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5,000 dancers to enliven World Dance Day celebration in Surakarta
Up to 5,000 dancers are set to perform the gambyong dance in Surakarta, Central Java, on Sunday as part of the Solo Menari (Solo Dance) event to celebrate World Dance Day.
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Hundreds of dancers enliven World Dance Day on Jl. Sudirman in Surakarta in 2017. (JP/Ganug Nugroho Adi)
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p to 5,000 dancers are set to perform the gambyong dance in Surakarta, Central Java, on Sunday as part of the Solo Menari (Solo Dance) event to celebrate World Dance Day.
Among the performers are students of elementary to high school, members of dance studios as well as professional dancers.
Three dance compositions will be presented at the event, namely the gambyong dance, gambyong pareanom and tari pergaulan (relationship dance).
The main street of Surakarta city will be closed to vehicles for six hours starting from 5 a.m. as the dancers will use up to an 2-kilometer-long space from Bundaran Gladag to Simpang Empat Nonongan.
Due to the high number of performers, the colossal dance is said to be included in the Indonesian Museum of Records (MURI).
"While dancing, [the performers] will invite the audience to dance along by giving them a shawl," the Surakarta Culture agency's literature and historical art division head, Maretha Dinar Cahyono, told The Jakarta Post on Friday.
Performed by an all-female ensemble, the gambyong dance was the brainchild of King Pakubuwono IV. Until today, the Javanese dance is usually performed to greet guests or during official ceremonies.
Read also: Headscarved students banned from performing 'gambyong' dance
Held in conjunction with the Solo Menari event, hundreds of dance groups will also present "Solo 24 Jam Menari" (Solo Dances for 24 Hours) at the Surakarta Arts Institute (ISI Surakarta) campus area. Dancers from across the country as well as abroad, such as France and China, are set to participate in the event.
"This year the event will be joined by 160 art groups from inside and outside the country. There will be tens of dancers from several palaces, arts institute students and lecturers, dance studios as well as dance groups from France and China," said ISI Surakarta public relations Esha Karwinarno.
Among the art groups involved are those from Atambua, East Nusa Tenggara; West Nusa Tenggara; Sintang, East Kalimantan; Cirebon, West Java; Indramayu, Central Java; Yogyakarta; Riau; Belitung; Bangka Belitung; South Kalimantan; Sumbawa; Nias; Papua; and Jakarta.
"[These participants] come from all over the regions with the spirit of togetherness, brotherhood; using their own money. Their enthusiasm are amazing," said Esha.
Themed "Menguak Peradaban" (Invoking Civilization), the 12th installment of the 24-hour festivity is more than just a dance event, "it is a place to build relations with one another and gather," said Esha.
As the peak event on Monday, filmmaker and humanist Garin Nugroho will conduct a culture oration at 6 a.m. (kes)
