Artistique

KLANA MASK

2010-08-22T18:54:00.000-07:00

This is a Klana mask style of Yogyakarta, the colour is red and it’s made of wooden. We can find it in a Wayang Gedhog performance or Klana Topeng dance. This mask is a figure of Prabu Klana Sewandana, a Big King from Pudhak Payung Kingdom.

PENTHUL MASK

2010-08-22T18:48:00.000-07:00

This is a Penthul mask, the colour is white and it’s made of wooden. This character usually in a Jathilan folk dance in the villages of Java islands. The characteristic of that mask are with a little bit longer of the nose and has only 2 teeth. In a Jathilan performance this figure always sings many of Javanese songs with his couple Bejer.

THE MOVEMENTS OF HANDS

2010-08-09T17:03:00.000-07:00

The center of hands movements is wrist, arms and elbows to follow only. There are 4 position of hand.

THE SRIMPI DANCE

2010-08-09T16:59:00.000-07:00

The Srimpi danced by 4 dancers. At the beginning (long time ago) Srimpi use costume like bride of Yogyakarta style, that are Dodotan and Gelung Bokor but in it development doesn’t use Dodotan and Gelung Bokor and changed with Seredan, blouse without arms and special headdress (called Jamang) with some feathers of Kasuari bird and Gelung with flowers (called Ceplok Jebehan). The Srimpi Dance to wear creese for fighting.

THE BEDHAYA DANCE

2010-08-09T16:53:00.000-07:00

The Bedhaya Dance was older, more magic and more unique than Srimpi Dance. The dancers are 9 persons, this is a symbol of perfection. This dance tells about meeting between Panembahan Senopati (King of Mataram) with Ratu Kidul(Queen of southsea). There is mythology that when The Bedhaya danced Ratu Kidul will come.

KLANA ALUS

2010-08-09T16:52:00.001-07:00

Klana is The Big Figure of Wanderer and Alus means medium character. This dancing is personification of The Big King Figure of Wanderer who has falling in love.

KLANA TOPENG

2010-08-09T16:49:00.000-07:00

Klana is The Big Figure of Wanderer and Topeng is mask. So Klana Topeng is a dance with a mask (usually red mask). This dancing is personification of Prabu Klana Sewandana who has falling in love to Dewi Sekartaji. There is a specific movement in this dance, it’s called Sepak Wiron (kick Cloth) and Ogek Lambung (movement of waist). The dancer has freedom to express the mask to be dynamic and the mask look like life.

KLANA RAJA

2010-08-09T16:43:00.001-07:00

Klana is The Big Figure of Wanderer and Raja is King. This dancing is personification of The Big King Figure of Wanderer who has falling in love.

The PHILOSOPHY OF SOLO DANCE, DUET AND SACRED DANCE

2010-08-09T16:32:00.000-07:00

Solo dance means itself in a symbolic, ideal and magic of dancing, feeling of dancer and appreciation of artistic audiences. In symbolic means, solo is roundness, veracity,capacity and perfection. Ideal because it’s one of target, theme, dancer. The dancer responsible to dance and to explain content of the dancing as good as possible and audiences can feel what they saw. Magic because values of dancing and soul of dancer to be one. So there are Patut (suitable),Pantes (fit), AntepNges (enormous).

The Duet Dance (Java called Beksan of Pethilan) is usually the importance thing of the story. The theme of duet usually fighting between good and bad characters. In the end good character will be a winner.

The Sacred Dance is a dance who performed in the special time. The dancers have to fast before to dance and also clean of themselves. This activity is a rule to do Sacred Dance. The female dance use magic make up like bride. The dancing are Bedhaya and Srimpi and the male dance is Lawung.

CLASSICAL JAVANESE DANCE STYLE OF YOGYAKARTA

2010-08-09T16:23:00.000-07:00

The History of Classical Javanese Dance (GBPH Suryobrongto)

Classical Javanese Dance has created by Sri Sultan HB I. He mighty from 1755–1792. Situation of war changed to arts situation. The all of arts department got appreciation from Sri Sultan HB I include the dance. Discipline of Classical Javanese Dance, Style of Yogyakarta is very strong because the dancers are from soldiers.

There is competition to ride a horse and use blunt spear, called Watang. Someone has to get down the enemy with Watang to be a winner. The Gamelan Kyai Guntur Laut played in the north square of Yogyakarta Palace and there is shadow puppets in the evening for the competitors and people. This program called Barwatang(after Watang). In the end, competition of Watangan will be a Beksan Lawung Dance. And it’s become the ceremonial dance.

There are three of the dances in The Yogyakarta Palace do not learned out side of palace, it’s for the originality and actually it’s very difficult to learned.
The dances are :

1. The Bedhaya dance
2. The Srimpi dance
3. The Lawung dance

From the 3 dances above, Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwana I has idea to make one of dance form with story and heroic theme. The story has taken from Mahabharata. It’s for to give patriotic character who will take from Pandawa’s familys. Character of Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwana appear, that are a brave man, heroic and low profile. In his low profile there is essential and spiritual so deep. In the end the essential to be a philosophy and called philosophy of Mataram Dance (Kawruh Joged Mataram).

