BEIJING, July 22 -- An Indonesian shadow puppeteer has taken up performing the traditional Javanese show in English. He is targeting a wider audience, in his effort to keep the culture alive and flourishing among the younger generation.
The Indonesian shadow puppet tradition goes back about 500 years. Local audiences have turned out for half a millennium to performances that are rich in music, color, light and shadows.
Shadow puppeteer Yogyakarta hopes to spread the art across cultures, entertaining people from all over the globe. So, he's translated his shows into English, to bring a whole new audience to his performances.
For Ki Sigit Sabdo Prijino, shadow puppeteering is a career. It is his livelihood. But "wayang", as it is locally known, is more than that. It's a grand old tradition whose light grows dim in the glare of television, cinema, video games and online entertainment.
In 2003, wayang earned the UNESCO designation: "Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity." Prijino believes that if performances earn the appreciation of foreigners, the tradition will gain a new lease on life.
Deftly moving his fingers behind the white screen, Prijino enchants his new English-speaking audience. His large array of puppets cast their shadows across the canvas as music is played on traditional musical instruments.
Prijino first performed in English in the United States at the State University of Michigan. He's been a lecturer there since 2003.
Prijino says increasing numbers of American students attend his classes. So he feels confident that interest in wayang is growing in the U.S..
The way he sees it by translating the traditional tales into English, Prijino hopes to bring the age-old wayang tradition out from the shadows.
(Source: CCTV.com)
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