{"id":100,"date":"2017-10-02T16:10:21","date_gmt":"2017-10-02T13:10:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/disco.teak.fi\/asia\/?p=100"},"modified":"2026-05-15T09:33:29","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T06:33:29","slug":"central-javanese-court-dances","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/disco.teak.fi\/asia\/central-javanese-court-dances\/","title":{"rendered":"Central Javanese Court Dances"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Many ceremonial court dances developed in the kraton<\/em> palaces of Java. They include ceremonial group dances of male dancers reflecting the influence of ancient martial arts. The most famous are the beksa<\/em> dances of the kraton<\/em> of Yogyakarta. They were originally performed by two groups of soldiers of the royal guard, depicting scenes of warfare with a strong military spirit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The most valued court dances of are bedhaya<\/em> and serimpi.<\/em> They are both slow, restrained group dances performed by women to the accompaniment of choral singing and gamelan music, and their traditions are especially linked to the kraton <\/em>of Yogyakarta and Surakarta in Central Java.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bedhaya<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Procession of noble bedhaya<\/em> dancers in the kraton<\/em> of Yogyakarta in the early 20th century Kraton of Yogyakarta<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Bedhaya,<\/em> laden with deep symbolic or even religious meaning and usually performed by nine dancers, is, along with its many variations, the most sacred of all Javanese court dances. Performances and even rehearsals are restricted to certain places and times. It is usually performed at major court festivities, such as coronations or the sultan\u2019s birthday. The oldest existing form is the bedhaya ketawang<\/em>, commemorating the bond between Senapati, the first sultan of Mataram (1584\u20131601) and the mythical Queen of the Southern Sea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Court dancers rehearsing bedhaya<\/em> in front of the Golden Hall in the kraton<\/em> of Yogyakarta in the 1980s Jukka O. Miettinen<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It is still preserved as a pusaka,<\/em> or royal heirloom, in the kraton <\/em>of Surakarta, and is regularly performed at the kraton <\/em>of Mangkunegara. Along with the three forms of bedhaya<\/em> inherited from the ancient Kingdom of Mataram, there are several other bedhaya <\/em>compositions, most of which were created between the mid-eighteenth century and the middle of the 20th<\/sup> century. Although the bedhaya<\/em> is basically a monopoly of the kraton,<\/em> often created by the sultans themselves, it could also be staged by high officials in its less sacred forms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Bedhay<\/em> performed in Yogyakarta Jukka O. Miettinen<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Bedhaya<\/em> performed in Yogyakarta Jukka O. Miettinen<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The bedhaya <\/em>is an extremely slow and solemn dance. The dancers arrive on the scene in an orderly geometric procession formation, carrying the hems of their batik sarongs. Majestic, almost martial, music accompanies them to the scene of the performance, usually a pendopo<\/em> hall open at the sides, a typical feature of kraton <\/em>architecture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Bedhaya<\/em> performed in Yogyakarta Jukka O. Miettinen<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The dancers then kneel down in respect before beginning the actual dance. The footwork is relatively simple, but the grouping of the dancers changes almost unnoticeably, creating ever-newer and increasingly intricate patterns, like pieces on a chessboard. The face is kept strictly expressionless, and the eyes look down, while the dancers undulate to the gamelan music in a continuous flow of movement like underwater plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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