RI dance troupe to take part in Greek art Festival
RI dance troupe to take part in Greek art Festival
Susi Andrini, Contributor, Denpasar
As many as 27 dancers and gamelan players grouped in the Makara
Dhwaja dance company are leaving for Athens to take part in the
23rd Petras International Festival being held at the Petropolis-
Athens from July 11 through July 13.
Led by I Made Bandem, professor of arts and former rector of
the Yogyakarta and Denpasar Arts Institutes (ISI), the troupe
would be the first ever Indonesian cultural delegation to
participate in this world-scale cultural and arts event involving
artists from around the globe.
"We want to improve the image of Indonesia in the
international world through the presentation of our rich culture
and arts," explained Ni Luh Nesa Swasthi Bandem, wife of I Made
Bandem and choreographer of the dance troupe along with I Nyoman
Cerita.
Thanks to Linda Agum Gumelar, wife of former minister of
transportation Agum Gumelar, who has built up close relationships
with the Greek government, the Indonesian dance group has been
invited to the prestigious art event Petras International
Festival.
The Indonesian delegation will perform twice at the 4,000 seat
capacity Petras Theater amphitheater.
The group includes 27 dancers and gamelan players performing
dances and traditional music from across Indonesia.
"We will bring traditional musical instruments such as gender,
reyong, seruling (flute) and terbang, a traditional music
instrument from Sulawesi," explained Bandem.
Established in Singapadu village, Gianyar in l973, Makara
Dhwaja has been growing as a significant learning center for
traditional Balinese dance and gamelan music, particularly for
local villagers at Singapadu, known as Bali's most important
cultural and arts center.
The establishment of the learning center and dance troupe was
the couple's expression of thanks to the village, which is, in
Balinese traditional system, called Ngayah.
Returning from studying and teaching at the University of
California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and Westlegland University in
Connecticut near New York, the Bandem's decided to dedicate their
lives to promoting Balinese traditional dance and music.
"It would be a good opportunity for us to present so many
kinds of arts and dances to the international audience,"
exclaimed Bandem.
During the festival, Indonesian participants will perform a
number of traditional Indonesian dances including Gadung Kasturi,
Satya Brasta and Saraswati from Bali, Cendrawasih and Logohu from
Papua, and the Pakarena dance from South Sulawesi,
During a recent rehearsal, Bandem said that the Gadung Kasturi
dance illustrates the sweetness and fragrance of the Gadung
Kasturi flower performed elegantly by five dancers. It is
intended as a welcome dance, choreographed especially by Swasthi
Bandem, while the accompanying music is arranged by I Ketut
Garwa.
The Satya Bhrasta will be performed by six male dancers
depicting a dance inspired by the Bharatayuda war scene taken
from the famous Mahabharata epic. The dance portrays a scene in
which Gatot Kaca, son of Bima of the five Pandawa brothers, is
killed by Karna.
The dance is choreographed by I Nyoman Cerita and the music is
arranged by I Nyoman Pasek.
South Sulawesi's Pakarena is a traditional dance of the
Buginese ethnic group from the Gowa Kingdom, South Sulawesi, and
is performed by four dancers. It tells of the bravery of the
seafaring Buginese people.
Indonesia's eastern-most province of Papua is well-known for
its natural resources as well as its diverse forms of flora and
fauna.
Cendrawasih is the Indonesian name for the beautiful bird of
paradise, and is the fauna emblem for the province of Papua.
Choreographed by Swasthi Bandem and I Nyoman Windha (music
composer), the dance tells the story of a couple of Cendrawasih
birds.
A legend says that the beautiful Cendrawasih was once an ugly,
black-feathered bird. The birds usually nested in dark caves.
One day, a bird hunter entered the Papuan forest, ignoring the
black birds on their nests. The hunter was not interested in
hunting the bird thinking that the bird's meat would not tasty
because it looked so ugly and frightening.
Feeling humiliated, the male bird persuaded the god of the
forest to change its physical appearance. "You have been unfair
to us, god. You have given us bad and ugly feathers," protested
the male bird.
The bird's wife urged her husband to accept their fate saying
their lives were safe and peaceful.
The god of the forest would only grant the male bird its wish
if it succeeded in flying across the Indonesian archipelago to
see the beauty of the country.
Upon its return, the god of the forest transforms the ugly
black bird into one of the most beautiful and colorful flying
creatures on earth. However, life is full of consequences.
Because of its beauty the Cendrawasih is now one of the most
hunted birds in the forest, and is now endangered.
"This is just one of the illustrations of the philosophical
idea behind the dance creation. We can draw a lesson from the
life of Cendrawasih. It took a year to finish the dance
choreography," said Swasthi.