The Philosophy of Mataram Dance

2010-08-05T15:49:00.000-07:00

The Philosophy of Mataram Dance is a dance’s philosophy of Mataram (Mataram Kingdom). It’s also useful for a life to balance between physical and spiritual. Step by step can be self-confidence, self-identification to rich a deep confidence and self-control.

Sewiji

Total consentration without tension of soul. It’s means that a dancer not in trance but all of consentration focus on dance.

Greged

Dinamic, spirit, like a fire in the soul.

Sengguh

Self-confidence

Ora Mingkuh

Brave and able to solve of any problems

VNET

2009-01-17T09:14:00.000-08:00

MANFAATKAN HP ANDA

UNTUK MENGHASILKAN UANG !!!

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KEUNTUNGAN MENJADI MEMBER V-NET :

1. Bisa isi pulsa untuk diri sendiri dan orang lain.

2. Mendapat Bonus Sponsor / member.

3. Mendapat Bonus Extra Sponsor & Bonus Target.

4. Mendapat Bonus Bulanan (Passive Income).

5. Beli Pulsa di V-NET bisa dapat HP & Motor.

Teknologi ini dibangun oleh PT. Eratel Media Distrindo, sebuah perusahaan yang menjadi pelopor pengisian pulsa secara elektronik di Indonesia pada tahun 2003.

TRIWIKRAMA

2009-01-06T21:10:00.000-08:00

TRIWIKRAMA

The idea of this choreography is from Mahabharata story more specific is Kresna Duta episode. It’s tell about Kresna who was disappointed by Kurawas. In that story Kresna as a personification of Pandawas to ask a part of Ngestina kingdom. The Kurawas does not give it to Pandawa. Kresna very angry because of that. Finally Kresna change himself to become a big giant, angry and make everything is broken.

The story above like in the reality. when the people are disappointed and disagree with decided of the government, they are angry and make everything is broken. It’s like when the government change the price of gasoline and so on…..

From that story I have an idea to make a choreography. It’s performed by solo dance and used a lot of leather puppet as symbol of people with various of characters.

DANCE

2009-01-05T08:27:00.000-08:00

SENGKETA

The human always followed by two different powers that are, good power ( white ) and bad power
( black ). Two powers live and to be one in the human. This choreography is a imagination about that powers. The background of this choreography is from experiences of life, books of religion ( Islamic ) and about human. The movements are from exploration. The consept of this choreography comunicated by solo performance and use two masks as symbol of that characters.

Concept of Choreography
The tittle of this choreography is SENGKETA. It’s mean conflict or fighting. This tittle choosen because this choreography tell about conflict two powers that is good and bad.
Music
The concept of music is music as a ilustration. The instruments are from javanese gamelan and modern ( diatonis ).
Theme of Dance
The theme of this choreography is imagination conflict who inside of human.
Costume
The costume of this choreography use black under wear.
Property
Two masks.
Artistic Team
Choreographer : Sudiharto
Composer : Budi Pramono
Costume : Sudiharto
Dancer : Sudiharto

ALL ABOUT ME

2008-04-18T08:58:00.000-07:00

I am Sudiharto. I was born March 27, 1975 in Yogyakarta. I am a dancer, traditional, classic and contemporary. I started to learn when I was fifteen years old at high school of arts Yogyakarta. At the same time I also learned with Romo Sasmito Mardowo, Yogyakarta’s Master of Classical Javanese Dance at Pamulangan Beksa Ngayogyakarta Foundation. Later I studied in Indonesian Institute of The Arts Yogyakarta.
In 1996 I have ever learned choreography with Leyson Ponce from Venezuela and Maxine Heppner from Canada. I have seriously learned contemporary dance with Miroto and since 1997and started to join Miroto Dance Company. Knowledge about contemporary dance give me opportunity to collaborate with some choreographers that are : EE. Chiang (Singapore, 1998), Wendy McPhee (Australia, 2000), Janis Brenner (America, 2001), Angela Liong (Singapore, 2002), Tony Yap (Australia, 2005) and Veronique Delarche (France, 2005). Collaboration and tour with Veronique Delarche, Alex Grillo (France) and Sapto Rahardjo (Indonesia) in France and Indonesia (2006).

Dance Training

1997 with Miroto Dance Company, 2007 with Lin Hwai Min (Taiwan), 2005 with Veronique Delarche (France), 2005 with Tony Yap (Australia), 2003 with Introdans (Holland), 2002 with Angela Liong (Singapore), 2001 with Janis Brenner (America), 2000 with Wendy McPhee (Australia), 1994 - 1999 Indonesian Institute of The Arts Yogyakarta, 1996 with Indonesian Dance Festival, 1990 - 1994 high school of arts Yogyakarta, 1990 - 1993 with Romo Sasmito Mardowo.

