In its bid to support stage workers who have been adversely affected by the closure of performance venues, a cultural portal has streamed the stage production of a real-life Sundanese princess who chooses honor in the face of death.

Cultural events have made a rapid switch from live to online platforms to provide a sense of normalcy in these trying times, as well as to share the awe and wonder of the arts.

The closure of many public spaces around the globe due to the COVID-19 pandemic have temporarily put an end to live stage performances, including in Indonesia. This has also caused a conundrum in that the livelihoods of stage workers are at peril without stage performances.

To alleviate the plight of these workers, the Indonesia Kaya culture and arts portal of Bakti Budaya Djarum Foundation has purchased the broadcasting rights to a select number of theatrical performances. The proceeds from these broadcast shows are to be given to the performing groups for distributing to their vulnerable stage workers.

Following last week’s broadcast of Bunga Penutup Abad (The Flower that Ends a Century), Indonesia Kaya presented the Citraresmi dance theater by Toni Lesmana and produced by Titimangsa Foundation in collaboration with Mainteater.

Launched on April 25-26 on the Indonesia Kaya website and its YouTube channel, the broadcast show was a video recording of Citraresmi performed on Nov. 1, 2017 at the Nu-Art Scuplture Park in Bandung, West Java, and not a livestream of a performance before a limited audience.

Citraresmi centers on its namesake protagonist, Dyah Pitaloka Citraresmi, the princess of the Sunda Kingdom who was to wed King Hayam Wuruk of the Majapahit kingdom in Saka year 1279 (1357 AD) to form a political union between the two kingdoms.

According to historical records, Princess Citraresmi was just 17 when she sailed with the Sundanese royal family to Bubat in northern Trowulan, the Majapahit capital – now part of Mojokerto regency, East Java.

The royal family encamped in the city square to wait for the wedding ceremony to start, when Mahapatih (prime minister) Gajah Mada of the Majapahit kingdom arrived to demand that the Sunda kingdom submit to Majapahit rule. As a token of submission, Citraresmi was to be a concubine to the king instead of his wife.

Art for all: The broadcast performance of Citraresmi was not a live play, but rather a recording of a 2017 performance in Nu-Art Sculpture Park in Bandung, West Java.

Angered by the turn of events, the Sunda king called off the wedding and prepared to leave the square, but the Majapahit army surrounded the Sundanese royal family and demanded that they hand Citraresmi over.

This confrontation was the start of the Pasunda Bubat (Battle of Bubat), when the Sunda royal family and most of the royal party were massacred. As recorded in the Kidung Sunda, a form of ancient Javanese poetry, Princess Citraresmi took her own life during the battle to preserve the honor and dignity of the Sunda kingdom.

Citraresmi is a woman-centric story, not just because of the title character, and is performed by an all-female cast. No male characters are included in the play, as the dayang (female servants) who spend most of their time on stage dancing gracefully are also the ones who took up their weapons to defend the princess during the siege.

Also notable is the story’s loaded social criticism as the characters decry politics and the lust for power, criticizing Gajah Mada’s political scheming to turn a royal wedding into a show of power.

Producer Happy Salma said in a statement that the central character provided a glimpse into the lives of women during the era.

“Along with the other female performers, Citraresmi’s mental struggle during the Battle of Bubat will be shown through acting, dancing and sound as with the entirety of the play,” she said, adding that the show depicted “one side of the power of women”.

Maudy Koesnaedi, who plays Citraresmi, said on April 24 in an Instagram Live session that she took a week to learn her lines.

“I needed a week to memorize the script, which was rather lengthy. It was my first play with such long lines,” said Maudy.

The actress also said that it was her first time playing the starring role in a theatrical performance, and that she accepted the role immediately when Happy offered her the part of Citraresmi.

“To portray Citraresmi, I learned about her history. Even though the production time was rather short, we went and visited Citraresmi’s grave, where we also heard from the local people about her story,” she recalled.

Citraresmi, even on video, is still an impressive play three years on. While the stage decoration is rather minimalistic, the actresses’ performances are top notch, as is the musical accompaniment to the dance sequences.

Like other recorded performances, one advantage is that viewers can pause and rewind if they miss a monologue or even a single line, although this is only possible while the video stream is active.

Meanwhile, the camerawork is thorough in showing different angles of the performance, which a live audience would not see.

With that said, the streamed performance depends on the viewer having a stable and fast internet connection, so those with a spotty signal are out of luck – unless they are willing to make do with a lower resolution.

The editing is a bit jarring when switching between cameras, however, and one camera appears to be handheld and rather shaky at times. Thankfully, the audio is better with clear dialogue and music, although the mic has also picked up other noises like the odd cough or ringtone.

— Photos courtesy of Image Dynamics