Wayang kulit, the shadow puppet theatre of Indonesia, is especially popular in Java and Bali. Its repertoire draws heavily on oral legends and tales as well as written literature of the Indian and Javanese traditions. The dalang, or puppeteer, performs in front of a wide screen, and animates the puppets, imitating various voices and noises.
Origins Wayang kulit is popular in Bali, South Sumatraand West Java, but it is Central Java that is considered to be the home of this theatrical form. Whether Central Java is the birthplace of wayang kulit is still unknown. Some scholars say it is, indeed, Java’s very own contribution to world theatre. Others postulate that because a large part of the wayang kulit repertory originated in India, it is logical to assume that the theatrical form originated there too. Still others think that China is the ancient home of wayang kulit, but while China does have its own shadow theatre, neither Chinese plays nor shadow puppets bear much resemblance to the shadow theatre of Java. Regardless of where it originated, one fact is indisputable – the art of the shadow theatre represents a singularly Javanese achievement and today this art form is without counterpart in either China or India.
The Puppets A complete set of shadow puppet – there are approximately 400 – represents a world unto itself, yet one whose inhabitants are as recognizable to the audience as old friends or family members. Shadow puppets are made from thin, almost parchment-like leather and range in size from six inches to over three feet in height. The body shape, size, colouration, type of head-dress and style of clothing for each character have been set by tradition, thus making individual character clearly distinguishable from one another. Even if one does not remember the actual name of character, he will be able to know from the aforesaid elements what kind of ‘person’ the character is, whether refined or coarse, a god, a clown, an ogre and so on. The most important of all the shadow puppets is not a character but the gunungan, the ‘tree of life’, which is used by the dalang to mark both the opening and the closing of the performance as well as a change of scene. It is also used to symbolize a forest, a fire or a storm. It can be the call of alarm before battle. Waved and twirled by the dalang, it becomes a symbol of approaching fate.
Wayang Schematic
Jamang (diadem)
Suweng (ear stud)
Kalung (necklace)
Pending (sash buckle)
Wastra ( skirt-cloth)
Badong (apron)
Uncal kencana (gold apron pendants)
Kroncong (anklet)
Gelang (bracelet)
Bokongan (hip cloth)
Sabuk (waistband)
Kelatbahu (upper arm ring)
Manggaran (slopknot of sash)
Praba (back ornament)
Sumping (ear jewel)
Dawala (diadem band)
Garuda (bird’s head ornament)
Karawista together constitute the makuta (crown)
Modangan and
Njamat (gem)
The term sekaten encompasses at least two related but different concepts. First, it describes festivities held annually between the fifth and twelfth days of Javanese month of Maulud to commemorate the birthday of the prophet Muhammad SAW. Secondly, it refers to a specific ceremonial Javanese gamelan set played at these festivities which, until the 1970s, was owned by only three royal courts : Surakarta, Yogyakarta and Cirebon (Kasepuhan).
Grebeg Grebeg is a major event involving almost all the royal family, the officials and employees of the kingdom, and the community in general. In Javanese, the word means procession, support, and an impressive and noisy event. All these are expressed in the Grebeg ritual, which revolves around a procession of several gunungan (mountain-like heaps) made of rice decorated with vegetables and other foods. Hundreds of soldiers and palace employees take part in the procession, which is attend by the King and his family and watched by thousands of people. Three kinds of grebeg festivities related to royal ceremonies are the Grebeg Maulud (marking the birth of prophet Muhammad SAW), Grebeg Syawal (the end of the Fasting month), and Grebeg Besar (the completion of the haji). Each consists of a procession that carries a pair (or its multiple) of gunungan from the palace to the Grand Mosque. As the procession passes the sitinggil – the open pavilion where the ruler receives courtesy calls – two palace-herloom gamelan (Kodok Ngorek and Munggang) are played in its honour. Upon arrival at the mosque, prayers are said for the well-being of the community and a selamatan (well-wishing ritual) is held. Afterwards, everyone tries to take something from the gunungan, as to have a piece is believed to bring blessings.
Sekaten The word sekaten is often associated with sekati, a measure of weight formerly used by the Javanese. It is also linked to syahadatain, meaning the two sentences of the syahadat or the acknowledgement of acceptance which is the primary requirement for conversion to Islam. The gamelan sekaten is very large and heavy, three times the size and weight of a normal Javanese gamelan. The gamelan is seen as being part of the Hindu culture. In the translation from Hinduism to Islam in the mind-15th century, the wali or religious preachers cleverly used such products of the Hindu culture as means to attract people and convert them to the teachings of Islam.
Gunungan
The gunungan are tokens of gratitude to God The Almighty for the abundance of food that has bestowed upon the community. They are moulded from rice and decorated with vegetables and cakes.
The male gunungan or gunungan lanang is covered with fringes of snake beans and red chilli peppers, the top hidden under a layer of flat rice cakes that culminates in a plume of fish-shaped cakes. The more rounded female gunungan or gunungan wadon is elaborately decorated with rice cakes in a variety of shapes and colours, and bristles with bamboo skewers holding tiny cakes.
Gamelan Sekaten
In order to attract the people, the gamelan sekaten was designed to be as big and spectacular as possible, and very loud. To withstand the hard material, most hammers were made of durable material like water-buffalo horn.
The gamelan sekaten consists of :
One Bonang (set of 10 to 14 kettle-gongs) played by three musicians (pengrawit)
One or two pairs of demung (low-toned xylophone).
Four saron (mid-toned xylophones) with four musicians playing the same melody.
One bedug (large single-headed drum) use to signal a chance of tempo or speed.
One set of kepmyang (pairs of small kettle-gongs).
One pair of gong ageng (big gongs), played by a single musician.
Taken from ____, Indonesian Heritage ; Performing Arts. Archipelago Press, Singapore. 1998.