Professional Experience (as a dancer)

2007 Panji Penumbra by Miroto (Holland), 2006 Collaboration and tour with Veronique Delarche, Allex Grillo (France) and Sapto Rahardjo (Indonesia) in France and Indonesia, 2005 Panji Penumbra by Miroto (Holland and Belgium), 2005 Requiem From Java, a film to celebrate 250 th Mozart by Garin Nugroho, 2005 Vrille by Veronique Delarche, 2005 Pulse by Tony Yap, 2005 Kala Akil Balik by Miroto, 2004 Shadow puppets and Ramayana by Miroto (Jerman), 2004 Saidjah and Adinda by S. karjono (Holland and Belgium), 2003 Salam by Miroto, 2002 Dancing Shadows by Miroto (Holland and Belgium), 2002 Borrow Scenery by Angela Liong, 2001 Commond Ground by Janis Brenner, 2000 First Layer by Wendy McPhee (Australia), 2000 Semar Ruwat Semar Rawat by Miroto, 2000 Bedah Madiun by Rury Nostalgia, 1999 Kidung Kunthi by Miroto, 1999 Compromise by Miroto, 1998 Brush by E.E. Chiang, 1997 Duo by Miroto, 1997 Topeng Benang Merah by Miroto, 1996 Bhayangkara Emas by Bagong Kussudiardja, 1992 Hari Koperasi by Bagong Kussudiardja, 1992 Hari Raya Idul Fitri by Bagong Kussudiardja.

Award

1991 Art Award from Yogyakarta government.

Choreography

(2006) Alon(e) Alon(e), collaboration with Veronique Delarche, Alex Grillo (France) and Sapto Rahardjo (Indonesia), (2005) Kontrang – Kantring Kubur, collaboration with Riyanto, (2004) Microcosmos, (2003) Welcome Dance, (2001) Dewa Ruci, (2000) Dua Satu, (1999) Sengketa, (1998) Kedhok, (1997) Bumerang, (1997) Dua Dalam Satu, (1996) Napi.

RATU KIDUL AND THE SULTANS OF MATARAM

2008-04-12T07:48:00.000-07:00

Not much is left of Taman Sari, the ancient watercastle comprising ornamental buildings, artificial lakes and tropical gardens built by the First Sultan of Jogjakarta, Hamengku Buwana I, in mid-eighteen century. Yet the ruins are still attracting a host of visitors and tourists. It is said that an invisible underground tunnel connects this castle with the Southern Sea.

The legend of Ratu Kidul, the queen of the Southern Sea and the Sultans of Mataram is still alive in Jogjakarta and Surakarta. It is immortalized in the venerated ancient Bedaya Dance performed only at very special court festivities such as at the commemoration of the throne or at royal weddings. This legend says that once when Sultan Agung, the mighty Sultan of Mataram was at the southern shore of his realm, he met the beautiful Ratu Kidul who was inspecting the boundaries of her kingdom. They were attracted to each other and the young Sultan then followed the queen to her palace at the bottom of the sea.

They lived together until the arrival of the holy Sunan Kalijaga who advised the Sultan that his bride actually was not an ordinary human being, for her eternal beauty was like the moon, culminating at full moon as a young maiden and declining afterwards as an old woman. There was a full moon when Ratu Kidul met the young Sultan and stole his heart. Sunan Kalijaga also pointed out to the Sultan his duty towards his people and kingdom which he had been neglecting. So Sultan Agung left Ratu Kidul with and his descendant anytime the Mataram kingdom was in danger.

This curious story has been immortalized by the Jogja Sultan Hamengku Buwana II in the Bedaya Semang, created at the end of the eighteen century. It is danced by nine virgins costumed in gorgeous royal bridal attire. Up to this day this sacred dance has never been performed outside the Jogja Kraton walls, while the last performance was many years ago. Very elaborate sajens, sacral offerings, have to made before and during the performance. Although one or two of the nine dancers collapse during the dance, due to the lenghty dress preparation and performance, yet it is said that the number of dancers seems always to be the same. For Ratu Kidul attends the dancing and her retinue make the necessary replacements. This so called Bedaya Semang is accompanied by the Gendhing Semang, a very complicated gendhing-gedhe or big melody.

This story is a legend, but the fact that it is used as a theme in the court dance suggests that it is in the official chronicles of the Babad Kraton Mataram.

The Surakarta Kraton too boasts a similar sacred Bedaya, the Bedaya Ketawang, more ancient even than the Bedaya Semang. For it is said to have been created by the great Sultan Agung himself. This dance has been staged most recently in the Surakarta Kraton at the commemoration of the throne of the Sunan Paku Buwana XII in 1966. Unlike ordinary Bedaya Dances this particular one is accompanied by an incomplete gamelan orchestra. Only some rhythmic instruments as the kendang, kethuk, kenong, kemanak and gong and a monotonous chanting of the female pesinden choir enlive this dance.

The nine dancers are costumed like royal brides, clothed in Dodot Banguntulak Alas-Alasan, a giant sized plaid kain-cloth with blue background and patterns of animals, mountains and sea-figures. As befits the theme of the dance, movements depicting the sea and its waves are clearly seen.

