Good News From Coordinating Minister Airlangga, Government Considers Providing Incentives For Puppet Artists

Coordinating Minister for the Economy Airlangga Hartarto (center) when meeting with representatives of Indonesian puppeteers (Photo: Doc. Coordinating Ministry for the Economy)

JAKARTA - Coordinating Minister for the Economy Airlangga Hartarto said that wayang performances and the industry related to puppet art were among the first to be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and have not been able to return to normal. This became clearer when he made a working visit to Surabaya this weekend. On this occasion, Airlangga listened firsthand to the condition of the puppet art performances and input from the puppeteers, including the problem of reducing the number of wayang responders and spectators, as well as incentives for the production of various products related to wayang art. by UKM. "If the health protocols can be maintained, the Government will continue to encourage this performing arts to run, especially if the PPKM situation reaches level 2," he said in a press statement on Sunday, February 20. to efforts to advance cultural arts, especially wayang culture. In addition, it was also stated that in wayang art performances there are also many workers involved, including gamelan industry workers and the tourism industry. dances, gamelan, and language. This strengthening is needed because the art of wayang is part of a culture that must be encouraged and maintained,” he said.

Meanwhile, in an effort to encourage wayang art performances to be more interesting, Airlangga said that wayang performances could be done in a hybrid way and better publications were needed to find new audiences, especially those from millennials. popular with millennials. In addition to using Javanese, you can also use Indonesian, to make wayang performances more interesting," he stressed. Also attending the occasion were the Minister of Industry, Members of the Indonesian Parliament, Secretary of the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs, and the ranks of the Indonesian Dalang Association.