He believes that wayang, as a form of Indonesian culture, can also help to attract tourists.

The government could also help to protect wayang by devoting more of the national budget to this form of culture, according to John McGlynn, one of the founders of the Lontar Foundation.

He says financial support is one way of showing appreciation to the people involved in wayang performances.

Although each show currently gets Rp 15 million ($1,500), that is not enough, John said.

“Rp 15 million may seem a lot for a wayang show. But in a team there are as many as 40 people, including the puppeteer, who need that money to live.”

Rohmad also sees vendors benefitting from more wayang shows. “When watching wayang, people can do anything. They can smoke, eat snacks. Think of how many street vendors would benefit from that business,” he said.

Source: http://thejakartaglobe.com

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