Enchanting Balinese-Chinese dance drama

Enchanting Balinese-Chinese dance drama

By I Wayan Juniarta

DENPASAR, Bali (JP): When the nine-meter-long traditional
Chinese jung vessel rolled onto the stage, the hundreds of people
who thronged the Werdhi Budaya Art Center's Ardha Chandra open-
air stage gasped in awe.

Several beautiful girls clad in ancient Chinese costumes
danced elegantly on the jung's deck, while a classical Chinese
music composition was played in the background.

It was an enchanting scene indeed, and no doubt the audience
was perfectly aware of that. They applauded time and again. Some
even shouted their appreciation.

That scene was not the only one that succeeded in eliciting a
warm response from the audience on Thursday night. In the next
two hours, the audience applauded to various scenes in the dance-
drama Sendratari Legenda Balingkang (The Legend of Balingkang).

The dance-drama was produced by the Bali branch of the
Chinese-Indonesian Social Association (PSMTI) and staged as part
of the 23rd Bali Arts Festival.

The story line was based on a local legend about a love story
between a native King Sri Jayapangus and a Chinese merchant's
daughter, Kang Ci Wie, who was cast ashore on the beautiful
island of Bali after a merciless storm wrecked her father's trade
vessel.
"The audience surely loved the show, and why not, since it was a
beautiful piece of performance," Bali's leading choreographer NLN
Swasthi Widjaja said.

There was no doubt the performance was a feast for both the
eyes and ears. The costumes were intricately designed and rich in
color, and the music was both melodious and haunting.

Apparently, the choreographers had also meticulously prepared
the plot so that it would have a most dramatic impact on the
audience.

Take for example the storm-at-the sea scene, where the
choreographers succeeded in riveting the audience by presenting
the fateful incident in such a dramatic and exciting way.

The ship's crew, including the radiant Kang Ci Wie and her
father, who were singing, dancing, and enjoying the sea breeze,
were suddenly hit by a huge storm. Panic and fear reigned on
board the ship. Suddenly, a green dragon emerged from the ocean.
Brought to life by some 10 male performers, the shiny dragon
danced majestically as if it were riding the blue waves and
defying the treacherous ocean.

The scene reached its climax when the ship broke into three;
its passengers thrown into the ocean. Then all the stage lights
went off. For several seconds the stage was silent and engulfed
by darkness.

The show offered many humorous moments as well, such as the
awkward effort by the local villagers to speak to the rescued
Kang Ci Wie and her father, who could only speak Chinese and not
a single word of the Balinese language. The two parties finally
resorted to sign and body language, which was, of course, prone
to misunderstanding. The audience had a good laugh.

Since Kang Ci Wie's father's entourage spoke only in Chinese,
while the Balinese spoke the native tongue, the show owed a huge
debt of gratitude to its Bahasa Indonesia narrator, Bali's
leading poet Warih Wisatsana, who perfectly bridged the language
barrier with his well-selected words and phrases.

Two thumbs up for the choreographer's accomplishment, too.
Nyoman Cerita of the Ubud-based Cudamani troupe and Liangga
Sindhu Bastian of the Surabaya-based Angga Lee Contemporary Dance
Company succeeded in seamlessly integrating the dance
compositions of two different cultures into one flowing
performance.

The scenes where Balinese performers danced to Chinese music,
or when Kang Ci Wie and King Jayapangus danced romantically to
Balinese gamelan melody, were as natural as the others scenes.

To learn that they only had three days to integrate the
dances, which involved at least 150 dancers who had never met
before, was another big surprise.

"We have been rehearsing since three months ago, but
separately. The Balinese dancers prepared in Bali, while my
dancers in Surabaya. But, Cerita and I communicated intensively
during that period," soft-spoken Liangga said.

"The key is tolerance, humility, mutual respect and
willingness to help each other. I believe that's why we could
achieve such fine integration in such a short time," Nyoman
Cerita added.

The third group involved in the performance was the Denpasar-
based Mutiara Naga Barong-say Chinese lion dance troupe. Led by
Ida Bagus Adnyana, the guardian of Griya Konco Tanah Kilap Temple
-- a place revered by both Balinese and Chinese people -- the
troupe gave a powerful performance at the wedding scene of King
Jayapangus and Kang Ci Wie.

Chairman of PSMTI Budi Argawa, who led the efforts to generate
the more than Rp 68 million need to finance the performance, gave
one more reason behind the success of the performance. A few
weeks before the important night, the organizing committee
members and choreographers visited the village of Balingkang in
Kintamani, believed to be the site of King Jayapangus's Panarajon
kingdom. There, in the temple of Dalem Balingkang, they prayed
and held a special ritual to ask for Jayapangus and Kang Ci Wie's
blessing for the success of the performance.

"Our country is torn by various ethnic conflicts, and we want
to contribute something to ease the pain of those conflicts. I
personally believe that the spirits of King Jayapangus and Kang
Ci Wie have blessed our performance," he said solemnly.

The main message of the show was indeed about the brotherhood
of mankind. That two different ethnic groups living harmoniously
together is not an unreachable dream, or beyond human capability.
King Jayapangus and Kang Ci Wie had demonstrated it, and all the
people who were involved in Sendratari Legenda Balingkang proved
it once again.

With many Balinese male performers glancing admiringly at the
Chinese female dancers, who happened to be drop-dead gorgeous,
there is big possibility that the story of King Jayapangus and
Kang Ci Wie will be repeated.