Enjoy a rare chance to experience Balinese shadow-puppet theater (wayang), accompanied by a traditional quartet of metal xylophones. Using intricately carved and painted puppets (made from buffalo hide), puppet master Gusti Sudarta tells the story of Sutasomo, a legendary bodhisattva who abandons court life to study in the forest with the goddess Kali. Sutasomo then battles and overcomes monstrous demons before taking the throne of his father’s kingdom.
Sudarta has served on the faculty of the Indonesian Institute of the Arts in Denpasar since 1991, performing in Asia, Europe, Australia, and North America, including three world tours with the Theft of Sita project. He is joined by members of Gamelan Raga Kusuma, which he cofounded and is now in residence at the University of Richmond. This performance is sponsored by the Embassy of Indonesia.