Hip-hop performers let their dancer within break out. JP/Triwik Kurniasari
Do you get hyped up and high every time you listen to your favorite music? You can get higher still when you dance to it.
Dancing is such a fun activity and wonderful workout, infusing one with joy and pumping up the spirit.
It has even inspired musicians the world over to pen songs about it, from old tunes like The Beatles' "I'm Happy Just To Dance With You" and ABBA's "Dancing Queen", to modern ones such as "Teach Me How to Dance" by Che'Nelle and "Just Dance" by Lady Gaga.
Film producers have also brought stories about dancing to the silver screen through movies such as Saturday Night Fever, Footloose, Dirty Dancing, Flashdance, Save the Last Dance, Shall We Dance? and Step up.
But what happens if you're no longer free to dance? Would you prefer to just quit, or struggle to bring back the right to dance?
Members of dance studio Dancewave Center Jakarta have their own ways to express their dancing spirit.
They recently staged their first-ever recital, The Dance Within, to celebrate the studio's first anniversary at the auditorium of state radio station RRI on Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat, Central Jakarta.
The Dance Within tells the story of the freedom to express oneself. It is about a country ruled by an evil dictator who seeks to stop all dance-related activities.
But the dancers don't give up easily. They start an underground movement in the form of a dance party to test and show their talent, mixing and fusing their moves to achieve the same goal: to be able to express themselves.
A performer wows the audience with some cutting-edge belly dance. JP/Triwik Kurniasari
In the show, Dancewave brought in the energy of hip-hop and the exoticism of belly dance.
The show begins with lyrics taken from poet W.S. Rendra's "Sajak Sebatang Lisong" (Poem of A Cigar): Kesadaran adalah matahari, kesabaran adalah bumi, keberanian menjadi cakrawala dan perjuangan adalah pelaksanaan kata-kata! (Consciousness is the sun, patience is the Earth, courage becomes the sky and struggle is the implementation of words).
As the stage light grows brighter and the curtain rises, a big white cloth is stretched along the stage, silhouetting three female dancers swaying.
The music gets louder when a group of dancers, in gray T-shirts and army pants, appear on the stage in a hip-hop dance.
The evil dictator, in a gold mask and purple cape, joins them, showing off his power with arrogance.
The next scene shows a group of female dancers in mini dresses dancing to music from Shakira, Nelly Furtado and Christina Milian.
The ambience later changes when a troupe of belly dancers take to the stage in their colorful and enchanting outfits, shaking their bodies and bellies to Arabic-themed music.
When the belly-dance number ends, the curtain drops. Pictures of protests against the pornography bill are later displayed, marking the end of Act 1.
During the past few years, many local artists, pluralists and human rights groups have slammed the passage of the bill, said to criminalize all kinds of works of art and kinds of movement, as well as harming pluralism and diversity in Indonesia.
Back in the theater, before the audience gets to see Act 2 of the show, Indonesian break-dancer Bian flosses skills during the 15-minute intermission.
The second act starts with a scene called "Love on the Oriental Express". The dancers carry big posters reading "The Dance Within" and "Live for Dance, Dance to Live", expressing their support for dancing.
Nine female belly dancers later spell out their magic and charms, displaying the attractive moves in a Turkish Delight scene, followed by a group of hip hop dancers in the Hot Divaz and Hip Hop Evolution scenes.
During the scenes, Rihanna's "The Hotness", Beyonce's "Diva" and Usher's "Dat Girl Right There" blast around the auditorium.
A pleasant surprise for the audience is in store in the form of male belly dancer and Dancewave chairman Yuska Lutfi Tuanakotta showing the "real" art of belly dancing.
He balances a sword (not real) on his head while dancing to the music, successfully keeping it up in the air.
There's a collective intake of breath throughout the theater, people sitting with their eyes off Yuska even as he places the sword on his belly and begins swaying. He receives a long rapturous applause.
That's not the end of the show, though, because immediately after there are still many hip hop and belly dances.
"The Battle" showcases a feud between hip hop and belly dancers. Each tries to show each other that their way of dancing is better than the other.
The feud ends happily, though, with each group starting to understand the other.
During Act 1 and the intermission, the sub-par sound system verges on the annoying, while the transition between scenes is also not terribly smooth.
But for most, it doesn't seem to be a big deal, with none leaving until the final curtain falls.
The funny thing is being able to hear the voices of individual audience members throughout the 80-minute show, yelling out supports for friends and family performing on the stage. "Mama! Go, go, Mama!" yells a girl during a solo belly-dance number.
The show's few shortcomings, though, don't detract from the attractive performance provided by the 54 dancers.
Dancewave chairman Yuska says The Dance Within is aimed at opening up people's mind about dance, particularly belly dance.
"There's long been this stigma about dance. Some moves are considered vulgar and inappropriate for public display," he says.
"Belly dance itself is not trashy pornography, but a form of art that takes effort, passion and dedication to master. Men can belly dance too."
The evil dictator himself, Yuska goes on, represents both the government and parents.
"Many parents forbid their children from becoming dancers. We at Dancewave want to show people that dancing is good for building up one's confidence."
So if you like to dance, just do it. If you want to have a good time, you've got time for dancing. So as Lady Gaga says in her hit "Just Dance":
Just dance, gonna be okay...
Just dance, spin that record babe,
Dance, dance, dance, just dance!
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