A Mythical Medieval Hero in Modern East Java']Java: The Masked Dance Gunung Sari as an Alternative Model of Masculinity

This article analyzes the east Javanese male-style masked dance Gunung Sari, a dance that has captivated me for the feminine qualities and ways of moving that performers in the east Javanese regency of Malang identified. I argue that by performing and talking about Gunung Sari, the character portrayed (also named Gunung Sari), and Gunung Sari dancers, artists have maintained cultural space for a particular sense of masculinity, one imbued with femininity, that they situated in local east Javanese culture, in effect producing an alternative to dominant national Indonesian models that separated maleness from femaleness. I draw on my experiences studying and performing Gunung Sari, conversations with my teachers, and observations of performances from 2005 to 2007 and subsequent visits to explore negotiations of gender through dancers' offstage character and lifestyle, the story cycle from which the dance is drawn, accompanying gamelan music, dance movement, and mask iconography.