The wayang world exists in mythical time, eternal time, or no time at all. Sometimes, the mythical and historical time merge. There are no sharp boundaries.
My interest to visit Indonesia arose from my curiosity in the puppetry Wayang Golek an art form which is integral to the cultural, religious and philosophical history of Indonesia. In what I have come to encounter here wayang is quite elusive and multifaceted. The word
wayang is derived from yang, eyang, and hyang, referring to ancestors and sometimes deities, and from banyang, which means 'shadow'. The veneration of ancestors and the propitiation of the gods are recurrent themes in the wayang tradition, and 'shadow' could be a reference both to early shadow puppets and to the spirits. Golek simply means 'wooden puppet'. Wayang Golek is just one type of Wayang prominent in Southeast Asia.
The stories of Wayang Golek played out by the puppet masters (dalangs) here in West Java/Sunda are derived from Indian Epics such as The Ramayana and The Mahabharta. Being a dalang is an incredibly demanding role. There are hundreds of puppets, each with their unique dances, style and speaking voice. Performances often last 7 hours from dawn to dusk and during this time the dalang is responsible for the dialogue, mood songs and narration. Additionally this performer conducts the gamelan orchestra and plays metal plates (kecrek) attached to the puppet box which he hits with his foot for emphasis of movement which enliven the energy of the scene. A fight scene can last 1 or 2 hours as in turn the generations are defeated and another ogre of monkey king comes to battle.
Since I arrived in Bandung I have been overwhelmed by everything I have learnt from the pencak silat (martial arts), jaipong (dance), karawitan (gamelan) to of course the mystical world of Wayang Golek. Already my experience of Indonesian traditional art forms is deepening my understanding of this vast archipelago. I have taken up an apprenticeship under local ki dalang Abah Amay, becoming familiar with the characters and stories. Ki dalang is a kind and charismatic man, short and stout about fifty-four years old. Stern looking on first impressions, his great black bushy eyebrows and wise countenance comes to life as soon as gives voice to the demon Rahwana with a deep resonant guffaw. Taking private tuition comes in the form of 2 to 3 hours late night practicing at his small house with all his family gathered in the same room, some playing the karawitan, drinking tea and smoking clove laced cigarettes, whilst his grandchildren watch their grandfather in amazement clapping and laughing. My Japanese friend Miki plays kendang drums as Abah Amay sings the rhythms; pak pok tung dong bang. With the limited Indonesian language I have learnt and even less Sundanese, Abah Amay and I communicate through our affinity for wayang and visceral trial and error. There is no organised teaching method, no music theory everything is learnt by listening, watching and playing and all simultaneously. My method: making as many videos and photographs as possible and watching them 100 times....
Learning Cepot the clowns' laugh from faith brandon on Vimeo.
Cepot walk and dance from faith brandon on Vimeo.
