250 Students Perform Traditional Dances from Gantar to Saman on One Stage

A colossal performance blending traditional Nusantara dances with modern contemporary styles was presented by 250 students. The students are members of RAFA International Dance School. Celebrating its 13th anniversary, RAFA International Dance School held its 13th annual performance titled GROWTH: Growing into RAFA, Our Way Through Heritage on Saturday (18/7) at Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM), Jakarta. The performance presented the artistic concept of ‘Tarian Raya di Balik Hutan Nusantara’, a metaphor about a tree as a symbol of human growth that cannot be separated from its roots. Each act showcased the richness of Indonesian regional dances, from the Gantar Dance of East Kalimantan, the Jaipong Dance of West Java, the Piring Dance of West Sumatra, to the Saman Dance, blended with jazz, hip-hop, and contemporary ballet on one harmonious stage. GROWTH was born from a collaboration between RAFA International Dance School and the Raya Budaya Nusantara Foundation, a non-profit organisation committed to preserving Indonesian culture through digital archiving and empowering cultural practitioners. ‘GROWTH means bertumbuh. Growth is about the process. We always prioritise not the result, but the students going through every process, from not being able to do something, to being able to do it,’ said Nevine, Founder of RAFA International Dance School, during a press conference for GROWTH at Taman Ismail Marzuki, Jakarta, on Saturday (18/7). ‘We believe that culture is the root of the nation’s identity. This collaboration with RAFA is a tangible manifestation of that belief—that cultural preservation is most effective when it lives within the younger generation, not just stored in archives,’ said Teuku Rassya, Chairman of the Raya Budaya Nusantara Foundation.