Dance blends Japanese touch with Balinese<\/p>\n
Kadek Suartaya, Contributor, Denpasar, Bali<\/p>\n
Last April, a group of Japanese led by Chieko Komatsu visited the
\nsmall village of Payangan in Gianyar regency, inviting the
\nvillage farmers to collaborate on an art project.<\/p>\n
The piece, titled Cak Amaterasu, was staged last weekend at
\nthe Bali Arts Festival, involving a dozen Japanese women and
\nBalinese traditional cak dancers who also provided vocal
\naccompaniment to the dance.<\/p>\n
The choreography centered on the life of three Japanese
\ndeities, Amaterasu (god of the sun), Tsukoyomi (god of the moon),
\nand Susanno (god of the sea). Susanno is crude and often drunk,
\ncreating a mess of the universe. Amaterasu is sad about Susanno's
\nbehavior and locks himself in a cave. As a result, the universe
\nturns dark. Other deities tried to persuade Amaterasu to come out
\nof the cave. Even Susanno realized his mistakes and promised to
\nstop his bad habits. Finally, Amaterasu ended his seclusion, and
\nlit up the universe again.<\/p>\n
Cak, or Kecak, is one of the flexible forms of traditional
\nperforming arts in Bali. Performed for the first time in the
\n1930s, the dance utilizes human voices of \"cak.. cak.. cak\" as
\nmusical accompaniment.<\/p>\n
Many people have mistakenly called Kecak a monkey dance since
\nthe dance's story usually derived from a war episode of King Rama
\nand his monkey troops against the devilish King Rahwana. But in
\nall, Cak or Kecak actually presents various stories based on
\nlocal and foreign legends or mythology.<\/p>\n
For instance, I Wayan Dibia, a famous Bali choreographer,
\npresented the Kecak dance, which was based on Mahabharata epic
\nstory and other legends. Javanese contemporary dancer-
\nchoreographer Sardono W. Kusumo composed another form of Kecak
\nentitled Cak Rina.<\/p>\n
In l990, American artist Keith Terry collaborated with Dibia
\nin creating Body Cak -- a fusion of vocal music and clapping.
\nFive years later, Japanese music composer Yamashirogumi cleverly
\nblended Kecak with Japanese ritual mask dances.<\/p>\n
For the Bali Arts Festival, Chieko Komatsu and her other
\ndancers from Japan -- who are now pursuing Balinese dance
\ntraining at the Denpasar Arts Institute (STSI), combined Cak
\ndance with elements from Japanese traditional dance and
\nmythology. The result was an enchanting and inspiring
\nchoreography.<\/p>\n
The one-hour performance actually focused on inter-cultural
\ndialog, comprising elements from Japanese traditional dance and
\nlanguage.<\/p>\n
All female dancers were beautifully adorned in colorful
\nJapanese traditional costumes, Ameterasu wore a red costume with
\na white headscarf, Tsukuyomi wore a white kimono with a sign of a
\ncrescent on his head, while Susanno was portrayed as a scary god
\nwearing black costume.<\/p>\n
In a way, the Japanese mythology of the three gods was closer
\nto the Hindu concept of Tri Murti -- three gods, Brahma the
\ncreator, Vishnu the caretaker, and Shiva the destroyer.<\/p>\n
In Cak Amaterasu, the birth of the three gods, Amaterasu,
\nTsukuyomi and Susanno was illustrated with the roaring voices of
\nthe Cak dancers.<\/p>\n
Puppet master Nyoman Sukerta provided narration and dialogue
\nin Balinese language and Kawi ancient Javanese language.<\/p>\n
Cak Amaterasu reached its climax when the deities performed a
\nritual ceremony to summon Amaterasu. All Cak dancers sharply
\npointed their torches to the dark sky creating a magical
\natmosphere on the stage.<\/p>\n
When Amaterasu appeared from his seclusion, the universe was
\nbrightened again with happiness and hope. The voice of Cak
\ndancers thundered throughout the venue.<\/p>\n
The message of this collaboration work was to disseminate
\npeace and harmony to the world despite diverse cultural
\nbackgrounds and different ideologies.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/dance-blends-japanese-touch-with-balinese-1447893297",
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