Wayang shadow theatre In Bali Part 21

first performed in the early 1980s, is a good example of how this can be used to innovate. It is basically a fairy tale that features a smart girl, Tantri, who tells 1,001 stories within stories about clever animals she works with in order to prevent the king from seducing her. Completely new styles of puppets have been developed for these stories, often influenced by ideas from overseas. Unlike a traditional puppet, where a single stick fuses legs, upper body and head, in these puppets the tip of the main body stick is attached to the puppet’s temple and loosely bonded to the foot, freeing the body and head. This allows the dalang to manipulate the puppet in several ways; moving its foot up and down affects the body, hip and head; pulling a string attached to the head allows for head movements; pulling the string attached to the foot creates kicks; pulling the string attached to the jaw makes the puppet appear to speak. It may be done section by section or simultaneously depending on the desired effect. Many of the animals’ ears, wings, rumps, heads and body parts can move. Other new puppet creations have mushroomed in the last 20 years, helping to feed elements of modernity and energy, especially within new stories or genres. Some dalang have created puppets that have also expanded the traditional method of manipulation.

These include a puppet riding a bicycle manipulated by batteries, string, cable and rods; a puppet that can be transformed from a human to a witch by pulling a string and another by turning the three-dimensional body; and corpse carriers with moving hands and feet. As in so much Balinese art, little resistance to change exists as long as it sits side by side with tradition and does not attempt to replace it. The experimentation is based mainly in new genres and the dalang perform the traditional work one night and the experimental another. This model of change and preservation is at the heart of the extraordinary dynamic behind Balinese performance. However, in the villages, the more traditional forms of presentation are almost always preferred. The only real exception to this is one young dalang who has recently become much sought after and includes a number of Westernised technical effects and innovative and humorous approaches to storytelling. One of his productions is looked at in detail later in this chapter.

In general, scenery in Wayang theatre is traditionally minimal. Two large demonic, multi-headed puppets frame the screen. The ‘one thousand eyes Butha Siu or Wisnumurti is always placed on the right side of the screen, while the ‘nine eyes’ Butha Sia or Ludramurti stands up on the left side. The dalang set their very first scene and define their performing area by planting these two puppets in the correct position. Except when these butha serve as characters, these puppets remain on their respective side of the acting area from the beginning until the end of the show. As a character, puppet Butha Siu is used to visualise the power of several good characters, while Butha Sia represents the power of many evil characters. Consequently, the puppets Butha Siu and Butha Sia symbolise the two opposing forces, rwa bhineda, on the right and the left side, respectively. The slightly smaller kayonan or Tree of Life puppet represents other scenic images in a flexible manner. In addition to beginning a Wayang performance, it is used to shift one scene to another and to end a performance. This oval-shaped puppet often represents water, fire, wind, ocean, cloud, earth, forest, tree, house, etc. It is set within the acting area without changing the first basic framing of Bhuta Siu and Butha Sia. When manipulated in different specific ways, the kayonan can also represent a great variety of other images. As it is manipulated, the oil lamp that creates the shadow is partly covered with a petal of banana’s log to enhance the dramatic atmosphere. Western performance storytelling traditions have no equivalent to this single object that can have so many symbolic uses and meanings. It is typical of the economy and flexibility of all Balinese approaches to staging devices and objects in general.