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.