Ki Manteb, a true puppeteer<\/p>\n
Sri Wahyuni, The Jakarta Post, Karanganyar, Central Java<\/p>\n
His very firm and energetic sabetan, a puppet master's way of
\nmoving puppets in fighting scenes, has earned Ki Manteb
\nSoedharsono the name Dalang Setan, a devilish puppet master,
\namong Javanese wayang (shadow puppet show) lovers.<\/p>\n
His popularity is unquestionable. Anytime the puppet master
\nperforms, wayang fans would crowd the arena the whole night long.<\/p>\n
His loyal fans are not only locals, but also foreigners who
\noften invite him to perform in their countries, like Japan,
\nGermany, Spain, Switzerland and the United States.<\/p>\n
Now, at least 12 invitations, mostly from cities in Java and
\nMadura islands, are received every year by Ki Manteb, as he is
\npopularly known.<\/p>\n
Back then, in the 1980s, he had to perform almost every night.
\nSometimes, the show was not only held in different towns, but
\noften in different provinces as well.<\/p>\n
\"Sometimes, I had to sleep in the car during the day while we
\nwould drive to the next town to get ready for the next
\nperformance in the evening,\" said Ki Manteb at his residence in
\nDoplang village, Karangpandan district in Karanganyar regency,
\nsome 30 kilometers northeast of Surakarta, Central Java.<\/p>\n
Some people may find him as a dalang (puppet master) who does
\nnot follow wayang's pakem, guidelines of puppet show
\nperformances, because he has initiated the use of guest stars in
\nhis traditional performances. Others, however, consider his
\ninitiative as added value which makes his show even more
\ninterested and entertaining. Now, the style of including guest
\nstars has become one of his show trademarks.<\/p>\n
\"Frankly speaking, I did it (inviting guest stars)
\nspontaneously. It happened in 1986 while I was performing at
\nTaman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) arts center in Jakarta. At that time,
\ncomedian Yati Pesek (of Yogyakarta) happened to watch my show so
\nI invited her on to the stage to have a dialog with the
\ncharacters in my play and so made her a guest star,\" Manteb
\nrecalled.<\/p>\n
\"But I refuse to call it not following pakem. I still follow
\nthe pakem, ethically. For example, I won't allow any of my guest
\nstars to stand up on the stage. They have to sit, just like the
\nrest of the crew and I do.\"<\/p>\n
His popularity does not stop at the stage, but it extends
\nfurther, into television as well. He even became a star of a TV
\ncommercial. Some now call him Dalang O Ye after his famous line
\nin the commercial.<\/p>\n
\"The fact that the words (from the commercial) have become
\nvery popular among people satisfies me very much. It makes me
\nrealize that people do accept me,\" said the father of three sons,
\nthree daughters and the grandfather of nine grandchildren.<\/p>\n
Ki Manteb was so pleased with the commercial, he changed all
\nplate numbers of his 10 antique motorcycles into AD 0 YE.<\/p>\n
However, he realized that being a TV commercial star was not
\nfor him and decided it would be the one and only commercial he
\never starred in, despite the fact that the money was good.<\/p>\n
\"My true identity is as a dalang and I don't want to lose it,\"
\nsaid Manteb, adding that the decision forced him to turn down
\nrequests to star in other commercials.<\/p>\n
Born in the Central Java town of Sukoharjo on Aug. 13, 1948,
\nManteb comes from a family of dalang. His great grandfather, his
\ngrandfather and his father were all dalang in their own time,
\nmaking him the fourth generation dalang in his family.<\/p>\n
\"My brothers, too, there are four of them, are all
\ndalang,\" said Manteb, the first son of seven siblings. Now, his
\nthree sons are also dalang.<\/p>\n
Manteb himself started to learn how to perform the wayang
\nwhile he was still a very young boy. At the age of eight, he
\nstarted to perform in public. But he became a real dalang and
\nearned his own money from the job when he was 12 years old. Back
\nthen, his first invitation came from the East Java town of Ngawi.<\/p>\n
When he was young, Manteb said he liked to improve his
\nperforming skills as a dalang by studying under prominent puppet
\nmasters. Among his teachers were Ki Narto Sabdo of Semarang, Ki
\nNgabei Wignyo Sutarno of Mangkunegaran, Surakarta, Ki Warseno of
\nWonogiri, Ki Gondodharmo of Sragen -- all in Central Java, and Ki
\nGondobono of Madiun, East Java.<\/p>\n
\"They all have helped to shape my style as a dalang,\" said
\nManteb, adding that the late Ki Narto Sabdo was the one that he
\nadmired the most, especially because of his ability to play seven
\ndifferent wayang characters in a single scene.<\/p>\n
\"I can only play five characters (with five different
\nsounds and intonations) in a scene,\" said the dalang whose show
\nat Yogyakarta Palace's Pagelaran stage on July 7 will close the
\nongoing Yogyakarta Arts Festival.<\/p>\n
As a dalang, Ki Manteb does his best to keep up with the
\nlatest issues, something that might he included later on in his
\nshows. At the moment, he subscribes to seven different newspapers
\nand a weekly magazine. And he tries to read all of them,
\nespecially his favorite section, the editorials.<\/p>\n
\"I like editorials because they help me think analytically,
\neven though sometimes I disagree with their analysis.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ki-manteb-a-true-puppeteer-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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