There are several versions of the story. Most works of Western scholars as Van Lelyveld in "De Javaanse Danskunst" and Jaap Kunst in "Music in Java" mention that the meeting of Ratu Kidul was with Sultan Agung. This is based on information obtained from Kraton circles. However, according to recent sources of the Surakarta Kraton the Bedaya Ketawang composed by Sultan Agung depicted the meeting of Ratu Kidul with Panembahan Senopati, his ancestor and the founder of the Mataram dynasty. This is actually not confusing, since according to legend the Sunans of Surakarta. The yearly Labuhan ceremony is still observed in which offering of the Sultan are thrown into the southern sea. This way recently held on June 21, 1971, on the 61th birthday of Sultan Hamengku Buwana IX.

Besides the name Ratu Kidul, the name Nyai Roro Kidul is also well known. These are considered by some to be two names for the same person. However according to the Jogja court sources, these are actually different names. Her Majesty Kanjeng Ratu Kidul, or Ratu Kidul for short, is the queen, a former princess of one of the kingdoms in Java. Nyai Roro Kidul on the other hand is the patih or prime minister who was the former nymph Nawangwulan, the ex-wife of Jaka Tarub who, after getting back her stolen nymph-attire from under the rice paddies flew back to the nymph realm but was refused admittance. The pitiful nymph was then taken under the protection of Ratu Kidul who made her patih later on. Interesting to note that Jaka Tarub and his nymph wife Nawangwulan are also ancestors of the Sultan of Mataram.

SRIMPI ( CLASSIC DANCE )

2008-04-10T08:11:00.000-07:00

Among classical Javanese dances, the Srimpi dance is perhaps the most well known. Accordingly it is understandable thet foreign visitors and tourists sometimes get the wrong impression that every dance performed by a group of girls is thought to be a Srimpi. Articles written by western authors sometimes increase this cofusion by mistaking the Bedaya with the Srimpi, as in Van Lelyveld's "De Javaanse danskunst" (The Javanese dance art). Here a picture of nine dancers in the Bedaya Semang is subtitled Srimpi Semang, while the Srimpi is usually performed only by four dancers.

The Srimpi dance has a tradition of more than three hundred years. Formerly it was danced only inside the palace or Kraton walls. Srimpi and Bedaya dancers are gorgeously dressed in a rather similar way with the exception of the colour of the sleeveless coat. This is either red, green or blue for the Srimpi or darker colour as black, dark blue or violet for the Bedaya. Fundamentally however there is a big difference between these dances. It is said that the Srimpi which is younger is a simplification of the Bedaya. Since it is not always easy to have nine good dancers they composed the Srimpi which need only four. Actually it is not just a matter of simplification in the number of dancers, for in general the Srimpi is featuring only a fight while the Bedaya present more important events with deep or philosophical meaning.

It is quite interesting to note that while the Bedaya takes its repertoire from Javanese history and the Hindu epic Mahabharata, the Srimpi in addition to these also take stories from Arabic literature such as the Amir Hamzah cycle.

Srimpi Pandelori for instance, which is named according to the gending Pandelori played by the gamelan, is depicting the fight between the princess Dewi Sirtupelaeli from Karsinah against the princess Dewi Sudarawerti from Parangakik when both try to free the imprisoned hero Amir Hamzah (Amir Ambyah) also named Menak Djayengrana.

Srimpi Muntjar or Srimpi Putri Tjina is accompanied by the gending Muntjar featuring the fight between Dewi Kelaswara,the wife of the Menak, against Putri Tjina,the chinese princess Adaninggar.

The Srimpi Renggawati is an exception, for it is not danced by four but by five girls. It is not featuring a fight but rather a love story taken from Javanese history when Dewi Renggawati meets her future censort, King Anglingdarma, who for many years has been bewitched into a white duck by evil demons.

There are three parts in the Srimpi dance : kapang-kapang madjeng, the main dance and kapang-kapang mundur. Kapang-kapang or walking rhythmically to the center of the pendapa dance hall and back is usually accompanied by gamelan playing the gending sabrangan loudly in fast rhythm. Sometimes it is accompanied by a gamelan playing sofly in slow rhythm together with a choir of female pesindens to the tunes of a ladrangan melody.

The main dance is accompanied by a complicated gamelan melody. In the case of the Srimpi Pandelori it begins with the gending Pandelori and then proceeds to the simple ladrang Sabrang Betawen; while for the fighting scene at the end the gending ayak-ayak and its Srepegan are used. In the main dance the soft playing gamelan orchestra goes together with the pesinden choir.

In general the pelog gamelan is used for the Srimpi, but there is one or two using the slendro gamelan. The Srimpi Lobong composed by the Jogja Sultan Hamengku Buwana VIIIis an example. From the examples mentioned above it is clear that the Srimpi dance uses many types of gendings ranging from simple to complicated ones. The criterion of the complicated gending can be known from the sound of the gong which is very often for simple gendings and less often for the complicated ones.

In the main dance all four dancers make the same dance movements in symetrical position, while the fighting scene is done two against two stylistically and not realistically as in the Wayang Wong or dance dramas. The dance movement "Garuda" (eagle) pictures the eagle spreading its wings; "gajah ngoling" as the elephant moving its trunk, "ombak banju" as the waves of the sea, "wedi kengser" as send being blown by the wind. These are but a few of the dance elements for a Srimpi composition.

