Jathilan Reborn, Social Transformation through Javanese Traditional Arts

A rural hamlet in Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia, is presented with a burst in economic opportunity following a volcanic eruption. The abundance of easily earned money, via the excavation of black volcanic sand, triggers alcohol abuse and juvenile mischief within the hamlet. Senior generations, frustrated by the youth’s behaviour, ask a nearby hamlet known for its traditional art practices for help. Together they plan to revive an ancient Javanese traditional art practice that once thrived in their hamlet some 40 years ago: jathilan, a unique style of Javanese horse dancing. Jathilan Reborn is a story based on ethnographic fieldwork. It describes a successful interlocal arts-based development intervention that required no external funding, or expertise. The social transformation of a group of young villagers, who became dancers in a newly created jathilan troupe, forms the heart of this contemporary case study from Java. An ethnographic account of what an effective revival of traditional art practices can look like, and how it provides an indigenous space for producing new knowledge and insights that allowed these communities to contribute to positive behavioural changes among younger villagers on their own terms.