Elegy for Surabaya in collaborative dances
Elegy for Surabaya in collaborative dances
years ago,
with tears and blood
they defend you
and they succeed
tonight
under the stars
with heart and soul
we are dancing and wishing
for a better Surabaya
SURABAYA (JP): For choreographer Linda Josephine, Surabaya is
a source of inspiration.
The director of Elles Dance Company expressed her inspiration
through Elegy of Dance and Poetry for Surabaya, a choreography
dedicated to the 708th anniversary celebration of Surabaya.
The two-night performance at Majapahit Hotel on May 24 and
May 25, were applauded by the Surabaya audience, who had been
longing for such quality dance performance.
Linda Josephine, collaborating with other choreographers,
namely Bimo Wiwohatmo, Besar Widodo, Izumi Nagano and Chuan Han
Kee, presented seven dances, which were supposed to reflect the
present situation.
Concern among artists on the fate of Surabaya had been
expressed in many ways. Before the dance performance started,
poet Hardjono WS read his poem on Surabaya.
The dance performance itself was opened with Lotus, a creation
by Bimo Wiwohatmo. It was about a goddess' flower of life.
Performed by Bimo, Mila Halim and Justine Lauwardi, it was quite
fascinating as a start, with the stage's dark background enriched
with a play of lights.
In Sangkakala, Bimo tells that life has become mechanical,
everybody lives like robots, which have no soul. A dancer who
moved dynamically in the center of the stage, was surrounded by
six other dancers who moved just as dynamically and repetitively.
The music, composed by Izumi Nagano, hypnotized the audience.
Other dances performed were A Peaceful Sketch by Besar Widodo,
Aurora by Linda Josephine, Soul by Bimo, Initiation by Izumi
Nagano and Mei Hua San Lung by Chun Han Kee. It is necessary to
note the successful collaboration between Josephine's Elles Dance
Company and other choreographers from different traditions of
dance. Bimo Wiwohatmo was trained in Javanese classical dances
before learning choreography from maestro Bagong Kussudiardjo in
Yogyakarta. Izumi Nagano has a unique combination of Japanese and
Korean culture, and her involvement in both the music and dance
gave a special flavor to the whole performances.
Besar Widodo also studied under Bagong and became a teacher at
the Padepokan.
Linda Josephine, who is also a member of Dewan Kesenian
Surabaya, grew up with classical ballet. She founded her own
school (Elles School of Ballet) and dance company in 1994 after
14 years of teaching classical ballet. She is now noted as a
trendsetter in classical ballet in Surabaya.
But there seemed to be a gap between the objective of the
performance, which was to express concern on Surabaya, and the
essence of the dances.
They were beautiful and entertaining dances, but not so
inspiring.
Audience who hoped to see the "unorganized Surabaya" or "the
depressed denizens" described through the dancing, costumes and
settings, would have been disappointed. The choreography was
finely performed, but the elegy was not successfully expressed.
Presenting cultural performances for Surabaya denizens has
become Majapahit Hotel's goal the last two years. It is like an
oasis in a dry land, which does not give importance to culture.
The audience hungry for cultural activities is there.
Unfortunately, the government does not seem to care.
Surabaya is busy calling itself the city of Indamardi, which
stands for Industri (industry), Dagang (trade), Maritim
(maritime) and Pendidikan (education). That excludes the
importance of cultural life.
Celebrating its 708th anniversary, however, Surabaya has
planned and organized a wide range of activities.
In the same hotel, for example, the painting works of A. Kadir
Zaelani, which includes "Pandegiling", "Hotel Yamato", "Kembang
Jepun", "Pabean" and "Kalimas", whose subjects are places in
Surabaya, will be on display from June 9 to June 19.
It would be a fiesta for Surabaya residents as they can enjoy
reminiscing the old Surabaya through the paintings.
-- Riyadi Ngasiran and Sirikit Syah