The original Srimpi dance lasted more than one hour, but now it is usually shortened to about forty minutes by reducing repetitions of the dance movements. Since the founding of the Dance School Krida Beksa Wirama in 1918, it is no longer danced exclusively inside the Kraton walls. However, like its counterpart the western ballet, it can not be mastered within two or three months, but should be studied from early childhood under the guidance of a good dance instructor.

BEDHAYA (CLASSIC DANCE)

2008-04-09T08:45:00.000-07:00

One of the reasons why the Bedhaya Dance is not as well known as the younger Srimpi Dance is that according to tradition this ancient court dance could be performed only at royal weddings, commemoration of the throne and such special occasions. Since 1918 it is no longer danced exclusively inside the Jogja Kraton walls due to the foundation of the Krida Beksa Wirama dance school, founded by such court dance and gamelan expert as BPH Surjodiningrat, GPH Tedjokusumo, KRT Djajadipura, KRT Wiraguna. Some how the old tradition is more or less still preserved due in part perhaps to the difficulties of preparing such a performance.

It is not yet clear who the originator was or when the Bedhaya Dance was composed. In his book "Babad lan Mekaring Djoged Djawi"(History and development of the Javanese Dance) BPH Surjodiningrat mentioned that according to chronicles of Javanese history Sultan Padjang (1547-1582) went to the audience hall with a retinue including manggungs, Bedhayas and Srimpis. In the golden era of Mataram under the reign of Sultan Agung (1610-1645) when arts and culture were very popular the situation was clearer. The oldest of the Bedhaya Dance still known is the Bedhaya Ketawang, said to be composed by Sultan Agung himself and considered as a venerated heirloom or pusaka in the Surakarta court to this day.

Some say that the Bedhaya Ketawang depicts the meeting of Sultan Agung and the legendary queen of the southern Sea, Ratu Kidul. Others say that the meeting was between Panembahan Senopati, the founder of the Mataram dynasty and ancestor of Sultan Agung with Ratu Kidul. The same theme was used by Sultan Hamengku Buwana II to compose the Bedhaya Semang at the end of the 18th century which is also revered as a pusaka in the Jogjakarta Kraton. The performance of these sacred Bedhayas is accompanied by very elaborate offerings or sadjens.

Not all Bedhaya Dances are as sacred as these, although it is quite true that only very important episodes with deep historical and philosophical meanings are used as a theme for a Bedhaya composition. The foundation of the Jogjakarta Kraton in 1755 alter the Giyanti Treaty which devided Mataran into Jogjakarta and Surakarta was used as a theme in the Bedhaya Sinom. The fall of the vassal state Madiun against Mataram was used as a theme in the Bedhaya Bedah Madiun (bedah:fall). The adventures of Arjuna as an ascete to seek divine powers for the coming Baratayuda war against the Kurawas was used in the Bedhaya Arjuna Wiwaha, also called Bedhaya Gandrung Manis according to the Gandrung Manis gamelan melody used for accompaniment. Similary the Bedhaya Dewa Rutji depicts the meeting of Bima, the second of the five Pandhawas brothers with his god Dewa Rutji at the bottom of the sea.

The Bedhaya Dance which lasts an hour or more can be divided into three parts : kapang-kapang majeng, walking rhythmically from the inside to the center of the Pendapa or dance hall ; the main dance, consisting of the preliminary dance and the endjeran or duet; and kapang-kapang mundur. Kapang-kapang is usually accompanied by the Sabrangan melody played loudly in fast rhytm and sometimes simultaneously wth Western blow instruments.

The main dance is performed to the tunes of a gamelan playing softly in slow rhythm melodies such as Gandrung Manis, Sinom, Semang. Gandakusuma etc. It is enlivened by a group of female singers called pesindens with their songs in specific gendhing- bedhayan style which is very suitable for the solemn occasion and the symbolic gestures of the stylized dance.

The Bedhaya is danced by a group of nine girls. In the kapang-kapang madjeng walking formation, the five tall dancers in the center are called respectively Endel, Batak, Djangga, Dada and Buntil. While the four other short dancers flanking Batak and Djangga are called respectively Apit-ngajeng and Apit-wingking, Endel Wedalan-ngajeng and Endel Wedalan-wingking.

The prima donnas of the dance are the Endel and the Batak. For example in the Bedhaya Ardjuna Wiwaha portraying the roles of Ardjuna and Dewi Supraba, the nymph, at the climax carry out an endjeran or duet dance while the other seven dancers dance on their knees at the same place around both dancers.

The nine dancers are dressed alike with a batik latar putih as parang rusak and a short sleeveless coat made from dark colored velvet. Their make-up is similar to that of the traditional Javanese bride while their bare arms and feet are covered with yellow boreh ointment. On each of their heads is a low djamang or diadem decorated with a large, white, bird feather. As an excepting, the sacred Bedhaya Ketawang and Bedhaya Semang mentioned before are dressed like traditional court brides using the very large kampuh or dodot which is about four time as large as the ordinary kain batik and like real brides do not wear the diadem.

The Bedhaya Dance already has quite a number of repertoires, but it is still enriched with new compositions which are usually much shorter than the old ones.

