BAFeature Article
A Balinese Visionary - By Susan Spilman
Imagine dancers costumed as trees, fl owers, tigers, roosters and as the evil land developers. They move on and off stage, fl uidly developing the story of the destruction of nature, the building of hotels and the destruction of the hotels by the Gods in the dance from of rain, lightning, and even a tsunami. Then the replanting of trees to bring back the environment, with hotels integrated into a healthy environment. All this with dancers costumed in vibrant colors and musical accompaniment.
Bapak Made Sidia, master dancer and choreogra- pher, has a vision: a way to help the children of Bali understand the importance of saving the environment. “All creatures, all our life is harmony. We can make our life harmony. We have to save the environment. The children can learn about this through dance.”
B d
ph to un
of s “All
harm life
save Th
To this end, three times a week the children go to his com- pound in Bona, a rural village twenty minutes south east of Ubud, for dance instruction. Once every month they perform for the proud parents. From this group of students he choos- es those who are both talented and interested, to become part of his dance troupe that performs around Bali and Indo- nesia. Currently the dancers are appearing at Bali Safari Park in a dance choreographed by Pak Made. It is a variation of the Ramayana story that includes live ducks and elephants all working together with the dancers, showing how humans and animals can and do work together in harmony.
Tri Hita Karana
All of Pak Made’s work is based on the Balinese concept of Tri Hita Karana. This posits that there are three all-important kinds of relationships in one’s life: the relationship of human to God, the relationship of human to human and the relation- ship of human to the environment.
This is the guiding belief of all Balinese Hindus. Although one can easily see the fi rst two relationships in daily life in Bali in the daily offerings and the communal life of the banjar, it is not always easy to fi nd the third aspect of human to the en- vironment. When one sees garbage and plastic dumped in rivers and toxic pesticides used in the rice fi elds, one wonders where the concern for the environment is. Thus, Made’s em- phasis on the environment is a refreshing change.
Pak Made works closely with his father, the renowned shad- ow puppet master, Pak Made Sija. Four years ago father and son collaborated on a major dance production about what happens when promoters come and strip the land to build hotels -- a major theme in Balinese life. The production in- cluded 150 dancers, costumed as birds, trees, lions, elephants and of course people. As is usual in Bali this was a group effort with Pak Made as director of the production. His brother and their wives designed and made the costumes while the gamelan music was orchestrated by a friend. Pak Made’s
father Pak Sija was the inspiration for the production, develop- ing the concept and philosophy. The production was fi nanced by the Indonesian government and by Pak Made’s group Sanggar Paripurna.
This was performed in Jakarta for the Minister of the Environ- ment and for Earth Day 2006. It is a major production and thus needs a special venue although Pak Made states that he “can do productions of different sizes, 100 dancers or 70, even 50.” Asked about the cost of such a production, Made describes a range from Rp 7 million for the smaller production up to Rp 20 million. This form of communication is both entertaining and transforming of one’s attitude. The message is received at a visceral level and can be integrated in a way that intel- lectual discussions often fail. These performances are envi- ronmental education in a fun and lively manner. As Kathy Alexander, an Australian ex-pat says, “How wonderful if these performances would be made available to schools, tour groups, all of us.” How to make them available is the chal- lenge.
In maintaining a sense of harmony, all participants in the production are paid: Dancers, costume people, and as Made says “even woman who sweeps after everyone leaves com- pound to go to per- formance” is paid. Pak Sija, as the orig- inating and on-going inspiration, is includ- ed in this.
A second major pro- duction was staged at the end of 2009 and videoed by TVRI for local broadcast. Based on the Mahabarata, this dance develops the theme of human bodies being thrown into water, poisoning the fi sh and frogs so that they die. Their bones and skin
develop into insects that then destroy the land. The message is that, “People don’t care about the water, so the Gods put a curse on humans.” Demons come and “insects become food for the demons.” Humans then ask the Gods for help and they say “you can’t put all things in the water; no trash, garbage, plastic.” Once the humans understand, the environment and harmony are restored.
Although dance is his love and specialty, Pak Made is also a shadow puppet master and master gamelan player. Following in his father’s role, he teaches shadow puppet performance as well as how to make one’s own shadow puppets to both Balinese and foreign students. His overriding philosophy is that “we cannot force children, not natural. Little by little we give them education without force them.” He states that for all dancers, “without (understanding) the story, cannot express the feeling when they dance. I stop them sometimes and explain the philosophy of their movement. This is like water,
like clouds. I stop practice and talk to them about saving the nature. Then they talk to friends and more people learn.”
Pak Made is a master in our midst and it is possible to study with him in all his various roles: dancing, shadow puppet creation and performance, gamelan lessons and Made’s over- riding interest in Balinese culture, especially as it relates to the environment and how to apply it to the 21st century.
There are various ways to study with Made. He offers basic accommodation at his compound in Bona: a large upstairs room with the cold water bathroom down two fl ights of stairs. This is geared more to young students, who often come to stay for several months to study dance or puppets.
Another option in the low-cost lodging range is a small guest- house that offers two rooms with attached bathroom with hot shower. Both places include breakfast for under $8 per night. A more upscale possibility is Jack’s House, two fully equipped bungalows including hot water, TV, DVD and a swimming pool.
The most comfortable option is to stay in Ubud and come to Bona to study each day. In this way you get the combination of authentic Bali village life plus the comforts of urbanized Ubud with multiple restaurant and lodging choices.
choic
For those interested in sponsoring a produc- tion and/or incorporating Pak Made’s dances in environmental education, contact Made directly. He will be delighted.
For t tion in e dire
Made is a little-known master amongst the expats and tourists in Bali. Among Western- ers, he is more well-known internationally, having taught and performed at universities such as Cornell in the USA and in Europe. He speaks English well and loves to talk about Balinese culture and his vision. If nothing else, simply coming to Bona to visit him would be a unique Bali experience.
Mad exp ers hav suc He tal If
to ex
Made Sidia’s Sanggar Paripurna offers production of his dances and education in
M
Balinese culture, gamelan, dance, and shadow puppets as well as basic accommodation. He can be reached at paripur-
na2@yahoo.com or cell phone in Bali 081 239 57164
Ketut Sura offers two rooms with hot water shower plus break- fast in the same banjar/neighborhood as Made Sidia. His in- formation:
ketutsura@yahoo.com and local phone 0361 945 833
Jack’s House: moderately priced bungalows with hot water, DVD, and swimming pool. Contract Nyoman at 081353221217 or her daughter Seni at 08179754087, who speaks more English, for information on prices.
Susan Spilman <
baliarts2003@yahoo.com>
Copyright © 2010 Bali Advertiser You can read all past articles of
BA Feature Article at
www.BaliAdvertiser.biz
Trees and hunter’s gun
Dancers and elephants
Dancers as animals
Pak Made
Off to perform
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84