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INTERMINGLING OF CONTINUITY AND DISCONTINUITY57of the PKJT project; I focused people’s eyes on the fullversions of the court dances. Ordinary people couldbe enchanted by these full versions if performers wereskilled and well rehearsed, and the performance waspresented in full seriousness. The audience did not onlysee the physical, superficial beauty of the dancers butperceived their inner beauty, elegant movements andmeditative atmosphere, which moreover called Javaneseculture and history to mind throughout the wholeexpression.There were also a number of effects on the performers:(1) the dancers and musicians became more absorbedin their performance of the full version as time wentby, which created a meditative atmosphere; (2) theclassical tempo of the music was comfortable for theperformers (as well as the audience) because it was anatural tempo for breathing; (3) each mature dancerwas free to express her own wiletan, unlike in the PKJTstyle, which strictly demanded that dancers move in asynchronized way. Through this freedom of expression,the performers could feel satisfaction in completing anhour-long performance as if it were a ritual ceremony.In this way, both the performers and the audienceexperienced another dimension of time and space andderived a kind of satisfaction that could not be attainedthrough performing or watching performances of thecontracted as well as the transformed versions of courtdances.Court dances in their full versions, therefore, stillcontain much potential under current circumstances.Nevertheless, there are few dancers or organizationsthat are aware of them in Surakarta. Some dancers feelit is difficult to leave behind the customs that wereimplanted during the PKJT era.Generally speaking, the performing arts in Indonesiahave developed under the art policies of the governmentin relation to tourism or to the creation of a nationalculture. They have, therefore, been developed for urgent,practical use. PKJT was also started under the art policyof the government in the 1970s, and Humardani’sinnovations were suitable under that policy. It is truethat the pemadatan of the Srimpi or Bedhaya dancesexpanded the range of traditional dances. However, itis also true that the idea, fixed since the PKJT period,that the Srimpi or Bedhaya dances in their full versionsare too long and boring has prevented the public fromappreciating higher arts or admiring their own cultureand history.Artistic values can be limited or changed accordingto social and cultural contexts, such as customs,preconceptions, government art policies or influencesfrom foreign countries and so on. It would be effectivefor cultural communities to revalue and spontaneouslyreconsider the results of former art projects in searchof their own roots, historical memory and culturalidentity.NOTES1A kind of Javanese court dance performed by four females.2A kind of Javanese court dance performed by nine females.3See Rustopo 1990, Chapter IV, on the PKJT- ASKI andthe role of Gendhon Humardani.4 He was a younger brother of Sudjono Humardani, a privateassistant to President Suharto.5See http://www.isi-ska.ac.id/sejarah/sejarah.htm.6Humardani himself used the term corps de ballet to meangroup dancing in Javanese dance (Humardani 1970).7 R. Supanggah, the head of the Graduate School of theISI Surakarta, criticized Humardani’s pupils on theirpassiveness and lack of initiative (Supanggah 2003).8Martopangrawit could gather ten Srimpi and ten Bedhayamusic compositions (Martopangrawit 1976), but most ofthe Bedhaya choreographies were out of use at that time,according to Sri Sutjiati Djoko Soehardjo.9The PKJT project was ended with the foundation of theTBJT in 1983. The TBJT supports arts innovation andcreation so that it is sometimes regarded as standing apartfrom ordinary people.10 Here we do not take the Bedhaya Ketawang intoconsideration, which is still the monopoly of the SurakartaCourt for its coronation anniversary. Martopangrawit(1976) does not include this in his publications.11 Ketan Biru and Nasi Uduk.12The Republic of Indonesia commemorates its independenceday every 17 th of August.REFERENCESHumardani, Gendhon. “Menonton Ballet di Covent Garden1961 kesan-kesan.” 1961. Gendhon Humardani Pemikiran &Asian Transformations in ActionThe Work of the 2006/2007 API Fellows