DANCE

2008-04-07T05:53:00.000-07:00

Dance is one of my breathing. Everyday I have to dance, because I think it's like eat. Dance and eat are very importance for me. So dance is like my life.... Dance can make health and fresh....So please do it.....

THE BALLET MUST SPEAK FOR AND ABOUT ITSELF

2008-04-07T04:57:00.001-07:00

Balanchine and Graham,the two great choreographers widely acknowledged as the titans of American dance, exemplify the purest impulses of ballet and modern dance, the two main genres of dancing art in the 20th century. Though each genre began to assume its current shape in the same era-in 1905 Isadora Duncan founded the first school of modern dance (in Berlin) and Diaghilev's Ballets Russes made their first tour of the United States in 1916-the two genres have been perceived as opposites for most of the intervening years.

Ballet,in fact, with its aristocratic conventions and elaborate code of steps, was precisely what the first modern dancers were reacting against. If ballet dancers seemed to overcome gravity with effortless leaps or pointe-work, modern dancers would be earthbound. Instead of toe shoes,bare feet. In place of an academic vocabulary of gesture that had developed over the centuries,the pioneers of modern dance would study the natural movements of their own bodies-walking,running,breathing-and develop their own systems of movement. The fierceness of their gestures,in contrast to ballet's graceful symmetries, would underline the force of their emotion.

In recent years the ancient rift between the two styles has been bridged,but not completely. If we count both ballet and modern, there are now about 250 fully professional dance companies in the United States,Most are based in New York City, but they tour widely and, in the past 20 years,new companies have been established in virtually every part of the country. This figure does not include a much larger network of dance schools,independent choreographers and small troupes struggling for recognition.

In short,dance in America is one of the most thriving of the arts,full of vitality,color and controversy and in this booklet we offer a sampling of the dazzling variety of ballet and modern dance in this country today. For the simple reason of space constraints our essayist,Anna Kisselgoff and Marcia B. Siegel,have limited themselves to writing about the most significant current developments in ballet and modern dance-that is, dance conceived as an art in itself. This does not mean that the popular side of dance culture is unimportant. Dance sequences have contributed enormously to the grace and zest that have made the broadway or the Hollywood musical renowned throughout the world;Fred Astaire's films,in particular,influenced both George Balanchine and Mikhail Baryshnikov;many of the best choreographers-Agnes de Mille,Jerome Robbins,Twila Tharp and Balanchine himself-have worked in this more commercial venues.

"Quite a Moon!": The Archetypal Feminine in Our Town

2008-04-04T09:29:00.000-07:00

Near the end of Act I in Our Town, Wilder enumerates different characters' casual reactions to the moon or moonlight,1 establishing "a mood or feeling which the audience is nearly powerless to resist" (Haberman 71). The same irresistibility characterizes the entire play, which, despite its apparent simplicity, encompasses a great ineffable force centered around the moon. To achieve a better understanding of this mysterious power, we may explore the playwright's thoughts on playwriting.

Thornton Wilder believes that "the theater is an art addressed to a group-mind," which "imposes upon [...] [the dramatist] the necessity of treating material understandable by the large number" {Intent 90-92). The meaning of this "group-mind" idea is twofold: one, it aims at the collective experience of the audience as a whole, and two, it requires a special way of presenting the play so that it will bring about a common response in the collective mind of the audience. A striking parallel exists between Wilder's "group-mind" idea and Jung's theory of collective unconscious, which is "of a collective, universal, and impersonal nature" and is "identical in all individuals" (Jung 43). The collective unconscious consists of archetypes generally represented in symbolic patterns or images, among which the moon stands out significantly in Our Town.

The archetypal moon has a long association with feminine modality.2 It was viewed as male, female or hermaphrodite in ancient mythology, folklore, and rituals around the world,' but in his essay "The Moon and Matriarchal Consciousness," Erich Neumann states that "in every case it belongs among the central symbols of the feminine" (Feminine 71-72). The positive qualities of the feminine - or the Great Mother - archetype according to Jung, include "maternal solicitude and sympathy; [...] the wisdom and spiritual exaltation that transcend reason; any helpful instinct or impulse; [· . .] [and] all that cherishes and sustains, that fosters growth and fertility" (82). The feminine thus described is very much moon-attuned, with "one of the typical equations" resting on the moon's "character of swelling up and of shrinking connected with fertility" (Neumann, Feminine 70). Apart from the cyclic phases associated with menstruation, life, and rebirth, the moon's trek across the night sky also promises creative inspiration and qualitative timing, which lead to feminine wisdom. The archetypal feminine principle as manifested by the moon finds its rich embodiment in Our Town, imbuing the play with harmonious beauty. The feminine archetype - specifically fertility and feminine wisdom - points directly to the audience's "group-mind" and contributes to the play's universal appeal.

