Although tourist shops now sell imitations of wayang kulit puppets, the Javanese puppets illustrated on these pages are old examples that were actually used for many years in theater productions--in presentations of Hindu epics, Indonesian history plays and the Islamic Menak cycles. The Balinese examples are fairly recent. The puppet performances were given in towns and villages on holidays and for a variety of festivals. A dalang, or puppet master, manipulated the puppets, spoke their parts, and coordinated the puppets' actions with music from a gamelan orchestra. The puppets were manipulated behind a white screen with a back light, so the audience saw only their shadows. Anne Richter has described the stories as follows: "The most frequently performed narratives derive from the Hindu epics. The Arjuna Sasra Bahu and Ramayana cycles concern the affairs of the noble Rama himself and his ancestors. Favorite stories concern Rama's marriage to Sinta; their banishment to the forest together with his brother Laksmana; Sinta's abduction by the monster king Rahwana; and her subsequent rescue, with the aid of the monkey king and after numerous battles, from the kingdom of Sri Lanka. The Ramayana contains many episodes from the lives of these characters which are emphasized in varying degrees to form separate plays in their own right. | ||
The Mahahharata tells of the conflict between the superior Pandewa brothers (Judistra, Bima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sadewa) and their hundred jealous and mendacious cousins, the Kurewas, who drive them away from their home at the court of Astina, to wander in the wild. In the forest the Pandewas build the lovely and idealized kingdom of Amarta where the majority of the plays are set. The heroic quests, battles with vile ogres and scenes of romantic love are made all the more poignant by the knowledge that the glory and beauty are fleeting. Events are presented as taking place in Java rather than India, and the heroic Pandewas, descendants of Vishnu, are the ancestors of the Javanese kings. Many episodes have simply been invented by puppeteers over generations.
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The court scenes also allow scope for the comic misadventures and intrigue of the Pandewas' clown servants, the Punakawans: Semar the wise, whose identity is thought to have evolved from that of the pre-Hindu Javanese god Ismaya and his sons. The inane and melancholic Gareng, with his round drooping nose, is the butt of jokes and tricks played by the sharp Petruk. Philosophical and mystical speculations made by the refined characters provide an intellectual and spiritual dimension for members of the audience with a taste for high seriousness."
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The puppets are made by initially sketching the lacy patterns onto buffalo or goat hide. After the form has been cut out, it is placed on a flat wooden anvil, and the work of creating intricate patterns of tiny holes begins; these are formed by precise blows with a wooden mallet to a chisel or punch. Moveable leather arms are hinged at the shoulders and elbows; these are attached to thin buffalo horn or wooden sticks which are manipulated by the dalang to provide movement or expression. The completed puppet is fitted with a long horn or wooden handle.
Sacred color symbolism conveys essential information. The face of Vishnu is painted black, whereas Shiva's is gold, but a character may appear in a different color to indicate alterations in circumstances or emotional state. Red is used to suggest a fiery or impetuous nature; white implies innocence or youth. |
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