Dance depicts fight to topple Soeharto

Dance depicts fight to topple Soeharto

By Sal Murgiyanto

JAKARTA (JP): The fall of Soeharto's New Order has brought
great changes to the life of the nation, for better and worse, in
various fields of political, social, culture and the arts.

"For me it means freedom to express my thoughts without fear
from government control," said Martinus Miroto.

Miroto is one of two choreographers, with Gusmiati Suid,
representing Indonesia in the Second Art Summit Indonesia 1998.

Miroto's latest work,Kembang Sampah (The Garbage Flower),
which was performed at Gedung Kesenian Jakarta on Oct. 6 and Oct.
7, is based on the recent social unrest, especially the May
student demonstrations and the tragedies -- looting, arson and
rapes -- which followed and ultimately contributed to Soeharto
relinquishing power after 32 years.

In two parts, the dance begins with the sound of splattering
water intermingled with the vague chime of gamelan music from a
synthesizer. Seven male dancers walked slowly across the stage in
measured steps. Bare-shouldered and wearing a plain pale green
sarong and black sash as a belt, they used the refined classical
Javanese dance technique with perfectly controlled body
movements. Their simple makeup -- red across their foreheads and
white on their eyes -- was accented by long hair draped upon
their shoulders.

Facing the audience, they moved their feet and head in unison
to the incessant, reverberating gong beats. Simple but beautiful.

Suddenly, an "iron cylinder" wheel appeared to crush almost
everyone who dared oppose the wheel of time. Like an animal's
prey, a young woman dressed in a red gown (Cahyaningtyas) was
borne on the shoulders of two men. She was thrown on top of the
cylinder, now at center stage and peppered with many holes.

With fierce eyes, the seven muscular men mercilessly thrust
their lances into the holes as though spewing uncontrollable
lust. One by one, they left the stage, leaving two stupid men who
changed the sadomasochistic torture into a comedy of errors.

Using one lance, both men cooperated to put it into a hole.
After many attempts, one of them, Mugiyono, finally made it, only
to find out his lance was stuck. When he finally extricated it,
his hands stuck to the cylinder's wall; once he managed to pull
out his hands, his head became stuck. It was funny but ironic.

The woman in red lay sprawled on top of the cylinder. Alone in
a deserted place, she tried to stand up. Groaning in pain, she
peered in disgust at her soiled body. She felt ashamed, angry,
humiliated and worthless. She emitted loud, heartbreaking cries,
knowing that, defiled and dirty, she was nothing but "trash" in
the eyes of society.

Born in Yogyakarta, Miroto began to study classical Javanese
dance when he was eight years old.

Later he studied with choreographer Bagong Kussudiardja,
enrolled in a dance conservatory and continued his study at the
Indonesia Institute of Arts (ISI), all in Yogyakarta, where he
now chairs the dance program of ISI.

But his one-year study at the Jakarta Institute for the Arts
introduced him to other traditional Indonesian dances and
broadened his dance horizons. He began to sensitize his body as
an instrument and to study creativity and dance composition under
Sardono W. Kusumo.

In 1987, he appeared in the Festival of Indonesian
Choreography with his innovative work Sampah (Garbage), which
the Jakarta audience applauded. He later studied in the dance
department of Folkwangschule in Essen under Pina Bausch.

Miroto once told German dance critic Jochen Schmidt that he
would like to choreograph like Bausch. No wonder that the
influence of German "tanztheater" in Kembang Sampah is evident:
the use of everyday life movements, the theatrical setting, the
dance theme with strong social criticism and the ample freedom to
the performers to invent their own movements.

Interestingly, back in Yogyakarta in 1996, Miroto was awarded
Sultan Hamengkubuwono X's trophy as the best dancer for the
refined male character for the Yogyakarta Court Dance Style
Wayang Wong Competition.

In Kembang Sampah, Miroto tries his best to combine all these
different elements and experiences while also maintaining
Javanese elements.

The use of lances, the dialog among the dancers and the
separation of one dancer (Fajar Satriadi) from the rest is
reminiscent of the traditional Beksan Lawung of Yogyakarta. The
dancers' costumes, however, have been reduced to the essentials.
The function of the Lawung dance, too, has been drastically
changed; no longer it is to accompany the groom to meet the
bride, but to erotically and symbolically torture a defenseless,
victimized young woman.

Miroto's sympathy with the poor and defenseless is evident
also in the second part of the piece. Here, some Javanese
elements can be seen through the use of the accompanying gamelan
music and a fight scene between a forceful male dancer and
several rough characters. In another sequence, male and female
dancers danced with human skulls on their hands.

"Recently, news of people dying and being killed is no longer
shocking," Miroto said. "Death is happening so often all over the
country. Human life is no longer highly valued as before. Charred
bodies have been put into plastic bags with no identification, as
if they were trash. Very sad."

The impressive scene referred to above recalls Sardono
Kusumo's recent work, Soloensis.

Miroto puts more emphasis on the atmosphere and intense
feeling of the movement than on the technical aspects of the
dancers and the choreography. The setting was more realistic, as
if he wanted to move the "trash" from the street onto the stage.
His solo in the beginning of the second part, reminiscent of his
earlier work Incarnation, is strong. However, it is not long
enough to overcome the blurring focus due to the visually
overpowering set and the many things happening in the foreground.

One must not forget the significant contribution of the music
by Djadug Feriyanto, which is imbued with Javanese nuances but
very contemporary and experiential at the same time. It is also
true of the costumes by Samuel Wattimena, which are modest but
strongly support the idea of the choreography.

Miroto, who completed his master's of fine arts degree in
dance at the University of California in Los Angeles, has joined
Peter Sellars' The Persian which will be performed across the
U.S. and Europe for six months.

Miroto has successfully crossed many borders to enjoy working
with different dancers and choreographers, exploring diverse
choreographic approaches and blending performance esthetics. It
is all admirable, yet we should not forget that all of this must
be conducted to find one's own identity, color and strength.

The writer, a noted dance critic, is dean of the School
of Performing Arts of the Jakarta Institute of the Arts.