Puppeteer Tizar a one-man show for Betawi arts

Puppeteer Tizar a one-man show for Betawi arts

Emiria Wijayanti, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

On most days of the week, apart from now and then stopovers by
tourists, Jl. Surabaya in Menteng, Central Jakarta, seems quiet
and deserted. It's a pity, for it is home to some of the best --
or at least, intriguing -- examples of Indonesian art forms.

Inside stall number 109, sitting atop an ordinary plastic
stool amid various masks, wayang (puppets) and statues stacked on
the shelves and decked on the walls, Tizar Purbaya tells the tale
of his life as a dalang (puppet master) and of his newest
venture, The Wayang Golek Lenong Betawi.

Born in Banten to a Betawi (native Jakartan) father and a
Banten mother, he was brought to Jakarta when he was just 40 days
old.

"Since I was young, I loved to watch art shows, especially
wayang golek (Sundanese puppets). I would sit in the box to help
the dalang retrieve the wayang," said Tizar, 54.

After joining Teater Kecil repertory group under the late
Arifin C. Noer in 1969, where he studied acting and picked up his
own stock of philosophical stories, Tizar met a Swiss woman, who
would later become his wife. Her encouragement helped Tizar
realize his childhood dreams of becoming a dalang.

"On her birthday, I gave her a wayang golek as a present, then
she asked me, 'why don't you become a dalang?' It reminded me of
my childhood and how I was very fond of wayang, even putting on
shows with my friends as the audience. It was then when I thought
why don't I become a dalang?"

In 1972, Tizar started studying to become a dalang and put on
his first show two years later at Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM).

"I was a young dalang and also a member of the theater, and
the way I did my shows was considered a bit controversial. There
was satire, and social and political criticism were featured in
my shows. I was named one of the dalang that had to be closely
monitored."

In his book Wayang, Tizar's efforts are best described by the
stories he played in his wayang shows. His many stories have a
certain political flavor to them, something Tizar stands proudly
by.

"I believe that my stories were quite good and, more
importantly they were needed, because there was no point in
narrating historical stories that were irrelevant to the time. I
wanted to tell a story that was in line with the conditions and
needs of the people at that time."

His gifts as a dalang have brought him to various countries.

"I've been to Japan more than 10 times and I will leave for
Japan again on September 13."

His involvement in the art of the wayang grew deeper when he
opened a store in Pasar Seni Ancol in North Jakarta.

"Pasar Seni was a great place back then," he said. "It was a
home for artists, and I would spend more time there then I did at
home. At the time, the wayang business went extremely well and we
continued to improve. Nowadays, I have a store here in Jl.
Surabaya, too, because the prominence of Pasar Seni seems to have
dwindled ever since it was transferred to the hands of the city
government."

He speaks wistfully of the art market's heyday in the past
tense, comparing it with Jl. Surabaya.

"Jalan Surabaya, with its autodidactic management, still
speaks as a tourist destination in Jakarta. We've had president
Clinton pass by here when he was in Jakarta, and more recently
former president Jimmy Carter."

The ups and downs of the wayang business did not diminish
Tizar's enthusiasm to further development of new types of wayang.

He started to develop a new technique of creating wayang orang
-- human-like puppets, compared to the wayang kulit (shadow
puppets) -- based on photographs of people.

"I had an employee named Pak Encang and we'd work together to
shape the faces of our wayang orang based on photos."

Although Pak Encang's advancing age brought to an end his
wayang-making days, Yakub, another member of Tizar's staff,
continues his work.

"We were requested to make wayang of George Bush and his wife.
Usually, we make wayang of company members who are leaving. We
usually dress our wayang in traditional Javanese clothing,
complete with a blangkon (Javanese cap)."

Soon, political change in the country would also spur a new
artistic direction.

"The May 1998 (riots) resulted in many foreigners leaving the
country. They would leave no message, having already ordered a
wayang to be made from their portraits. I thought to myself,
'what I am going to do with all these puppets?' That was when I
came upon the idea that I would make a new type of wayang called
Wayang Golek Betawi," he said.

"I wanted to create an original Betawi art form, so I adopted
the lenong (traditional Betawi comedy theater) as a theme, only
this time the lenong would be visualized by the puppets."

Governor Sutiyoso attended the first performance in 2001

"It elicited a positive response, I went on to perform in many
locations, including the Wayang Museum and TIM. One establishment
that is well known for its interest in the wayang culture is
(Muslim organization) Muhammadiyah and I performed for them to
tremendous appreciation."

Tizar has performed such famous Betawi folk tales as Si Pitung
and Si Jampang. He attributes the success of his new art form to
its ageless representation of what it means to be a Jakartan.

"It's very communicative with the Betawi lifestyle. There
might be the Wayang Kulit Betawi, but often times that features
Javanese wayang, Sundanese gamelan and songs, and the story would
is about the Ramayana or Mahabarata -- it's only the language
that is Betawi," he said.

"Whereas the features of Wayang Golek Lenong Betawi hail
strictly from Betawi (culture). It's created in Betawi, the story
is from Betawi, the gamelan comes from Gambang Kromong Betawi
with Betawi language."

On Aug. 28, he will perform at the National Archives building
in West Jakarta, and on Sept. 4, the stage of TIM will be
transformed into the bridges of Ancol, as Tizar will perform a
rendition of Si Manis Jembatan Ancol.

Of course, there is always the lurking fear about who will
take over his reins one day.

"My worry for the Wayang Golek Lenong Betawi is its
continuation, I do not want it to start and end with me. I'd like
to see the city government become more involved, maybe making a
course for Betawi youngsters on the art of puppetry," he said,
noting that courses should also be put on for other cultural
forms, such as dance.

"We have a building very far away in Situbabakan, whereas the
Sundanese have Gedung Mis Tjitjih, the Javanese have Wayang Orang
Bharata building (in Jakarta). The Betawi people have nothing,
even though this is Jakarta ..."

Native Jakartan culture seems to have been passed over, the
dances, puppets and tradition of story-telling forgotten among
all the grander, headline-grabbing schemes and the soft pitter-
patter of deer hooves in the National Monument (Monas) park.

Tizar fears time is running out to save the arts.

"Efforts should be more intensive because many aspects of the
Betawi culture have either been lost or pushed to the periphery."

Tizar Purbaya can be contacted at 0811883755.