1001 MALAM PERFORMANCE PROJECT
(KISAH SERIBU SATU MALAM)

The 1001 Malam Acting Project, funded by Erasmus, came from an initiative of Sardono Kusumo, Rektor of Institut Kesenian Jakarta (IKJ). Sardono invited Liminal Theatre’s Co-Artistic Director, Robert Draffin, and Slamet Rahardjo, Director of Teatre Popular, to hold an intensive 8 week acting workshop at Teatre Popular Sanggar in Jakarta.
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The aim was to engage Indonesian performers in a process drawn from both contemporary and traditional arts practice, using the stories of the 1001 Nights as inspiration. The actors were selected from students and alumni of IKJ, as well as independent performers in Jakarta and the wider Jalarta area. 60 actors began the process in August 2007, and 20 were chosen in November 2007 to create a public showing.
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After the success of the 2007 workshop, Slamet Rahardjo and Robert Draffin held three writing sessions in Jakarta during 2008 and 2009. Taking stories from the 1001 Nights and adapting them within traditional and contemporary Javanese contexts, Rahardjo and Draffin fused the classic Arabic tales with Javanese mythology and set them against the Tembang, a traditional Javanese song cycle.
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The resulting text was rehearsed with actors drawn from all parts of Indonesia in May 2009 and was performed in June at Teatre Lewus, Jakarta. The production drew on traditional dance, singing and the Wayang Wong comedic style, developing a strong connection with contemporary Javanese theatre practice and performance. Kisah Seribu Satu Malam cemented an ongoing collaboration between Liminal Theatre and Teatre Popular - fostering a meaningful dialogue between tradition and modernity, and the exciting interface of differing cultures.
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Kisah Seribu Satu Malam was funded by the Australian Indonesian Institute, IKJ, Teatre Popular, and Liminal Theatre.