IOV YOUTH colleague Kencana Pradipa Fakultas Psikologi Universitas Indonesia

Kencana Pradipa(KP) Tari serves as a platform to channel the aspirations and talents of the students of the Faculty of Psychology at the University of Indonesia (UI) in the field of dancing, particularly traditional dancing. KP Tari’s vision is to respect and preserve Indonesia’s rich culture. To accomplish this vision, KP Tari sets its mission to learn the traditional dances of Indonesia and widen their reach so they can be appreciated by the public at large. KP Tari was formed in 2007. Within a relatively short period, its performances in the many events organized by the Faculty of Psychology and/or others had been quite well-received. KP Tari also participated in a variety of competitions with satisfactory results, securing first and second places in some of these events. KP Tari’s accomplishments are well recognized, especially within UI, as indicated by the requests to take parts in events organized by other faculties at UI. The traditional dances learned and performed by KP Tari among others, originate from Aceh (Saman, Seudati and Rapai Geleng Dances); Jambi (Zapin Dance); Betawi -Jakarta’s indigenous (Nandak Ganjen Dance) and Bali (Bajidor Kahot Dance).

To achieve its vision and mission, KP Tari is very serious in learning these traditional dances and because of that, it is placed among one of the leading performer of traditional dances. KP Tari is disciplined when it comes to learning and practicing the detail movements of each dance, from line forming and choreography to hand and/or fingers positioning as well as head movements. The purpose of learning in detail so that the movements of all dancers are well coordinated considering that most of these traditional dances involve many dancers whose movements are sometimes contradictory that one mistake could upset the whole dance. The majority of KP Tari is also able to comprehend the complexity of these dances in a relatively short period, hence enabling them to learn in depth the wirasa (feel), wirama (rhythm) and wiraga (movement) of the dance. As a result, each dancer is able to convey the “message” of the dance to the audience well. In addition, KP Tari also puts forth the importance of maintaining contact between the dancer and the audience, for example, by smiling or eye contact.