'Wayang Orang' Sriwedari neglected

Bambang M, Contributor, Surakarta, Central Java

Everyone knows that nothing lasts forever. This also seems to apply, tragically, to the once popular wayang orang -- or traditional Javanese masked dance -- group, Wayang Orang (WO) Sriwedari, which has performed every night for decades at the same old theater in the Sriwedari entertainment center.

In the 1950s and 1960s, the 1,500-seat theater was always packed. The performance was an integral part of evening entertainment in Surakarta, also known as Solo. But today, when the group performs, only 30 seats or so are occupied.

During its most recent show, Romo Widura Krama, only 50 fans showed up and sat at the front. A closer look at the audience showed that most of them were students of the Dance Academy at the Indonesian Arts Institute in Surakarta (STSI).

"Every night, there are only 25 to 30 people in the audience," said a ticketing officer. The entrance ticket costs a meager Rp 3,000 (U.S. 35 cents).

Backstage, the performers are busy readying themselves for the show.

Generally, the dancers do not need to rehearse. Sometime before the show, they merely ask the director, Hartono, for their roles and the dialog in that day's performance.

"What will the government pay us to rehearse?" Hartono asked.

His concern is also shared by the performers as well as traditional art buffs. The performers prefer to have a second job to augment their income rather than waste time rehearsing, for they are not paid.

As a result, the performances go on stage without any practice nor polish. There was no expression of admiration among the audience. The poor performance is a logical consequence of the lack of public awareness and appreciation for the traditional arts.

What's the use of performing well if, first of all, there is no audience?

Traditional art performances have become less popular among Indonesians, who prefer to go to cafes and cinemas, or watch DVDs. The main reason for the lack of interest is because the shows lack innovation.

The Surakarta Tourism and Culture office, which manages WO Sriwedari, emphasizes that the show must go on, as it is a unique, cultural form particular to Surakarta. The show is held every night for locals who are interested, or for the foreign tourists who might happen to be visiting.

In the 1950s and 1960s, before the television invaded all homes here, the WO Sriwedari was a favorite performing group. The audience who packed the theater came not only from across the city, but also from areas outside Surakarta. And they came to watch the show, based on the classic Ramayana and Mahabharata epics and highlighted with dances.

"Our main challenge to reviving wayang orang is the dominance of television," said Agus Irianto, head of the Preservation of Cultural Assets at the Surakarta Culture and Tourism office.

Jamrud Haryo Yekti, a member of WO Sriwedari, agreed.

"Less and less people have come to watch wayang orang as the operation of private television stations has expanded," he said.

Hartono said he had recruited younger performers to his group, and the Culture and Tourism office had tried to attract more viewers by organizing a joint show with the wayang orang group belonging to RRI Surakarta, the local state-run radio station.

These efforts had positive results, as more people came to watch the show, said Yeti Koryati, head of Art and Cultural Assets at the Culture and Tourism office. However, the program could not be continued because of a lack of funds.

The office also invited Surakarta school groups to perform wayang orang as an introductory number before WO Sriwedari, and a number of schools responded enthusiastically, said Agus.

However, when the agency appealed to the schools to make it mandatory for students to watch the show, they gave a cold shoulder, even though the national curriculum requires the development of local-based educational materials -- which could have been fulfilled with an appreciation of wayang orang.

Although the efforts to improve the public's appreciation of wayang orang have not been fruitful in the long run, at least the group still exists, and continues to perform nightly.

Several other wayang orang groups, like WO Ngesti Pandawa in Semarang and WO Bharata in Jakarta, also suffer the same challenges -- but these groups are no longer able to perform on a nightly basis. Agus said the Semarang group performed once a week, while the Jakarta group performed only once a month.

WO Sriwedari survives partly because most of its 71 members are civil servants, and all of its operational costs are paid by the Culture and Tourism office. The office allocates Rp 22 million toward those civil servants who join the group.

Meanwhile, entrance tickets sales do not provide much profit. If the average number of viewers is 30, and the show is performed 27 times a month, the agency only rakes in Rp 2,430,000 a month.

"If we were a private group, we would have disbanded many years ago," Hartono said.

What about the future of WO Sriwedari, which was established by Pakubuwono X, king of Surakarta Palace?

Without an improvement in public appreciation, it is unlikely that more people will come to see the show.

But for the performers themselves, the most important thing is that they can perform regularly, because they are paid to do that.

"When I dance, I never look at the audience. Whether there is an audience or not, I will keep on dancing," said Jamrud, a star performer at WO Sriwedari.

This appears to be the fate of WO Sriwedari -- The spectacular show has lost its beauty. It only exists because the show must go on, and the performance is no longer a matter of artistic and cultural expression, but merely a means to make money.

The theater, which was renovated in 1994 with financial support from the Japanese government, is thus no more than a workplace, like an office.