Contemporary Shadows: Symbol, Space and Agent in Wayang Kulit Gaya YogyaKarta

In contrast to most of the shadow theaters in Southeast Asia, which show mainly just the aspect of entertainment, Indonesia’s Wayang contains a mythical order and a symbolic social relationship. As Wayang is closely associated with life through its stories and symbols, it has played the pivotal role of conveying philosophies and morality to the people. In this thesis, the onstage performance that is examined is not limited only to Wayang. Focusing on the dalang as an agent who connects and weaves the story/image of Wayang, an attempt was made to describe and analyze the aesthetic features that comprise Wayang’s artistic grammar in a cultural context as well as in the cultural industry of painting.In the process of Wayang performance, the openness of the text and the improvisation of the dalang make room for variations on Wayang’s aesthetic grammar. They also shed light on the contested field in which the dalang shows its identity and unique style. As for the way that the dalang performs Wayang, Pakem and Carangan play certain variations in the context of Alus and Kasar. The destruction of the Mimesis and the rise of the clown character show the most dramatic elements of Wayang’s transformation in a modernized flow. Gunungan, which serves as a core symbol that leads the Wayang sequence, takes off its veil and reveals its real character. Punakawan, which has assumed a peripheral role, comes into the scene as a major character, with the people’s voices.Wayang has assumed a contemporary form and style due to the decline of the traditional systems of patronage and training. PEPADI and SENAWANGI stimulate the formation of modern professional associations at the local, national, and international levels. The UNESCO proclamation of Wayang as a ‘Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity’ constitutes an international recognition of the cultural value of traditional puppetry. With the emergence of new forms of media and technology, Wayang crosses the border of Java and Indonesia. Instead of becoming marginalized in the process of modernization, it has become an object of cultural exchange and an iconic symbol. Wayang, which incorporates a way of thinking and a system of morality in the form of magical representation and as an iconic symbol, has been transformed and is currently being performed under ‘contemporary shadows’.