Abstract
The objective of this study is to describe the compositional work of Didik Nini Thowok, a choreographer, dancer, and comedian from Yogyakarta, Central Java, Indonesia.
Didik Nini Thowok was born in Temanggung, Central Java in 1954. After finishing his academic training at the Indonesian Dance Academy in 1983, he learned the various dance traditions of Indonesia, such as Balinese, East Javanese and West Javanese dance. He also has abundant experience in learning various foreign dance traditions such as those of India and Japan, among others.
As a multi-talented artist, and especially as a dancer impersonating female characters, Didik Nini Thowok has performed for a variety of audiences around the world. His representative works are: “Topeng Nopeng” (1997), “Panca Muka” (2000), “Behdaya Hagoromo” (2001), and “Impersonators” (2003). Since 2000, he has been advocating the concept of “cross-gender” and consciously performing works as a female impersonator.
Didik Nini Thowok uses traditional Javanese masks effectively in his choreography to express the role of the female impersonator. In this study, I focus on his unique style of cross-gendering in his work through the use of Javanese masks.
