Putu Evie Suyadnyani: Dance Teacher and Impresario
Putu Evie Suyadnyani was born in Denpasar and brought up
in Sindhu, a banjar near the beach in Sanur, southern Bali.
She began studying Balinese dance at age three. Putu founded
the dance side of Mekar Bhuana - an association dedicated
to the preservation of classical Balinese gamelan and dance
- in 2002. She is currently the director of the association.
What is the most vivid memory of your childhood?
My first performance was at a hotel in Sanur when I was just
four years old. I was so small that they had to lift me up
onto the stage and I remember finding it difficult to move
in the costume that was wrapped too tightly around me!
What kind of work are you involved in with Mekar Bhuana?
Trying to help preserve and conserve rare Balinese performing
art forms so that a younger generation of musicians and dancers
can learn how to appreciate and perform these gracious old
styles.
When and how was Mekar Bhuana founded?
The music side of the association was founded in the year
2000 by my husband, Vaughan Hatch. He came to Bali on a scholarship
to study Balinese gamelan and also carried out personal research
on court styles such as semara pagulingan and pelegongan in
villages across Bali.
What inspired you to start this traditional dance company?
I’ve liked classical Balinese dance since I was very
young, but when I met my husband who is so passionate about
gamelan music and dance I became even more inspired to learn
and save the old styles. I learn a lot about the dying traditions
through joining my husband in his research -interviewing and
meeting elderly music and dance teachers.
What is unique about the types of dances and music that Mekar
Bhuana produces?
The styles we perform are based on intensive and detailed
research of the old village styles, many of which are not
documented or readily available on recordings. Every part
of the performance is recreated as if it were being performed
a century ago.
What is the rarest Balinese dance form that Mekar Bhuana performs?
Legong jobog and legong kuntul are some of our more unusual,
difficult and rarely seen dance forms.
Where do you find the original versions of the rare dance
and music forms that you present?
We discover old gamelan compositions on recordings that are
only available in overseas archives. For the most part, these
have been recorded by foreigners in the early to mid 20th
century. I personally learn old dance styles with older teachers
and then pass them on to our young dancers.
Where do you find the teachers and instructors?
By getting out into the villages and asking around. Also by
word of mouth and by watching performances at events like
the Bali Arts Festival.
How has the choreography survived? How do you know it is correct
and authentic?
Each teacher also had his or her own style, so it’s
difficult to know how many styles have died out. There were
probably a lot more dancers in the old days.
Have there been many Balinese dance forms that have died out?
Why?
Certain legong dances like Legong Raja Cina, for example,
have died out. There were originally up to 17 different themes
for legong dances but now it is rare for a group to know more
than five or six.
What venues does Mekar Bhuana usually perform in?
We perform in a variety of settings - festivals, hotels, villas,
private homes and of course in temples.
What occasions do you perform for?
For weddings, private parties, dinners, events, incentive
programs, festivals, and both private and community temple
ceremonies.
What is the usual audience response to such old types of entertainment?
Often people come up to us after a performance and enthusiastically
ask us questions about the gamelan and the dances. Our interactive
feature really excites them because they can not experience
this anywhere else in Bali.
Do you receive any outside help from private donors, cultural
institutions, government agencies or NGOs to support your
efforts?
None so far because we’ve probably not had enough exposure
yet. That is why we decided to try to work with a local hotel
to do regular performances so people can find out who we are.
We have had some very kind support from Wiracana Kipas who
paid for our crews t-shirts. Mama & Leon fashion house
sponsorship allowed us to purchase costumes for the musicians,
and we’ve also received financial support Yayasan Pembangunan
Sanur. Interested friends have bought our t-shirts and books,
which of course directly helps our association. We’ve
applied for funding from a number of different organizations,
including the government and the Ford Foundation, but so far
we’ve had no luck. What we really need is a major sponsor
or patron who can support our projects and promote us on a
much larger scale.
What is Mekar Bhuana currently involved in?
In August we started staging regular performances at the Mercure
Resort Sanur. These are full-length performances accompanied
by a complete orchestra. The hotel has generously let us use
their venue for a practice and performance space. We will
have weekly practices there and performances will be put on
every second Monday night. Tickets are available at outlets
around Sanur.
Where can one learn more about Mekar Bhuana?
Come and visit us at Jl. Penyaringan 42 in Sanur
or check out our homepage:
www.balimusicanddance.com. For more info people may
also contact Evie at 8427030, 0818560910
or by email:
info@balimusicanddance.com
