Global Impact on the Survival of Wayang Kulit ... - Siew Lian Lim

as landfill. They speak of restoring balance between all beings by using thread as a bridge
between cultures and melding together the cowgirl and the stallion mind into one. Thus my
work, like that of Yaacob, Dono, and Nugroho, represents the best that cultural globalism has to
offer Wayang Kulit. It crosses boundaries.
Conclusions
The purpose of this study was to examine the prognosis for shadow puppetry's survival,
particularly that of Malaysian Wayang Kulit, in the face of increasing cultural globalization.
Through interviews with four practicing dalang it examined their background and influences to
address questions as to whether Malaysian Wayang Kulit is indeed facing extinction, how global
culture has impacted its survival, and what is being done to promote its survival and growth.
Two of the four dalang saw Malaysian Wayang Kulit as threatened by modern forms of
entertainment promoted by globalization and two did not, but rather have incorporated modern
entertainment in their performances. The other threat identified was the lack of training for a
future generation to carry on the Wayang Kulit tradition, and solutions included offering training
in universities, schools, and other learning centers, and by training foreign students so they can
take Wayang Kulit back to their homeland. Media research in Malaysia and subsequent
literature search on Indonesian Wayang Kulit found this tradition to be represented in forms
other than the traditional shadow theater. All of this represents globalization. Even a pure
preservationist like Eddin Khoo, when he led a collaborative effort to perform Wayang Kulit,
performed a story by Shakespeare. All of these represent globalization. To simplify the research
questions, one is whether Wayang Kulit in Malaysia dying. The answer is no. The other
question is whether this is due to globalization, the answer is that globalization is not the
destroyer but the potential savior of Wayang Kulit.
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