The History Of Wayang Orang

The Javanese traditional show, wayang wong (wayang: shadow or puppet; wong: man) is one of the world’s greatest theatrical performance. It  was first created by Kanjeng Adipati Arya Mangkunegara I (1757-1795), and played by the royal palace servent and  only performed inside of the palace. Wayang Orang began to socialize at the periode of  Mangkunegara V, but it is still limited to relatives and employees at the Palace. Although it is still limited, there was an attempt of some royal servent to introduce this show to the public. As a media of interaction between  the palace and its people. When government era of Mangkunegara VII (1916-1944), finally this great theatrical performance showed out of the palace’s walls. The king built a cultural park in Sri Wedari as the preservation of Javanese culture. And now this park is popular place of tourism object in Central Java.

Sri Wedari Park, the historical place of Wayang Orang

Wayang Orang actually is a kind of wayang kulit (puppet of leather) performance where the puppets were replaced by human dancers. It  has been strongly influenced by India, and the actors were masked or not in accordance to the character portrayed. Like wayang kulit, wayang orang story is about Ramayana and Mahabharata, and it contains many aspects of Hindu culture and mythology.