Central Javanese Dance

An introduction

By Jo Shaw

 

Contents

Central Javanese Dance (1)

Dance types (2)

Character types (3)

Tradition and today (4)

Glossary

The following are the literal translations of some of the terms used in this article

alus refined

gagah coarse/more aggressive

beksan dance (Javanese)

tari dance (Indonesian)

putri female

putra male

wayang narrative performance

Seleh Notes Volume 6 Number 1 November 1998

© Jo Shaw

Biography of Jo Shaw

Dance is very important to Javanese society and has a long history, as shown by temple reliefs at Borobudur and Prambanan.

Historically dance is rooted in the general influx of Indian culture from the 7th to the 10th centuries, from whence came the epic poems of the 'Mahabharata' and 'Ramayana', Sanskrit literature, architecture and religion.

Later, more indigenous elements from the Majapahit dynasty, the spread of Islam in the 15th century, and the Mataram dynasty of the 17th century influenced the development of dance styles.

After the arrival of the Dutch the royal courts had no political power, so their energies were devoted to refining court etiquette and developing the arts.

Today dance is a feature of everyday life, a part of all ceremonies and festivals celebrating occasions of importance to the community, in villages, towns and urban centres.

Some dance genres originated in the courts of Surakarta and Yogyakarta and were taken up by the general public; others started life as dances performed by professional dancers, which were relatively free and improvisatory and which have been stylised into dance genres of their own.

Rama and Sinta - Javanese dance

The elegant movements of tari alus and tari putri depicted in the characters of Rama and Sinta.

Dance is taught in the villages, and in normal schools as well as the specialised SMKI (High School for the Arts) and further-education stage STSI etc.

Its importance goes beyond mere decoration; at its more refined levels it is a pleasure but also educational. Just as wayang kulit gives moral and behavioural lessons through the well - known characters and tales, so dance is intended to encourage desirable qualities: concentration, self-confidence, perseverance, grace, dignity; the ‘alus’ nature.

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