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‘Sang Kembang Bale’: Reviving the art of ‘ronggeng gunung’
Contemporary artist Ariel Tatum takes on Ronggeng Gunung traditional performance in an effort to help conserve the dying arts.
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Audience members at the open-air amphitheater of the NuArt Sculpture Park in Bandung watch Ariel Tatum sing and dance during the “Sang Kembang Bale” show. (JP/Sylviana Hamdani)
T
he audience, seated on mats around the amphitheater at the NuArt Sculpture Park in Bandung, watched intently as a dancer in a kemben, a long batik cloth wrapped around the body, and a flowing red scarf took the stage. She was accompanied by three male musicians striking kenong gongs, creating a haunting rhythm that set the evening’s mood.
A faint whiff of jasmine and incense filled the cool night air.
At center stage, with her back to the audience, the dancer chanted in archaic Sundanese, pressing her scarf to her forehead as if in prayer. Her deep, husky voice and sweeping arm movements harmonized perfectly with the percussion, casting a spell over the audience.
On Aug. 10-11, Titimangsa, in collaboration with the Bakti Budaya Djarum Foundation, presented Sang Kembang Bale (The Prima Donna), a monologue and dance performance featuring the lives and struggles of Ronggeng Gunung dancers from West Java.
The hour-and-a-half show featured Indonesian actress Ariel Tatum, four male dancers and four traditional musicians from the region.
"It’s really an honor for me to have been entrusted with this show," Ariel said after the media preview on Aug. 9.
Known for her roles in popular soap operas and films, Ariel is also a skilled dancer familiar with several traditional Indonesian dances.
