Ancient Bugis epos goes international
Ancient Bugis epos goes international
Carla Bianpoen, Contributor, Jakarta
Not many people outside South Sulawesi know about this most
unique epos, La Galigo. Some may even think it is French. But
don't be mistaken. La Galigo is authentic Bugis.
Known mostly among the best seafarers in the world, the Bugis
are also a cultured people, as evident from their exceptional
literature. Myths,local histories, ritual chants,law books,
almanacs, genealogies and wise sayings; all is told in a wide
variety of texts.
Among these, the vast epic myth of La Galigo is the longest
and most voluminous in the world.
Now, for the first time, this ancient epic will be staged
worldwide, with the world premiere starting on the wide stage of
the Singapore Esplanade, Theaters on the Bay.
Collabrately produced by Bali Purnati Center for the Arts and
Change Performing Arts/Italy, it will be directed by no less than
the world's foremost theater director Robert Wilson, and
sponsored by Esplanade Singapore, Het Muziek Theater Amsterdam,
Lincoln Center New York and Forum Universal de les Cultures
Barcelona.
One may wonder how this towering figure of theater came to be
interested in an ancient epic myth from one of the most remote
spots in the Indonesian archipelago. Let's say that it all came
about because it just happened. Wilson, acknowledged worldwide
for his contemporary visual and visionary theater, had known
Restu Imansari since the time she was a dancer in his work The
Days Before.
Time and again Wilson had asked Restu for an authentic
Indonesian drama, but there wasn't one that Restu thought
relevant. Restu is the director of Bali Purnati Center for the
Arts, which seeks to highlight Indonesian cultures such as those
in Eastern Indonesia, which have not yet enjoyed as much exposure
as those from Java and Bali.
Then, Rhoda Grauer, a bissu researcher from America, and an
international award-winning producer in the performing arts, who
had fallen in love with I La Galigo, suggested this ancient epic
to Restu. Together they presented their idea for the production
to Wilson, who agreed almost immediately, and Change Performing
Arts/Italy joined in.
What then makes the epic, which goes international on March
12, so interesting? For one it is the longest ever in the history
of the world's mythology. The size of the whole work is estimated
at about 6,000 folio pages. It consists of dozens of episodes,
each with its own protagonist, and although spanning six
generations, it is still a unified whole.
La Galigo, also called I (pronounced as the English "ee") La
Galigo or Sureq Galigo, is the story of the initial residence on
earth of the gods and their descendants, the Middle World, how it
came about, interacted with the realms of the gods in Upper and
the Under World, how the interaction came to a halt, and a new
world was created.
Sawerigading is the main protagonist of the whole story, which
may also be thought of as a love story of godly descendants, a
twin -- girl and boy -- whose love for each other was strictly
prohibited.
Sawerigading ultimately marries his cousin in a far-away
country, the precise image of his twin sister. While the twins
cannot marry, their children can. And it is the daughter of
Sawerigading and the son of We Tenriabeng, his twin sister, who
ultimately become the first beings in a world, deserted by the
gods, a brave new world.
The poetic language is exceedingly beautiful. Roger Tol, a
Bugis specialist and head of the Dutch KITLV in Jakarta, says
"When we read or hear a piece of La Galigo, it is not hard to
imagine the enjoyment the text provides through the sheer beauty
of its wording, repetitions, and parallelism -- the fundamentals
of Bugis poetics," while Nurhayati Rahman, the only female
academic of Bugis literature, and one of the few who can still
read the old Bugis script, reveals the fascinating poetry is of
an astounding transformative nature, in many ways down to earth.
It is interesting that the epic, which had developed orally,
was written down by a Bugis woman, a queen at that, who responded
to Dutch scholar BF Matthes, and scouted, with him, the villages
around Luwuq for stories she then wrote in the old Bugis language
in 12 complete manuscripts, some of which have been translated
into the Indonesian language. Queen Arung Pancana Toa did the
writing between 1852 and 1860.
I La Galigo will bring to life Asia's greatest literary find
in recent history, states Esplanade chief executive officer
Benson Puah, hoping that by hosting a world premiere of this
stature with this international masterpiece, Esplanade is playing
a key role in the rise of new Asian theater.
With a cast of no fewer than 40 actors, mostly from South
Sulawesi, Timor and Papua, wearing Indonesian material, German-
designed costumes, coordinated by a combined Indonesian-
international team, the first-ever showing of I La Galigo will
offer a unique opportunity to see ancient history given a
contemporary relevance.
Following the premiere at the Singapore Esplanade on March 12
and March 13, La Galigo is scheduled to be staged in Het Muziek
Theater, Amsterdam, Forum Universal de les Cultures Barcelona,
Bilbao, Lyon, Ravenna, Cyracuse, Jakarta (Art Summit 2004) and
America (2005).
I La Galigo, produced by Change Performing Arts/Italy and Bali
Purnati Center for the Arts Esplanade Singapore Theaters on the
Bay, March 12 through March 13. Tickets at Esplanade box office
and Sistic outlets: www.esplanade.com. An Indonesian package tour
with Garuda is being prepared by Sejati Tours Indonesia, tel.
5250082, fax 5250013 (Ade, Reza).