“Performing Southeast Asia” has been curated in collaboration with faculty and students from the Center for Southeast Asian Studies, and considers the role of performance in Southeast Asia, from popular music to traditional dance.
The exhibition runs from September 8, 2022 to May 13, 2023 in NIU’s James B. and Rosalyn L. Pick
Museum of Anthropology, located in Cole Hall 114. Admission is free of charge and the museum is open Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Exploring practices from Indonesia, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, and Burma, the exhibit is organized around four answers to the question, what does performance do? Performance creates a sense of belonging, as seen in tembang dolanan anak (children’s singing games) in Indonesia and pop music in Cambodia. Performance is used to educate, demonstrated through Balinese gamelan orchestra, wayang kulit (shadow puppet) from Java, and khon dance dramas in Thailand. Performance may support health or healing, witnessed across diverse practices such as nat pwe rituals in Burma, khaen music in Thailand and Laos, and circus in Cambodia. Finally, performance can be a form of resistance, exemplified through Thai rap music as well as recitation of Quranic scripture and participation in popular music by Muslim women in Indonesia.
This exhibit was made possible through collaboration with the Center for Southeast Asian Studies, the School of Music, the Center for Burma Studies, and many individuals. We wish to especially acknowledge the following faculty and students who curated displays related to their areas of research:
- Judy Ledgerwood (professor of Anthropology and Director of CSEAS)
- Eric Jones (associate professor of History)
- Catherine Raymond (professor of Art History and director of the Center for Burma Studies)
- Chamni Sripraram (instructor of World Music, Thai Music Ensemble)
- Jui-Ching Wang (professor of World Music and Music Education)
- Matthew Trew (honorary fellow, Department of Anthropology at University of Wisconsin-Madison)
- Mitchell Rigert (M.A. Anthropology, 2023)
- Matthew Werstler (M.M., 2021)
- Holly Young (B.A. Anthropology, 2022)
These displays highlight the diverse yet interconnected ways Southeast Asian communities express their identities, cultures, and religions. While many of the performances are rooted in long-standing practices, they continue to be valued and dynamically transmitted and transformed in the present.
