Banyumas dancers face misperception
Banyumas dancers face misperception
By Wartono Permadhi
BANYUMAS, Central Java (JP): Lengger, a folk dance unique to
Banyumas, is now gaining in popularity if the large number of
dance troupes registered at the local office of the ministry of
education and culture is anything to go by.
Lengger, or Ronggeng Banyumasan, is similar to dances found in
other areas with different names. The dance apparently has its
roots in the gambyong dance, a folk dance with set movements.
However, it has been adapted locally and now differs from the
original gambyong dance, largely through the rhythm of the
gamelan music which traditionally accompanies it.
The term lengger or tayub, which has similar meaning, was
first referred to in a 12th-century book entitled Kakawin
Baratayudha, suggesting that even by this early date folk art was
already geared towards entertainment.
Soedarsono, an expert on culture from Gadjah Mada University,
has said that lengger was initially intended as a ritualistic
dance.
It used to be performed in rice fields as the planting season
approached. The symbolic representation of sexual intercourse
contained in the dance is a request to God to bless the season's
paddy with fertility.
In Banyumas, lengger is also often performed at weddings,
where it is intended to bring fertility to the bride and groom.
The female dancer, also called a lengger, invites the bridegroom
to dance with her.
Some locals are unhappy with this racy behavior and charge
that the ancient rite teaches young men and boys about sex. The
angry locals refer to the belief of some dancers that they will
remain young if they have sex with young males. The people of
Banyumas call this traditional sex education gowokan.
According to Soedarsono, lengger has been directly and
indirectly influenced by the passage of time to a point where its
ritualistic and aesthetic values have now diminished.
As a result, those performing lengger are usually considered
to be people of loose morals who readily indulge in sex.
However, according to Setijanto, chairman of Banyumas Arts
Agency (BKB) and an enthusiast of traditional arts in Banyumas,
this unfavorable image of lengger dancers has arisen because many
do not understand the meanings behind the dance.
He said most modern lengger dancers are educated and even
university students do not find it embarrassing to perform.
Astuti, 30, a lengger dancer who recently returned from a
European tour, said men often asked to have sex with her.
She said that she always refused then tried to explain to them
what her profession was. To ensure that nobody flirted too much
with her, her husband was present at every performance.
"That is the risk of being a lengger dancer. I always consider
my family to be more important than anything else. I don't want
to see the family break simply because I am lengger dancer," she
stressed.
The crisis has hit hard, she said, with fewer people hiring
her and her troupe. Performances are down to one a month, whereas
before her troupe performed almost every day, she said.