SURA MERAPI
At Javanese New Year, a number of mountain villagesin Java are teeming with art. Seemingly everybody in those villages are involved in performances like dance, music and theatre, in order to celebrate Sura, the first and holy month. Although most of the performances are ritual, the event has a festival character and are open to outsiders. One of the villages involved is Tutup Ngisor, a hamlet with a population of just around 200. Here, the philosophy of its founders lives on : That arts and everyday life are not to be separated from each other, which means that everybody, from sandminer to rice farmer, can be an artist. The village is known among others for its Wayang Wong tradition, a javanese version of epic theatre involving traditional dance and Gamelan music.