Indonesian Shadow Puppets

Shadow puppetry began thousands of years ago

and is still used to convey folk tales and legends of the past. Many shadow puppetry performances have been developed around themes from

Chinese operas and often take the form of religious epics in which good and

evil do battle.

The Dalang

The dalang manipulates the puppets, sings and taps out signals to the orchestra. He also speaks the parts for all characters; he must be able to render the shy

sweetness in the voice of a princess, the spiteful whine of a lackey and the righteous but controlled anger of a

noble hero.

Dalang are also social commentators. Traditionally when a traveling Dalang arrives at a place where he is to perform, he will make a study of what is on people minds. That may, for example, be government measures which people find

hard to accept. During the performance, the Dalang will use the pànàkawan, the servants who make humorous

comments, to voice criticism which the audience will relate to. According to tradition, a Dalang cannot be held

responsible for what is said in his performance. In feudal society one of the Dalang's main roles was to be a

mouthpiece for the people. His ritual immunity protected him.However most of the time the Dalangs were diplomatic in the way they said things, which is how most ofJavanese

people behave.

Not everyone can be a dalang. A Dalang is a most extraordinary man. First of all, he is a public

entertainer. To amuse a great number of people is not an easy matter. He must be physically strong and

healthy, otherwise he would not be able to stand the strain. Just imagine, he is seated cross-legged for nine

successive hours. He cannot even have a wink of sleep. He cannot get up from his seat until six o'clock

the next morning. He also has to strike thekechrek (rattle) with his right foot almost

incessantly. He handles the puppets with both hands, imitates their different voices, tell jokes at the right

times, and even sings every now and then. In addition, he controls the musicians without anyone among the

audience ever noticing it.

In Indonesian shadow puppetry, the puppet master controls the puppets from behind a cotton screen that is illuminated by an oil or halogen lamp to create an effect that can be

likened to animation. The puppets are animated through the movement of hands and

the most skilled puppeteers can effectively show their puppets to be walking, dancing,

fighting, nodding and laughing.

Leather was used to make flat, traditional shadow puppets and particular areas within the puppet were punched out with a sharp knife to signify

facial features and clothing. These puppets were created from individual pieces and connected using

wire or string. Long rods were used to maneuver the puppets from behind a translucent white screen

made from cloth or paper. The audience would have seen the moving shadows of the puppets, the

cut out areas of which allowed the light to shine

through.

Shadow puppets todayA wide range of materials, including wood, paper,

plastic, cloth, plants, silk, utensils and feathers are used to create the shadow puppets used

today. Typically, these contemporary puppets are made with three dimensional wire heads and

bodies made of cloth.Special lighting effects are often used, including

different pieces of lighting technology used in theatres, projectors, reflected light and hand held

lights.

Making Your Shadow Puppet

• Decide on a Character for your puppet.• Design what it will look like with cutouts

and moving parts.• Create a pattern to use for cutting.• Cut and color puppet.• Add rods to moving parts.• With your group create a short play with

your characters that you will present to the class.