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Salihara festival returns with local, international artists
International and local artists are set to perform in the Salihara International Performing-arts Festival (SIPFest) 2018 from Aug. 4 to Sept. 9 at Komunitas Salihara in South Jakarta.
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The 2018 SIPFest by Komunitas Salihara presents performing arts-related events from different disciplines, such as from dance, music and theater. (shutterstock/File)
S
alihara International Performing-arts Festival (SIPFest) will return on Aug. 4 to Sept. 9 at Komunitas Salihara (Salihara Community) in South Jakarta.
The biannual event, which was previously known as Salihara Festival, will present works, seminars and performances from Indonesian and international artists, including from Australia, Belgium, Iran, Canada, Malaysia, France and Taiwan.
Lengger dancer and choreographer Otniel Tasman from Banyumas, Central Java, is one of the artists who will perform in the festival. “Lengger is a dance from Banyumas that expresses the female presence on stage, performed by male and female dancers,” Otniel told The Jakarta Post after the festival’s press conference on Wednesday at Komunitas Salihara.
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With four dancers from different genres, Otniel will present Cablaka, a performance that is also especially created to celebrate the community’s 10th anniversary, which falls on Aug. 8.
Staged on Aug. 8 and 9, Cablaka is said to be the continuation of Nosheheorit, Otniel’s performance for the 2017 Europalia Arts Festival in Belgium.
“Cablaka is about Banyumas people, who are honest, assertive, easygoing and strong. It becomes their principle to exist in this era,” said Otniel, adding that the preparation took around five months. “There will be a dialogue between masculinity and femininity, also a combination of both masculine and feminine energy that will be expressed differently by each dancer.”
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Aside from Otniel, Australian choreographer Lucy Guerin is set to open the festival with her Split performance. Presented by two people, Melanie Lane and Lilian Steiner on Aug. 4 and 5, Split is said to be an intense work about time and space. Both will dance for 20 minutes, then the space will be divided in half and performers will dance for 10 minutes in each space. “Afterward, the space will be divided again in half, and they will dance for five minutes in a quarter of the original space,” said Guerin.
Both time and space will keep being scaled down so in the end they will dance for a few seconds in a tiny corner. Guerin, who founded dance company Lucy Guerin Inc. in Melbourne, described the performance as having an “intense claustrophobic kind of feeling”.
Meanwhile, Indonesian actors Reza Rahadian and Sita Nursanti will read the script for White Rabbit Red Rabbit, written by Nassim Soleimanpour from Iran. It will be done without any preparations or guidance from the director or scriptwriter.
There is also the Karya-karya di Ruang Terbuka (Open Space Works) exhibition by Achmad Krisgatha, Meliantha Muliawan and Gabriel Aries Setiadi.
Other acts that should not be missed in the festival are 20th Century Piano Composition with Ananda Sukarlan, Cross-gender Traditions in Indonesia’s Performing Art with Didik Nini Thowok, Indonesia’s Contemporary Theater and I with Jim Adhi Limas, Stunning Virtuosity with Taiwan’s Ju Percussion Group and Monolog Sutan Sjahrir with Rendra Bagus Pamungkas.
Those who want to attend the event can book the tickets online with prices starting at Rp 100,000 (US$7). (wng)