The structure oí Our Town forms a clearly visible cycle. It begins with the act entitled "Daily Life," where the first conversation tells of "some twins born over in Polish Town" (8). The birth motif having been emphasized five times (7, 8, 9, 10, 15), the play then proceeds to show the daily life of the town, represented by the Gibbs and the Webbs: children getting up, having breakfast, going to school, returning home, and doing homework while parents guide and provide for their natural growth. With its serene mood, Act I sets the tone of praising life for the entire play. In the second act, "Love and Marriage," the stage manager takes some time commenting on the passing of time and on nature's "pushing and contriving" (30), while the audience is also presented with characters as they grow up and fall in love, fol- lowed by a ritualistic wedding ceremony. Here we see life prospering in love and marriage, but more notably, in growth. In Act III, Emily dies giving birth to her second child and subsequently relives her twelfth birthday. Her firstborn son, however, lives and he loves "spending the day" at Mr. and Mrs. Carter's (56), which signifies the continuity of life and the growth nurtured by the community in the town. Wilder does not explicitly tell us the name of this act. However, it might be appropriately called "Death and Rebirth." After she dies, Emily is physically born to life again on her twelfth birthday; and in death, Emily realizes the value of life, achieving spiritual rebirth both for herself and for the group-mind of the audience.

This birth-growth-death-rebirth cycle corresponds to the moon's phases of waxing and waning, which could be viewed as one of the most immediate experiences of fertility because of the moon's ability to reproduce and sustain life. In Our Town, the acts and scenes devised by Wilder as "moments of eternity singled out for our attention and played against the panorama of infinity" (Goldstein 102) suggest a similar feminine modality. This cycle appears more remarkable in the film version of the play where scenes of the graveyard and return to the twelfth birthday are pictured as a near-death hallucination. Confronted with death, Emily is given a chance to reflect and to attain her epiphany, after which she is born to a new realization and lives on with transformed mentality and vigor. Acknowledging this as a greater dramatization of death and rebirth.

German Photographs : Heidegger

2008-04-04T09:16:00.000-07:00

German Photographs (1724-2005) explores the relationship between the visual and the conceptual in two disparate practices: philosophy and photography. The series began with the idea of observing or envisioning the places where a lineage of German philosophers (Kant to Adorno) worked, wrote, studied, and thought. Twelve philosopher subjects have been photographed to date, in seven cities and four countries, yielding over twenty photographs in the series. What emerges is an assortment of interiors, exteriors, landscapes, and cityscapes, each inextricably linked to its ostensible subject at the intersection of place, practice, and pictures: here and not there, this but not that.

This picturing intersects another German heritage: photography. A direct line links August Sander's vast Antlitz der Zeit to the so-called Becher school, the work of which is characterized by formal rigor, objectivity, and large scale, as well as by an emphasis on the photographic series or array rather than individual shot. German Photographs (1724-2005) takes up these strategies to suitably present the subject matter (philosophy, photography) but also to scrutinize this very form (photography, philosophy). As each picture considers the specificity of place (that a particular person was there at a particular time in relation to a particular kind of practice), it also asks how such strategies affect the experience and understanding of the photograph itself.

At its core, this project is a photographic investigation at the end of an era. Digital technologies are rapidly encroaching on the traditional forms of picture-making, and the ability of photography to claim objectivity, while always suspect, is now completely untenable. In turn, the very place of discourse within our culture is in crisis, struggling against the flood of information. This project encourages the photographic and philosophical--thinking in pictures, thinking about pictures, thinking pictures.

Patrick Lakey is an artist who lives and works in Los Angeles, California. He has exhibited internationally, including solo shows at the Happy Lion, Los Angeles, and Jessica Murray Projects, New York. Lakey's most recent body of work, An Abyss of Folly, is a project based on the writings of the Marquis de Sade and was on view at the Happy Lion in the spring of 2007.

California

2008-04-04T06:20:00.000-07:00

Watercolor classes and workshops in Southern California, Hawaii, New York City and Italy for the intermediate to professional artist. Tuition varies. Non-credit. Timothy J. Clark Watercolor Workshops, P.O. Box 2728, Capistrano Beach, CA 92624, (949) 661-7135, fax (949) 493-3469, tclarkart@aol.com, www.tclarkart.com.

Year-round workshops of variable length in fine art, sculpture, textiles, ceramics, jewelry and digital arts. Tuition varies. Mendocino Art Center, 45200 Little Lake St., P.O. Box 765, Mendocino, CA 95460, (707) 937-5818, mendoart@mcn.org, www.mendocinoartcenter.org.

Duncan University will help you master Duncan Ceramic products, learning new techniques while creating projects. Certified Ambassadors with a wide range of knowledge and expertise will guide you to dazzling success. Duncan Enterprises, 5673 E. Shields Ave., Fresno, CA 93727, 800-438-6226, fax (559) 291-9444, seminar@duncanmail.com, www.duncanceramics.com.

Hawaii

Watercolor classes and workshops in Hawaii, Southern California, New York City and Italy for the intermediate to professional artist. Tuition varies. Non-credit. Timothy J. Clark Watercolor Workshops, P.O. Box 2728, Capistrano Beach, CA 92624, (949) 661-7135, fax (949) 493-3469, tclarkart@aol.com, www.tclarkart.com.

