Wedono Cermo Gupito: Playing with shadows

Yuliantoro , Contributor , Yogyakarta | Tue, 04/06/2010 8:17 AM | People


There is much more to shadow puppetry than the eye can see. It entertains, educates in matters of manners and etiquette, and establishes morality and ethics in the life of society, says Wedono Cermo Gupito who has devoted his whole life to this art form.
“To be a puppeteer is to have a noble profession… The entertainment and performances provided can make people live true, good, happy and peaceful lives,” says Wedono Cermo Gupito, an abdi dalem (high-ranking court servant) at the Yogyakarta Palace.
As a maestro in the world of puppetry, Gupito’s (aka Basiroen Hadisumarta) fame has spread locally and overseas. Known as a puppetry art adviser and performer of the art of puppetry, Gupito’s passion for puppetry lives on through hundreds of his former students — whether they are workers, pedicab drivers, civil servants and even professors — in the Netherlands, Australia, Japan and as far as Hawaii.
Among them is Professor Roger Long, a cultural researcher at the University of Hawaii.
You can’t bargain with Gupito’s high-quality wayang performances, known as pakeliran.
His mission is to always be firm, and he emphasizes this to all his students when they are performing wayang. Taking pakeliran seriously gives the performances high artistic value.
As a puppeteer, Gupito stages not only performances for marriage ceremonies, Proclamation Day events, radio and TV, but also for ruwatan ceremonies. These ceremonies are believed to get rid of bad luck, suffering and disasters from villages and communities.
As a puppeteer, Gupito has also entertained tourists at the Yogyakarta Palace. He encourages an appreciation of puppetry art among elementary school students, and has held puppet exhibitions in Yogyakarta and Jakarta.
This man is nothing short of extraordinary. At the age of 85, Gupito now drags his feet when he walks, his voice is rather faint and his hearing is also fading, along with his memory. But he also remains a loyal teacher at the school of shadow puppetry, known as Pamulangan Dalang Habirandha, at the Pracimasana Palace in Yogyakarta — even though he is elderly and does not go to the school to teach.
“The students now come to my house because I’m no longer physically strong enough to go there,” said Gupito.
Gupito was born in Yogyakarta on Feb. 23, 1925, with the name Basiroen Hadisumarta. Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono IX, later named him Wedono Cermo Gupito, as one of the original Yogyakarta Palace pupeteers.
Gupito took courses in leather puppetry, dance and karawitan (gamelan music and singing accompanied by gamelan), between 1949 and 1950. He loved performing wayang as a child, taking cues from his grandfather who was also a puppeteer.
He gained further knowledge about the art of puppetry by taking classes at Habirandha between 1952 and 1954.
Gupito’s career as a puppeteer began when he was just 13. At the time, he was at the Sampoerna Rakyat School. A farewell event was being held to close the school year, and this was where he first demonstrated his abilities in a public puppet performance.
“I became a master puppeteer because I proved I was able to do it.”
Among puppeteers, Gupito is renowned for his special ability in sabet (dramatic action), and skills in moving puppets. Apart from his ability to perform with puppets, Gupito also likes dancing and painting carved puppets.
As a puppeteer, Gupito has not only performed Wayang in his hometown of Yogyakarta, but also other cities including Ponorogo, Nganjuk, Kediri, Rembang, Magelang and Kroya.
He has also staged puppet shows in several countries including the Netherlands, Hawaii and the Philippines. Apart from teaching at the school of puppetry, Gupito has also been diligently writing books related to the art.
So far he has published a stenciled edition of the Jawi Jarwa Dictionary for students (1970); the Theory of Cepengan Sabetan Wayang Kulit (1980) and the Pakem Pedalangan Yogyakarta Volume 1 (1977).
The books he wrote with RM Mudjanatistomo and RL Radyomardowo, which were published by the Habirandha Foundation in 1977, have become handbooks used by all students of puppetry at Habirandha.
Apart from holding lessons at his alma mater, Habirandha, Gupito trained several American students between 1966 and 1969, and was active as a member of Indonesian Puppet Master’s Association (PEPADI).
Dozens of awards on display in his living room include awards from former presidents Soeharto and B.J. Habibie, the Culture and Tourism Ministry and various foreign cultural institutions.
Gupito now lives modestly in a five-by-six square meter house in Kampung Cokrodiningratan, Yogyakarta, and has 28 grandchildren.
Gupito’s skills as a puppeteer have been passed down to two of his children — Bambang Riyanto (Senowangi Foundation Jakarta) and Budi Cahyono (Habirandha teacher).
“I hope Habirandha students are able to pass on puppet art culture, which is full of morals,
manners and learning. At least this could help the government cope with societal problems in the field of moral education,” Gupito said, closing the interview. www.thejakartapost.com