In 2021, the Indonesian dance scene lost one of its maestros, Martinus Miroto, who had contributed significantly through his works. Miroto, who was born in 1959, apart from being known for his choreographic works, has also opened up space for artists through various initiatives, built Studio Banjarmili in 2001 and also started the Bedog Arts Festival in 2007. His piece “Penumbra” which started from Miroto’s final assignment to obtain a Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A. ) at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) in 1995, became an important point in the history of his work. Looking briefly at the long history of Miroto’s journey in the world of dance, indeed we can imagine that it cannot be disassociated with two aspects, training discipline and thought processes. He then applied both of them not only to himself, but to the dancers involved in his works. So to understand Miroto’s thought process we need to experience his training discipline, and vice versa, understanding Miroto’s thoughts will let us connect more easily with his training discipline.

With these considerations in mind, this workshop will be divided into two sessions. In the first session, participants will listen to stories and testimonials from the first generation of Miroto Dance Company dancers, Agung Gunawan, then continue to the second session with physical training by Anter Asmorotedjo.

Lawatari is made of a combination of two words – to visit (lawat) and tari (dance). This combination represents Indonesian Dance Festival (IDF)’s intention to connect with performing arts practitioners by co-organizing a mini festival. Held in collaboration with local partners, this program brings the spirit of visiting and getting to know the context of the areas visited. Lawatari was held in Makassar, Padang Panjang and Yogyakarta as part of the Road to IDF 2024 program series.