Nevada

Gorgeous location for art workshops in all the arts with famous artists: Lake Tahoe! Tuition: $240-495. Non-credit. Sierra Nevada College, 999 Tahoe Blvd., Incline Village, NV 89451, (775) 881-7588, fax (775) 832-1678, sleigh@sierranevada.edu, www.sierranevada.edu/workshops.
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Washington

The raku workshop is o yearly event featuring national raku artists in hands-on, daylong demonstrations. Lunch is provided. Tuition: $95. Non-credit. Clay Art Center, Inc., 2636 Pioneer Way East, Tacoma, WA 98404, (253) 922-5342, fax (253) 922-5349, joe@clayartcenter.net, www.clayartcenter.net.

Watercolor workshops taught by Eric Wiegardt, a graduate of the American Academy of Art who has been teaching art over 20 years nationwide. Non-credit. Wiegardt Watercolors, P.O. Box 1114, Ocean Park, WA 98640, (360) 665-5976, watercolars@ericwiegardt.com, www.ericwiegardt.com.

FOUR CORNERS

Arizona

Scottsdale Artists' School is a non-profit school located in downtown Scottsdale that offers workshops and classes for adults and children in the traditional fine arts, with o faculty of over 100 professional artists. Summer Workshops are offered in Scottsdale and at a variety of off-site locations. Tuition varies. Non-credit. Scottsdale Artists' School, 3720 N. Marshall Way, Scottsdale, AZ 85251, (480) 990-1422, fax (480) 990-0652, kduley@scottsdaleartschool.org, www.scottsdaleartschool.org.

Colorado

Various ongoing workshops are offered in all aspects of glass art: fusing, painting, jewelry and beveling. Tuition: $400. Non-credit. D&L Stained Glass Supply, Inc., 1440 W. 52nd Ave., Denver, CO 80221, (303) 449-8737, fax (303) 442-3429, info@dlstainedglass.com, www.dlstainedglass.com.

Three-day sculpting classes focusing on sculpting a head, including lectures and one-on-one instruction. Beginners and professionals welcome. June 20-22 in Loveland, Colo. July 28-Aug. 1 in Honeoye, N.Y. Tuition: $425 to $475. Philippe Faraut, P.O. Box 722, Honeoye, NY 14471, CO: (800) 260-4690, shop@sculpturedepot.net, NY: (585) 229-2976, info@pcfstudios.com, www.philippefaraut.com.

MIDWEST

Indiana

Surfaces, glazes and firing: Lots of experimenting with lowfire and cone 6 commercially manufactured glazes on tiles. Create varied textured surfaces on wet clay. Discuss firing procedures and appropriate variations in controllers for electric kilns. July 28-August 2. College credit possible. University of Indianapolis, contact art office: (317) 788-3253.

American Art Clay Co., Inc. (AMACO) offers numerous workshops across the United Slates throughout the year featuring well-known ceramic artists. Topics include: Low Fire Clays and Glazes; Surface and Design; Image Transfer Techniques; Decals for Ceramics, Glass and Enamel. Tuition varies. Some offer college credit. AMACO, 6060 Guion Rd., Indianapolis, IN 46254, (800) 374-1600, fax (317) 248-9300, talktous@amaco.com, www.amaco.com.

Minnesota

Split Rock Arts Program at University of Minnesota presents summer workshops in visual art and design. Study with renowned artists and designers. University of Minnesota, (612) 625-8100, splitrockarts@umn.edu, www.cce.umn.edu/splitrock2008.

Wisconsin

Fine-art workshops with some of the finest instructors in the United States! See our schedule online at www.richesonart.com. Tuition varies. Richeson School of Art & Gallery, 557 Marcella St., Kimberly, WI 54136, (800) 233-2404, artschool@richesonart.com, www.richesonart.com.

Dillman's offers a variety of art workshops May through October at its Dillman's Bay Resort facility. Nationally known instructors with state-of-the-art studios. Tuition varies. Dillman's Creative Arts Foundation, 13277 Dillman's Way, P.O. Box 98, Lac du Flambeau, WI 54538, (715) 588-3143, fax (715) 588-3110, wwv.dillmans.com.

Art's in the kitchen

2008-04-04T05:48:00.000-07:00

Inspired by Untitled (Five-bladed Saw) from artist Jim Dine's Untitled Tool Series (1973), I gave my students an assignment "in the manner of" so they too could give a sense of monumentality and awe-inspiring presence to an object that is considered ordinary, and ordinarily overlooked for its lack of presence.

We often take for granted the myriad objects drawn, designed and created to be functional and of use to us in our daily lives. This was the focus for this particular assignment: to allow these "taken for granted" objects of ease to be recognized for their beauty and value to us.

Dine often used a contour line drawing to get the shape of an object on paper. We also used this technique, discussing how we could take a seemingly simple kitchen utensil and give it a real sense of importance through our skills.

We took into consideration the placement of the object on the page, as well as the direction the object appeared to be coming toward us; both decisions were important compositional concerns.

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We were also concerned with using our foreshortening skills so that the utensil appeared to be projected toward the viewer, thereby giving us an immediate response to the object. This was very difficult for

the majority of the students because they followed my directions in choosing interesting and unique objects found in the kitchen!