Choreographer brings ancient temple art to life

Choreographer brings ancient temple art to life

Kartika Bagus C.
Contributor
Surakarta, Central Java

An almost naked figure, only covered by a small piece of batik
cloth, swirls in slow, rhythmical movements before transforming
the movements into dynamic ones, in harmony with the image of
Prambanan Temple presented on a wide screen.

Two Gunungan -- mountain-shaped leather figures which are
usually used to begin or conclude a leather puppet show --
symbolized the existence of two different worlds: the present and
the future.

At the end of the show, the screen collapsed and formed a
field, as if representing the Kurusetra field in Mahabrata epic
story. Only then, the figure washed his face, marking the start
of self purification, and emerged behind a mask.

The dance, entitled Mencari Mata Candi (Searching for the Eye
of the Temple), was staged by choreographer cum dancer Mugiyono
Kasido at the Indonesia Arts Institute in Surakarta, Central
Java. The dance was staged for the first time at the institute
before as a dress rehearsal before the troupe headed to the
Kunsten Festival des Arts at Chapelle des Brigittines in
Brussels, Belgium to perform from May 16-19.

The choreography was the outcome of the artist's intensive
explorations as well as rehearsals which took two-and-a-half
months to complete. The dance was also the result of his
observation trips to many temples across Java, including the
Prambanan and Borobudur Temples, since 1997.

Inspiration for the dance also came from Mugiyono's early
collaborative research with Dr. Alessandra Lopez, senior dance
lecturer of the University of Surrey, London, and expert Edi
Sedyawati of the University of Indonesia, in reconstructing the
dance movements carved in the balustrade at the Loro Jonggrang
temple in Prambanan, Central Java.

Mugiyono said his creation mixed dance movements, leather
puppet show elements and a projector. The work was then enhanced
with a musical composition originating from a number of Javanese
gamelan traditional orchestra presented in a contemporary format.

"On the stage, the music becomes an integrated part of the
performance itself. As engraved on the Prambanan Temple, the
dance moves and music are one," he said.

This choreography, he said, was also a result of his
reconstruction of Karana Natyaraja (Natyaraja dance movement)
found in the relief panels on the Shiva Temple in Prambanan.

Some movements were also inspired by the relief of animals
found at the Sukuh Temple in Karanganyar, Central Java. This
relief was then replicated and reconstructed with a new
interpretation without abandoning its expressive values that give
prominence to the beauty of movement.

The movement in the choreography maintains two dimensions of
the relief: simplicity and dynamic characters.

However, Mugiyono admitted that not all the movements were
based on the temple art. Most of the movements originated from
the temple portrayals were also blended with other types of dance
movements that he usually practices.

Born in Klaten, Central Java in 1976, Mugiyono has produced
dozens of choreographies. Coming from a puppet master's family,
he was drawn to dance since he was a boy, as well as developing
his skills after learning from traditional dances of the
Mangkunegaran Palace in Surakarta.

In 1993, his work Terjerat (Trapped) was named Best Art Dance,
while in the coming years, he took part in noted dancer Sardono
W. Kusuma's performances such as Opera Diponegoro (Diponegoro
Opera, 1995), Passage Through the Gong (1996), Karmawibangga
(1999) and Surat Shinta (Shinta's Letter, 2002).

According to veteran dancer Suprapto Suryodarmo, Mugiyono's
choreography reflected the efforts of transferring temple relief,
into human movement.

"A temple, by definition, is God's home with values about life
since many of the scenes portrayed in temple art is mostly taken
from the Ramayana epic story that highlights birth, life and
death," Suprapto, a choreographer who teaches the ritual dances
of Vipassana and Sumarah that deal with Javanese meditation
techniques.