Jecko Siompo: Let's Dance Papua!<\/p>\n
Helly Minarti, Contributor\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
What can a young Papuan man aspire to these days?<\/p>\n
It is common for most educated Papuans to picture their
\nfutures either working in the government or holding down an
\noffice job.<\/p>\n
The choice Jecko Siompo, 29, made about a decade ago was
\nindeed an anomaly -- he moved to Jakarta to enroll in the Jakarta
\nArts Institute's dance department. There a cultural journey
\nbegan.<\/p>\n
At the institute, the Fakfak-born Jecko learned various dance
\nstyles, both traditional and modern. His sturdy, angular Papuan
\nbuild tried to be as supple as a Javanese prince, or as agile as
\na Minang (West Sumatra) martial arts master; quite a process of
\ncrossing cultures. Out of school, later, he tried ballet and
\nstreet dance (hip-hop dance culture), which added body and
\nmovement vocabulary to his resume.<\/p>\n
\"What's so funny, the more I learned about these `foreign'
\ndances, the more I understand the Papuan ones -- something that I
\nused to do by habit. I mean, we dance for every occasion --
\nhunting, fishing or weddings,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Back in Papua dancing was indeed part of daily life for Jecko
\n-- so why bother to study it? \"I just wanted to,\" he shrugs.<\/p>\n
Jecko was lucky to have experienced living in different areas
\nof Papua, from hinterland Wamena, coastal Fakfak, to the
\nprovincial capital Jayapura.<\/p>\n
Dancing accompanied him throughout his childhood and
\nadolescence, and he immersed in both hinterland (pedalaman) and
\ncoastal (pesisir) dance forms.<\/p>\n
Entering high school, he occasionally visited the capital
\nJakarta, and briefly enrolled in a high school there. \"I missed
\none class, so I decided to finish high school back in Papua,
\nbefore I moved here later.\"<\/p>\n
At the institute, his physical features and his body movements
\nattracted the older students, and soon he was being asked to
\ndance in some of their pieces -- most of them were already big
\nnames, or at least rising stars. \"I danced for Mas Don (Sardono
\nW. Kusumo), Gumarang Sakti, my teachers such as Mas Deddy
\n(Luthan) and some others.\"<\/p>\n
He also became involved in choreography. Some of his early
\nworks seemed detached from Papua, which was a problem because
\nJecko always shone the most when working with Papua materials.<\/p>\n
Apart from showcasing his work at local venues, he also
\nperformed at festivals such as the Indonesian Dance Festival. He
\nwas eventually invited to the Bates Dance Festival in Port Maine,
\nU.S., as a guest choreographer.<\/p>\n
During a trip to New York, he strolled through the city and
\nsaw with his own eyes the \"original\" hip-hop culture he learned
\nabout in the 1980s.<\/p>\n
\"I think something links North America and Papua when it comes
\nto body and dance cultures, because the traces are so apparent,\"
\nhe muses, theorizing how these two cultures might have criss-
\ncrossed in ancient times, through trade or other encounters.<\/p>\n
\"If Papua was technology-wise on a par with America, we would
\nall be dancing like those people in Manhattan because we come
\nfrom the same roots,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Returning home, he founded Jakarta Breakin', a hip-hop group
\nthat performed in pubs, cafes and during different occasions.<\/p>\n
\"I stopped breaking since I hurt my knee, but I still keep in
\ntouch with them,\" he said.<\/p>\n
In 2003 he received a scholarship to study dance theater in
\nGermany for four months. Instead of attending classes at Folkwang
\nTanz Studio, he tried to catch as many performances as possible
\nin Germany and France.<\/p>\n
\"I skipped classes. I was way too tired,\" he says. \"Still, I
\nlearned a lot.\"<\/p>\n
There seems to be a sense of indifference in his conduct. Even
\nin Jakarta, he would pop into a dance workshop (by an
\ninternational artist) very late and spend the whole time sitting
\non a bench, watching.<\/p>\n
He can appear moody and nonchalant, hiding a very keen
\nperception. Once he refused to hold a general rehearsal for a
\nsolo dance, as if trying to hide his choreography, to the
\nannoyance of everyone else around. But then, a few minutes into
\nconversation, Jecko demonstrated that he stays up-to-date on
\nissues in international contemporary dance and is aware of his
\nartistic choices (which do not always end in rave reviews).<\/p>\n
In his most recent dance piece, In Front Papua, Jecko narrated
\nhis own story -- the \"journeys\" he made, but was far from
\nliteral. Instead, he projected images and impression of Papua
\nthrough dancing bodies woven into Papua's natural landscape.<\/p>\n
The stage turned into various cultural\/natural sights from his
\nmemory: the hanging bridge made of tree roots over the Membramo
\nRiver, with all its alligators, pedestrians in Jayapura or
\nManhattan, beaches, mountains.<\/p>\n
He also merges different body movements -- stylized Papuan
\ntribal dance steps, trivial gestures, the moonwalking he
\nobviously copied from the King of Pop.<\/p>\n
\"Of course I will always have to come back to Papua, but
\nsometimes I need distance. I position myself in front of Papua,
\noutside it. Only then can I get inside again.\"<\/p>\n
With the support of a Papua-born government official who is a
\nfan, Jecko might have the chance to go back to Papua more often
\nand build new links with the sanggar (dance studio) founded by
\nthe local community. \"I do not think I have 'ruined' my
\ntraditions. All I have taken is the spirit (of tradition) and my
\nlife in Papua.\"<\/p>",
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