Children present fine classical dance drama

Children present fine classical dance drama

I Wayan Juniartha and Mas Ruscitadewi, The Jakarta Post,
Denpasar, Bali

On that night, the star of the Arja dance drama performance was
Cok Istri Ari Sariati, and there was not one single scintilla of
doubt to counter that claim.

Her movements were polished and true to the complicated
conventions of the classical dance drama. Her voice was
beautiful, soaring to a high pitch with ease before diving into a
low pitch without losing its haunting sentiment, let alone its
energy. Her dramatic gestures were both enchanting and superbly
crafted.

The audience, who flocked to the Bali Art Center's Wantilan
stage that Sunday night, simply loved her, giving her a generous
round of applause after each dramatic scene she performed.

More evidence of her outstanding performance was witnessed by
the audience's love for her even though she played the main
antagonist, Kangsa.

Kangsa was the vicious king who ordered all baby boys in his
kingdom to be killed after an oracle predicted that a newborn
would defeat him in the future. A baby boy did survive the
slaughter, and he was later known as Kresna -- the most popular
icon of Hinduism, who eventually saved the nation from the brutal
reign of Kangsa.

The fact that Cok Istri Ari Sariati was just a 13-year-old
girl only made her remarkable achievement more unusual.

Cok Istri Ari Sariati is a member of the Arja troupe of the
Gianyar-based Sukawati Second Public Junior High School, the only
child in the troupe to participate in the 24th Bali Art Festival.

Backstage, several minutes after the one-and-a-half-hour show
ended, the mature and majestic Cok Istri Ari Sariati suddenly
transformed back into a timid young girl, cuddling a blonde baby
doll while trying fruitlessly to avoid the glaring lenses of some
overzealous photographers.

She was flanked by her fellow performers, mostly teenagers
between 12 and 14 years of age, who were glowing with the
pleasant euphoria of giving a fine performance. There was
Setiadewi, who had successfully brought the narcissistic yet
humorous character of Yasoda to life, busily combing her hair in
the corner, and Cok Istri Putri Tresna Dewi, who played Kresna,
being helped by her mother in taking off the heavy headgear.

Prior to their Bali Art Festival's performance the troupe had
spent three months training rigorously under the guidance of
Cokorda Istri Nandri, and arguably Bali's best Arja performer Ni
Nyoman Tjandri of Singapadu village.

During training, the troupe tested their skills by performing
at two village temple festivals and also at their own school.

"Thank God they could acquire the skills needed to perform the
Arja in such a short time. The fact that most of them already
possessed dance skills must have had something to do with it.
Frankly, I am proud of them and really satisfied with the show,"
Cokorda Istri Nandri said.

Tjandri expressed a similar tone of satisfaction, although for
quite a different reason. For years, she had been worrying about
the future of the classical dance drama. The way her pupils had
performed, and, moreover, the warm response the audience had
extended toward the performance, convinced Tjandri that the Arja
still had a future.

"Initially, I had a lot of doubt about their abilities, but
then it turned out that they could perform it beautifully. They
were not only dancing and singing, but they were also able to
harmoniously blend the songs with the movements. I saw a lot of
potential in them," Tjandri said.

Known as Balinese Opera, the Arja is difficult to perform
since it requires an artist to possess not only the ability to
dance within the strict conventions of the Balinese classical
dance, but to also have talent in singing and reciting the
ancient Javanese songs and dialog.

The word Arja was believed to be derived from the Sanskrit
word reja (beauty). A majority of Balinese art scholars thought
that the Arja was an offspring of the Balinese ancient dance
drama of Gambuh.

These dance dramas differ in two significant points, namely
the language and the story they employ. Gambuh employs ancient
kawi (old Javanese languages), and derives its story from the
court-centered Javanese romantic tale of the Panji, while the
Arja employs middle Javanese language and has a wider source for
stories, including the epic Mahabharata and Ramayana, or Balinese
folklore, such as the Basur, Jayaprana and Cupak Grantang.

The Arja was first performed in 1825 during the reign of
Klungkung's king I Dewa Agung Sakti. Initially, the Arja employed
an all-male cast, but female artists later dominated the dance
drama, leaving only the male servant characters of Punta and
Kartala to the care of male performers.