Miss Tjitjih theater can seat up to 300 people but it is rarely full during performances. (JP/Jerry Adiguna)" border="0" height="341" width="512">Miss Tjitjih theater can seat up to 300 people but it is rarely full during performances. (JP/Jerry Adiguna)

Wave after wave of foreign pop culture may have overshadowed traditional performances, but optimism for the art is in the air.

The country’s traditional arts have always received high praise whenever they are performed abroad.

“We will always be encouraged by such appreciation,” said Anggono Kusumo Wibowo, a senior academic of traditional dance at the Indonesian Art Institute (ISI) in Surakarta, Central Java.

But traditional artists, he added, should keep performing and produce works.

“Modern pop culture receives more attention because it is easily accessed. Traditional art should also remain available for the people,” said Anggono.

The challenge is to produce works that will generate interest and appreciation from the public.

“My students and I focus on how to attract the younger generation. My institute holds festivals and competitions regularly,” he said.

“Traditional arts and their performers should always yearn to actualize themselves and adapt with contemporary currents.”
A scene from Teater Gandrik’s play, Gundala Gawat (Gundala’s Crisis). (JP/Tarko Sudiarno)
Endah Laras, a multi-genre traditional singer, experienced the culture shock of being detached from her traditional roots when her father, renowned puppet master Sri Djoko Raharjo, relocated her siblings and her from Surakarta, Central Java, to Jakarta during her early teens.

As young child, she had been introduced to wayang shadow puppets, the gamelan Javanese traditional musical ensemble, tembang poetry, singing and dance.

Endah is now also proficient at the guitar, ukulele, piano and gamelan and is a trained classical Javanese dancer.

“Traditional performers should seek every possible way to access contemporary culture. They should collaborate with modern artists,” she says.

“It’s our duty as traditional performers. If we don’t remain high-spirited, no one else will.”

Calonarang presents a fusion on classic Javanese bedaya and Balinese legong dances. (JP/Wendra Ajistyatama)With artists embracing the revival spirit, prominent producer and director Garin Nugroho showed concern over the government’s lack of political will to defend its traditional performances.

“We can learn from other countries. Japan, for example, manages to keep kabuki alive because they are more than willing to keep it strong,” he said, referring to Japanese classical dance-drama.

Kabuki, he said, was a proof that there was nothing “old” about traditional performance and its packaging as it could stay relevant in the modern world.

Kabuki became the most popular of the traditional styles of Japanese drama, thanks to its actors striving to increase the reputation of the art form among the upper classes and adapt the traditional styles into modern tastes after Japan was opened up to Western influence in 1868. If the will is there, Garin said there are several ways for the government to lend a helping hand to keep traditional arts alive.

“A portion from the generated entertainment and broadcasting taxes should be regularly allocated for supporting and developing traditional performances and their communities,” he said.

“In education, the government can implement programs so school children can watch traditional performances.”

And as long as there was a will to defend the traditions, Garin said there was no need to be afraid of foreign cultures.

“The traditional artist have done their duty and can only do so much for their art; it’s up to the government and whether or not it has the will to safeguard the tradition,” Garin said.

In the past few years, a number of production agencies and private companies have supported and presented traditional performances to the urban audience in modern stages.

Miss Tjitjih theater can seat up to 300 people but it is rarely full during performances. (JP/Jerry Adiguna)

Wave after wave of foreign pop culture may have overshadowed traditional performances, but optimism for the art is in the air.

The country's traditional arts have always received high praise whenever they are performed abroad.

'We will always be encouraged by such appreciation,' said Anggono Kusumo Wibowo, a senior academic of traditional dance at the Indonesian Art Institute (ISI) in Surakarta, Central Java.

But traditional artists, he added, should keep performing and produce works.

'Modern pop culture receives more attention because it is easily accessed. Traditional art should also remain available for the people,' said Anggono.

The challenge is to produce works that will generate interest and appreciation from the public.

'My students and I focus on how to attract the younger generation. My institute holds festivals and competitions regularly,' he said.

'Traditional arts and their performers should always yearn to actualize themselves and adapt with contemporary currents.'

A scene from Teater Gandrik's play, Gundala Gawat (Gundala's Crisis). (JP/Tarko Sudiarno)
Endah Laras, a multi-genre traditional singer, experienced the culture shock of being detached from her traditional roots when her father, renowned puppet master Sri Djoko Raharjo, relocated her siblings and her from Surakarta, Central Java, to Jakarta during her early teens.

As young child, she had been introduced to wayang shadow puppets, the gamelan Javanese traditional musical ensemble, tembang poetry, singing and dance.

Endah is now also proficient at the guitar, ukulele, piano and gamelan and is a trained classical Javanese dancer.

'Traditional performers should seek every possible way to access contemporary culture. They should collaborate with modern artists,' she says.

'It's our duty as traditional performers. If we don't remain high-spirited, no one else will.'

Calonarang presents a fusion on classic Javanese bedaya and Balinese legong dances. (JP/Wendra Ajistyatama)With artists embracing the revival spirit, prominent producer and director Garin Nugroho showed concern over the government's lack of political will to defend its traditional performances.

'We can learn from other countries. Japan, for example, manages to keep kabuki alive because they are more than willing to keep it strong,' he said, referring to Japanese classical dance-drama.

Kabuki, he said, was a proof that there was nothing 'old' about traditional performance and its packaging as it could stay relevant in the modern world.

Kabuki became the most popular of the traditional styles of Japanese drama, thanks to its actors striving to increase the reputation of the art form among the upper classes and adapt the traditional styles into modern tastes after Japan was opened up to Western influence in 1868. If the will is there, Garin said there are several ways for the government to lend a helping hand to keep traditional arts alive.

'A portion from the generated entertainment and broadcasting taxes should be regularly allocated for supporting and developing traditional performances and their communities,' he said.

'In education, the government can implement programs so school children can watch traditional performances.'

And as long as there was a will to defend the traditions, Garin said there was no need to be afraid of foreign cultures.

'The traditional artist have done their duty and can only do so much for their art; it's up to the government and whether or not it has the will to safeguard the tradition,' Garin said.

In the past few years, a number of production agencies and private companies have supported and presented traditional performances to the urban audience in modern stages.

traditional musicians: Some traditional musicians and dancers, like this group from Cilacap, Central Java, end up performing on a South Jakarta roadside. (JP/Jerry Adiguna)
The performances, based on traditional arts and stories mixed with modern theatrical gimmicks and technology, have sold out shows in Jakarta in the past few years. These shows are usually sponsored by big companies, such as Djarum through its foundation, Kompas Gramedia group and Sariayu Martha Tilaar.

Anggono said the development was a commendable one.

'Many traditional performers I know have been asked to participate in such productions, mainly staged in Jakarta, allowing them to reach wider audience,' he said.

'A number of companies have also funded traditional groups through their CSR [corporate social responsibility] programs. So, it's looking good ahead.'