The gray area between luminescence and twilight<\/p>\n
Cameron Bates, Contributor, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Gerard Mosterd is conflicted. He was raised on both nasi (rice)
\nand potatoes.<\/p>\n
The darkish, dancing Dutchman, born to a blue-eyed, blonde-
\nhaired Dutch father and an Indonesian mother in the Netherlands,
\nis wrestling with his cultural background -- a struggle that
\nfirst saw him return to his \"mother country\" two years ago to
\nbegin the fight to find his roots, to confront head-on his dual
\nidentity.<\/p>\n
\"As a little kid I was told by my mother to be a shadow, or a
\nwayang, to stay in the background while in the West, according to
\nmy father, it is necessary to search for the light, to profile
\nyour ego to be able to get things done. Is one better than the
\nother?\"<\/p>\n
Mosterd looks comfortable sitting under the enveloping Jakarta
\nhaze in the garden of a landscaped colonial home in upmarket
\nMenteng. His batik shirt is buttoned and he smokes the occasional
\ncigarette as he explains about the much anticipated Indonesian
\nperformances of Luminescent Twilight. He is excited and sits on
\nthe edge of his chair.<\/p>\n
\"This is the first time in history that a contemporary dance
\npiece inspired by a Dutch-Indonesian background will be performed
\nthis extensively throughout Indonesia.\"<\/p>\n
In a clear voice no match for the nearby gurgling kolam Ikan
\n(fish pond) or the cooing pigeons imprisoned behind bars, he
\nrecounts his artistic history which began with improvised, slow
\nIndonesian dances as a child and did not end with his education
\nin classical ballet and modern dance under Marian Sarstadt at the
\ndance academy of the Royal Conservatory in the Hague.<\/p>\n
After graduating in 1985 he danced internationally with
\nseveral companies, including the Royal Ballet of Flanders, London
\nFestival Ballet (later ENB), Concordanse Paris and Basel Ballet.
\nHe now teaches and has choreographed three pieces, with
\nLuminescent Twilight his first full-length work.<\/p>\n
The 60-minute autobiographical performance features Teck Voon
\nNg as Mosterd's Eastern self and Ester Natzijl as his Western
\nself. The two dancers are separated by a thin paper screen which
\nMosterd says may as well be as thick as the Berlin wall.<\/p>\n
\"This piece reflects a phase that I am in now, a desire to
\ntranslate my conflicts, my sympathies, my antipathies.\"<\/p>\n
He explains that being born out of a mixed marriage was the
\nclay he used to mold his performance.<\/p>\n
A performance which Dutch newspaper Rotterdam's Dagblad
\npraised: \"Seldom has a question been visualized so clearly in
\nimagery and movement.\"<\/p>\n
On a deeply personal level Mosterd says the clash of cultures
\nproved too much for his parents who, though now friends, could
\nnot live together.<\/p>\n
\"All my life that's what my parents were dealing with because
\nmy parents lives were that extreme that they never really managed
\nto understand each other. Sometime there were maddening
\nsituations where they could nearly kill each other.\"<\/p>\n
Another key element incorporated in the work is his parents
\ndifferent approaches to life.<\/p>\n
\"It refers to being born or living in the twilight zone
\nbetween light and darkness ... your personality is put to one
\nside and since I feel I am between both I consider myself to be
\nin the gray zone.\"<\/p>\n
Mosterd said the piece combines the slower timeless movements
\nof Asian dance, including the Javanese court dances, with the
\ntime-conscious movements of Western dance.<\/p>\n
But above all else, Mosterd hopes his work entertains.<\/p>\n
\"This piece attempts in 60 minutes to bridge the Oriental
\nstyle of dancing with the Western approach to dancing.
\nConcentrated, meditative, introverted movements changed with
\ndynamic, expressive gestures challenged between the masculine and
\nthe feminine, the aggressive and the passive, introversion and
\nextroversion and Eastern and Western.\"<\/p>\n
The movements, combined with lighting and music from gamelan
\nmusician Niels Walen and electronic composer Paul Goodman,
\nconfront differences in bicultural behavior in a movement
\nvocabulary, he said.<\/p>\n
He added it was important for both cultures to understand each
\nother. \"That's what this piece is about, to make an effort, to
\nget to know each other better.\"<\/p>\n
Luminescent Twilight by Gerard Mosterd premiers in Indonesia at
\nGedung Kesenian, Jakarta on Sept. 28 with a repeat performance
\nthe following night. A workshop will be held at the Jakarta Arts
\nInstitute on Oct. 1.<\/p>\n
Other venues: STSI Theater, Bandung on Oct. 6; Sositet
\nYogyakarta on Oct. 10 and Oct. 11; Theatre Besar, STSI, Surakarta
\non Oct. 12; Taman Budaya, Surabaya on Oct. 15 and Oct. 16; STSI
\ntheatre, Denpasar on Oct. 19. All shows begin at 8 p.m.<\/p>",
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