On 7th of October, our lecturer has brought us to the National Museum.The purpose of lecturer is want us to dig some special story inside the National Museum.
So, I have chosen Shadow Play as my story.
Below are the examples of Shadow Play:
Pictures of Shadow Play
Malay's Shadow Play
Chinese's Shadow Play
All of this are the examples of Shadow Play.
What is Shadow Play? This is the question that most of the youngster nowadays will ask as they seldom or never seen this thing before due to televison or internet has taken over it's role.
Basically, shadow play is a technique of using shadows to tell story. In other word, shadow play also known as shadow puppetry or shadowgraph. It is actually is an ancient form of storytelling and cultural entertainment that brings together the playfulness of a puppet show, and the elusive quality and charming simplicity of a shadow play.
In Malaysia, shadow play is well known as wayang kulit. In Malay, "wayang" means shadow, whereas "kulit" means or skin. Wayang kulit is a popular shadow play show in the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia, especially in Kelantan and Terengganu, and also in Johor. The origin of the theatre is still remained a mistery, but it was brought to Malaya hundreds of years ago.
Wayang kulit is a very unique theatre form employ the principle of light and shadow to bring to life its characters, depicted by intricately carved puppets. The flat two-dimensional puppets are carved, then painted, by hand out of cow or buffalo hide.When held up behind a piece of white cloth, with an electric bulb or an oil lamp as the light source, shadows are cast on the screen. They are usually associated with conventional music.
The women is painting the puppet
Each puppet, a stylised exaggeration of the human shape, is given a distinctive appearance and not unlike its string puppet cousins, has jointed "arms". There may be as many as 40 puppet characters, all with different traits and mannerisms, in a performance.
The stories presented are usually mythical and morality tales. Good characters will appear on the right side of the stage while evil characters, on the left. Moral values are easier to absorb in the form of parables, which is why wayang kulit flourished in the kampungs.
Behind the scene, there is one man responsible to control all the puppets who known as Tok Dalang. Tok Dalang is the genius behind the entire performance. Not everyone can be a dalang or puppet master. It takes skill to handle the puppets with both hands, provide each puppet with a distinguishable voice, sing and tap the kechrek (rattle) with one's foot to signal the musicians.
This is the conductor-Tok Dalang
The Malay culture is a confluence of cultures, as such the wayang kulit not only depicts scenes from the Hindu epics such as the Ramayana and the Mahabhrata, but also merges Kelantanese folklore with elements from the Ramayana. Usually, the Tok Dalang begins by introducing the main characters; first the puppet storyteller, followed by Maharaja Wana (Rawana), Sri Rama (Rama), Siti Dewa (Sita), the Laksamana and the court jesters, Pak Dogol and Wak Long.
Then he tells the story by moderating his voice, and controlling the varied movements, to suit each and every character. For instance, the gruff-voiced demon king Maharaja Wana moves erratically and aggressively, while the court jesters scratch their heads and speak in shrill voices.
The shadow play is invariably accompanied by a gamelan orchestra, one that consists of about 10 to 30 musicians.
This is the gamelan orchestra
Traditionally, the Wayang Kulit is staged during religious festivals and important occasions, such as weddings, births and circumcision. Primarily, it was taken as an entertainment medium. However, it also served to impart moral values, as well as to pass down folklore and historical tales.
Like many other art forms in Malaysia, it was believed to have strong ties to the spirit world. It used to be customary to make food offerings to the spirits during and after a performance, but this practice is now frowned upon.
In fact, in 1990, when the conservative political party Parti SeIslam Malaysia (PAS) came into power in Kelantan, the staging of Wayang Kulit was prohibited altogether, for its un-Islamic elements.
However, the practitioners of this dying art form have adapted, ensuring its continuous survival. Today, a new brand of Wayang Kulit has emerged. Instead of the traditional tale of Hikayat Sri Rama - the Malay adaptation of the Hindu epic Ramayana - the stories now are based on local folklore, history, popular comedies, current issues and secular tales.
Even the traditional forms of the puppets have evolved. The new puppets can take up any role unlike the original puppets which are fixed characters. Also, modern elements such as buildings and cars have been incorporated.
To keep up with the times, today's Tok Dalangs do not only use the Kelantanese dialect but also mainstream Bahasa Malaysia, a few English words, the occasional Bollywood song, and even familiar tunes from TV serials to spice up their performance. The best thing is they always improvise as they perform, so audiences don't get a fixed dialogue or narration with every show.
All their efforts have not gone to waste. The "modernisation" of the Wayang Kulit has since changed the minds of the Kelantan State Government which has since lifted the ban. The art form is slowly picking up again but whether it would achieve the same kind of recognition as in days gone by remains to be seen.
