Borobudur to offer new night attractions<\/p>\n
Sri Wahyuni and Tarko Sudiarno, The Jakarta Post, Magelang, Central Java<\/p>\n
The Borobudur temple in Magelang will stage a ballet performance
\nat night, reminiscent of the popular Ramayana dance-drama
\nperformed in the compound of the Prambanan Hindu temple some 80
\nkilometers apart.<\/p>\n
The first performance will be staged on Wednesday night, with
\nPresident Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono among the audience.<\/p>\n
A collaborative work of experts of various backgrounds,
\nincluding a choreographer, musician, historian, and archeologist,
\nthe one-hour ballet is a colossal performance involving some 150
\nlocal and professional dancers from the Surakarta-based
\nIndonesian Arts College (STSI).<\/p>\n
The dance performance Mahakarya Borobudur tells about the
\ncreation of Borobudur, which has been named a world heritage site
\nby UNESCO.<\/p>\n
\"We plan to regularly perform the ballet at the temple in the
\nnear future, but we have not yet arranged the schedule,\" PT Taman
\nWisata Candi Borobudur, Prambanan, and Ratu Boko temple
\nmanagement manager Guntur Purnomoadi told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
\"It will be like the Ramayana performance regularly held at
\nPrambanan temple.\"<\/p>\n
Mahakarya Borobudur will also mark the launch of the new
\nlighting design of Borobudur by world-class American designer
\nRobert Daniels. with financial support from U.S. electronic giant
\nGeneral Electric (GE), which also provides the lighting design
\nfor the stage.<\/p>\n
The temple management president director, Wagiman Subiaro,
\nsaid the new lighting design would highlight the temple's beauty
\nand is expected to attract more tourists.<\/p>\n
\"The lighting will also provide a magnificent background for
\nthe performance,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Wagiman said the performance was expected to boost the tourist
\nindustry in the region and have a multiplier effect on the local
\ncommunity.<\/p>\n
\"We do hope all parties who are committed to national culture
\nconservation support Mahakarya Borobudur,\" he said.<\/p>\n
An average of two million people visit the temple annually.<\/p>\n
Speaking separately to the Post, Daniels said that main
\ndifference between the previous and present lighting design for
\nBorobudur laid in the use of what he called the cross-fire
\nlighting technique and the light-beam control in the present
\ndesign.<\/p>\n
\"The previous design basically was just putting light straight
\nonto the temple. It washed out all the details,\" Daniels said.<\/p>\n
In fact, he said, because of the magnificent carvings and the
\nstatues that the temple has, it actually needed light that works
\nin different ways to create a three-dimensional effect on the
\ntemple at night and even make it look more beautiful under the
\nlight.<\/p>\n
\"By day, this magnificence is apparent. By night, it's a bit
\nharder to appreciate. My mission is to create a design that truly
\npunctuates the depth, detail and sheer brilliance of the temple,\"
\nhe said.<\/p>\n
During his visit to the temple for the preparation for
\nWednesday's event, President and CEO of the GE Consumer and
\nIndustrial of Asia-Pacific Darryl Wilson said the lighting design
\nwas the second that the company had provided for Borobudur temple
\nin 2003.<\/p>\n
So far GE has spent a total of US$70,000 for the construction
\nand installation of lighting. The project itself, according to
\nWilson, was part of the firm's community service.<\/p>\n
\"We have the facility here in Yogyakarta. We have the
\ntechnology and the idea. So, we do it. We see it is important for
\nthe community and the world to understand what is here; the
\nbeauty of the structure, even during the night,\" Wilson said.<\/p>",
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