Political uncertainty shrouds Art Summit
By Yusuf Susilo Hartono
JAKARTA (JP): Many Indonesians, especially Jakartans, are shuddering at the thought of possible chaos when President Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid faces impeachment on Aug. 1. But this fear is, apparently, not shared by the organizing committee of the Indonesian Art Summit III, 2001. They insist that the show will go on from Aug. 27 to Sept. 27.
The international contemporary art festival, a continuation of the 1995 Art Summit I and 1998 Art Summit II, will be held by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
Seventeen music, dance and contemporary theater groups from Australia, Japan, Germany, Italy, Egypt, the People's Republic of China, Britain, Korea, Holland and, the host, Indonesia, will take part in the event. With an entrance ticket of Rp 25,000, the festival will take place at Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) and Gedung Kesenian Jakarta (Jakarta Arts Center, GKJ).
The summit is scheduled to be opened at Plaza Senayan on Aug. 27 by Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri. Sri Hastanto, the chairman of the Art Summit III organizing committee, said Megawati had confirmed she would open the event.
But if the MPR withdraws its mandate from the President and Megawati becomes president, will she still be committed to opening the summit?
The opening ceremony will feature a performance by Strange Fruit, a stilt-walking group specializing in outdoor performance art from Australia. The work of Strange Fruit is a unique synthesis of performance and sculpture with strong visual effects, choreography and design.
During the following afternoon at the same place, the group will perform again for the public for free.
Next month's summit will be the first to take place outside Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) and will be opened by the Vice President. Art Summit I, held between Sept. 12, 1995 and Oct. 12, 1995 and Art Summit II from Sept. 19, 1998 to Oct. 19, 1998 were opened by ministers at TIM.
The change of venue aims at popularizing contemporary arts to a wider audience. This is also to shed the long-held perception that contemporary arts have exclusive audiences.
Like previous festivals, the summit will also hold seminars with the theme of "The Challenge of Multiculturalism", featuring domestic and foreign speakers, at Hotel Indonesia between Sept. 14 and Sept. 16.
Among the six Indonesian groups to perform at the festival, five will present new plays. Teater Koma, directed by N. Riantiarno, will present a play titled Presiden Burung-burung (President of Birds), alluding to the New Order regime. It is a mix of comedy, songs and social criticism to be performed at GKJ on Sept. 25 and Sept. 26, 2001.
Choreographer Farida Oetoyo of Creativitat Dance group will stage Burung (Bird), a metaphor she uses to talk about freedom, peace, love, death and war that is ravaging the country. The dance will be performed at Gedung Kesenian Jakarta, Pasarbaru, on Aug. 29 and Aug. 30.
Bali composer I Nyoman Winda will go on stage to show that Balinese music is not all loud and energetic as people have generalized it to be because of its dominant percussion.
He will present his creation Simponi Bambu (The Bamboo Symphony), which is based on gambuh genre at GKJ on Aug. 1 and Aug. 2. The music will accentuate the melodious sounds of the flute.
Meanwhile, A.L. Suwardi's Swara Genta group from the Indonesian Art Academy (STSI) of Surakarta means to revive Gamelan Genta, the extinct heritage of the Surakarta Palace. The show will be held at GKJ on Sept. 9 and Sept. 10.
Boy G. Sakti, a Minangkabau choreographer and graduate of the Jakarta Art Institute (IKJ) who is gaining world popularity, will present his new creation Ritus-ritus Kesucian (Rites of Holiness), a sketch on women deprived of their rights. He will perform at TIM on Sept. 21 and Sept. 22.
The director of Teater Payung Hitam from Bandung, Rachman Sabur, will be the only artist to reshow Kaspar, written by Austrian playwright Peter Handke, at TIM on Sept. 7 and Sept. 8. "He has strength in it," said Saini KM, one of the artistic team members of Art Summit, who is also a theatrical observer.
Overseas participants
Foreign participants will present their works which they have successfully performed at other festivals or on tour.
The summit will be honored with the participation of groups like Folkwang Tanz Studio, a German dance theater group, which will stage Henrieta Horn's newest choreography, Der Auffacher. It will be the work's inaugural performance and will take place at TIM on Sept. 26 and Sept. 27.
A new creation of Horn's, the "disciple" of Kurt Joose, the father of German contemporary dance theater, will be staged together with two other dances presented before in Germany and Sweden: Ewi a Malachim, a solo number with a stick, and Horst, a solo dance with an autistic child.
It will be the first time Indonesian audiences can see the performances of Folkwang and other foreign groups which have never been on stage before in Jakarta.
If you find their shows unique, strange or revolutionary, do not be surprised because that is what the spirit of contemporary arts is all about. It is based on multiculturalism. It is exactly this element of novelty that makes the arts worth observing.
The participants were selected by a team of nine performance art experts and practitioners: Edi Sedyawati (Chairman), Sardono W. Kusumo (Vice Chairman) and the members, Sal Mugiyanto, Saini KM, Putu Wijaya, Ratna Riantiarno, Rahayu Supanggah, Suka Hardjana and Trisutji Kamal.
Selected foreign groups
Pappa Tarahumara of Japan will offer a unique show directed by Hiroshi Koike at TIM on Aug. 28 and Aug. 29. Its creations feature strong traditional oriental colors.
Guang Dong, a Chinese dance troupe at TIM on Aug. 31 and Sept. 1, uses body language as the main element of communication.
Tarantula Hypertext Orchestra of Italy, at TIM on Sept. 4 and Sept. 5. Under the directorship of Luisi Cinque, the group presents contemporary acoustics.
In its performance at TIM on Sept. 12 and Sept. 13, Black Tent Theater will stage Woyzeck (Germany) with Japanese overtones. Director Makato Sato reinterprets the play with innovative ideas, such as the use of red and white lanterns and Indonesian, Korean and Japanese songs.
Akhram Khan, a Bangladeshi-British choreographer and dancer will present a masterpiece which is a blend between West and Southeast Asian dance styles at GKJ on Sept. 13 and Sept. 14.
Kim Bock Hee, a Korean professor in dance, acclaimed for his works which blend Korean and modern American styles will Perform at TIM on Sept. 16 and Sept. 17.
Yuji Takahashi of Japan will appear on Sept. 16 and Sept. 17 at GKJ. The artist will introduce two traditional musical instruments and stage children's songs popular in the life of contemporary Japanese society in the first half of the performance. In the second half, Takashi will collaborate with Taeko Tomiyama with western musical instruments.
El Warsha, a theater group from Egypt and directed by Hassan El Deretly, will perform in a tent in the front yard of TIM on Sept. 18 and Sept. 19.
Trio Michael Bram, an energetic pianist and composer from Holland, will recite the works of American jazz musicians. He adds innovative humor to his shows. See his show at GKJ on Sept. 19 and Sept. 20.