Wayang Kontemporer: Innovations in Javanese Wayang Kulit

Abstract

In this dissertation I analyze new developments in Javanese wayang kontemporer ? contemporary wayang kulit. This dissertation has three objectives: to analyze new formal and thematic developments in wayang, to interpret what these developments say about sociocultural life in Java and to reflexively develop a digital interface to communicate the outputs of the research process. This interface is a combination of interactive diagrams, texts and audiovisual materials. The method used is described as an essayistic ontology, a combination of formal and interpretive methods. As such, this dissertation aims to combine theatre studies and digital humanities methodologies. In the dissertation I concentrate on 24 performances and argue that their most distinctive feature is their variety: the performances represent a compendium of creative possibilities and of positions towards sociocultural change in Java.