Indonesian choreographer and dancer Eko Supriyanto has been consistent in his creative pursuit of exploring the dance forms of peoples living in the eastern parts of Indonesia for the past several years.

His choreography series has included the Trilogy of Jailolo, inspired by his experience and immersion working together with the people of Jailolo in West Halmahera, North Maluku, comprising Cry Jailolo (2014-2015), Balabala (2016) and Salt (2017).

Now, as a result of a process that took about a year and four months, Eko is exploring new frontiers, highlighting the likurai dance tradition in Belu, West Nusa Tenggara, which also embodies some shared heritage with neighboring nation Timor Leste.

The result is a dance called Ibu-ibu Belu: Bodies of Borders, which premiered at the Komunitas Salihara arts center on Feb. 6 and 7, featuring six female dancers: Marlince Ratu Dabo, Feliciana Soares, Angela Lavenia Leki, Yunita Dahu, Adriyani Sindi Manisa Hale and Evie Anika Novita Nalle.

The international production was supported by the East Nusa Tenggara regional administration, Asia TOPA from Australia; SPRING Festival from Utrecht, the Netherlands; Teater Im Pumpenhaus from Munster, Germany; the Performing Arts Meeting from Yokohama, Japan; as well as Komunitas Salihara and the Ratnasari Langit Pitu in Jakarta.

Shared history: The performance features six non-professional dancers from East Nusa Tenggara and Timor Leste. The peoples of these regions once lived alongside one another, but are now divided along national lines.

The performance featured all non-professional dancers from the area, true to Eko’s mission to groom new local talents in the dance world.

“Eko creates forms of the likurai dance, containing characteristics of Timor society, which is currently divided along national lines between East Nusa Tenggara and Timor Leste. The memories have been embodied by six local dancers, including one dancer from Timor Leste, who express their life histories through likurai,” a press release made available to The Jakarta Post explained of the performance.

Prior to the 1999 Timor Leste independence referendum, its people used to live side by side with the people of East Nusa Tenggara, at a time when Timor Leste was occupied by the Indonesian government from 1975 and 1999. Geographically, they were divided only by hills and valleys, so their lives were closely interwoven with one another.

Eko said during this period of coexistence, these peoples – the women in particular –  shared the same attachment to the same woven textiles and had their own percussive instrument called a tihar, while also sharing the same likurai dance tradition. These elements – textiles, music and dance – that belong to their way of life, come alive among the dancers during the show.

“For instance, at the beginning of the show you see these women walk in a line while wearing woven cloth – this is inspired by how they walk through the valleys in their hometowns when the temperature is cold while wearing their cloth,” he said.

Body’s rhythm: The dancers create music not just with the tihar percussion instrument but also by beating their chests and legs, all the while singing melodiously.

While they dance, the women also use their bodies as musical instruments: not only by singing traditional songs, but also beating their chests and legs rhythmically, turning their bodies into percussive instruments played alongside the tihar.

The most beautiful part of the dance was a solo part by dancer Riny Ratu Dabo, who swayed her body gracefully as she moved in a circular manner, making her way in and out of tihar instruments laid on the floor.

“Then, when you see the dancers sway their bodies, it actually symbolizes how the motifs of the woven cloth consist of many circles, which bend here and there,” Eko explained.

Unfortunately, these two peoples have ceased to conduct artistic activities together in the aftermath of the referendum, which made it harder for them to meet as they had to cross the border between Indonesia and Timor Leste, which requires the use of visas.

“Previously, families [from both areas] used to create the likurai woven cloth together, creating shared coloring characteristics and motifs. Now you can see that the Timor Leste and East Nusa Tenggara woven cloth have two very distinguishable motifs, as they no longer make the cloth together,” Eko said.

Through the dance, Eko raised hope that Indonesians could retain this shared heritage and also remember their cultural connection to Timor Leste, particularly through the likurai tradition, and pass this legacy on to the next generations of Indonesians and Timor Leste people.

Regeneration: Eko Supriyanto features non-professional dancers in the performance to achieve his mission of grooming the next generation of Indonesian dancers.

— Photos courtesy of Komunitas Salihara/Witjak Widhi Cahya