Shadow theatre in Java: The puppets, performance, and repertoire

by Alit Veldhuisen-Djajasoebrata

Hardback book with dust jacket titled SHADOW THEATRE IN Puppets, Performanc and Repertoire by Alit Djajasoebrata. Published by The Pepin Press in 1999. See my photographs (7) of this book on main listing page. Bookseller snce 1995. (LL-Base2-D-2) rareviewbooks

Genres: Art

152 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 1999

Reviews

[S'hi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shadow Theatre is a fascinating journey across time and place with the interweaving music, story, culture and puppetry of Java. Influenced by China, India and Islam the essentially Hindu stories depicted also retain some of their animalistic and pagan origins. The artistry of the dalangs (storytellers) is present within this book as much as the artistry of the puppet-makers.
One rather quirky characteristic of the seemingly anarchic style of traditional performances occurs in the tendency within the book to include captions for images that are just as long and involved in their stories as the main body of the work. This adds an authenticity that scholarship alone could not create. It fits well with the humour and side comments of the panakawan, the servants that bring the ordinary into the tales in similar ways to those characters in Shakespearean plays.
A delightful read, that I wish I had made before my journey to Bali for a friend’s wedding.