Shadow play
(Wayang Kulit shadow play: Bali, Indonesia)
I wish I could have taken a better photograph of this, but it was difficult in the low light, and without disturbing all the other spectators. Sometimes the memory is much richer without using a camera – but then I wouldn’t be able to show you what I’ve seen. Ying and I watched a shadow play in Ubud, traditionally called Wayang Kulit. It was quite the eye opener. I don’t think we witnessed the upper extent of Wayang Kulit puppeteer ability, but the show was diverting enough. The puppets never seemed to be quite in focus all over, as if a part of them was being pressed against the sheet and the rest was hovering hazily behind it, just out of reach.
That aside, the more positive aspects were that what it possibly lacked in polished delivery, it made up for in entertainment value; the characters were all very vividly different, both in their physical design and their actions. The play we saw was a traditional story that must have been adapted somewhat, or at least that’s what we supposed each time one of the characters broke wind onto each other. There was a bit of that. There was a lot more guttural laughing going on though; it seemed as if each male character enjoyed a good chortle and the performers kept up a ricocheting conversation of laughs between the puppets for the entire show. Small sections were repeated in English (as the play was in Indonesian) There was a white monkey character who spoke to his minions in ‘monkey language’. It turns out that Balinese monkey language sounds exactly like Disney’s Donald Duck talking. At first, this was slightly confusing as to us as after all, monkeys don’t sound like ducks, but then, Indonesian doesn’t sound like English, so we adapted our ears.
The laughing, flatulence, quacking and general ducking and diving was accompanied by frenzied instruments behind the screen. We never saw our puppeteers, nor the musicians who were tucked away at all times. The sounds were a cacophony of janglings and the harsh tapping of wood on wood – the tapping kept a beat, but was also used to denote footsteps or the clash of swordplay and so on. It was a new and exciting experience unlike anything I’ve ever seen. The shadow puppets reminded me of a leather cut I found in Thailand. I might have succumbed to a puppet to bring home, but Ying was stringent on shopping time in Bali. In light of that, I bought some amusing titbits in Singapore that I will be showcasing… perhaps tomorrow.
It’s amazing how much housework requires attention after just two weeks away – I spent the entire day cleaning and tidying after a surprisingly respectable lie in. Now that my sunburn has ceased peeling and my mosquito bites hardly itch anymore, I feel more and more that I am firmly back on a soggy island in the north atlantic. I wore three jumpers yesterday to keep out the cold that I will have to acclimatise back to. However, it is pleasant to be back at home and to settle back into a semblance of normality, refreshed by another Asian excursion.
– Today Rosie is drawing and spending time with family in Glasgow, Scotland –
