On this page i share something about my training and work with my late teacher Suprapto Suryodarmo (1945-2019) in Java and Bali. Indonesia is a significant place for me in my (artistic) life. Learning with pak Suprapto on these islands, by seas and temples, in cities, has been more important than I can say in words. It continues to resonate, deepening and expanding my sense of reality. It is part of my dance practice and my offerings in teaching. What I’ll share here can only be a snippet into these worlds and realms, but hopefully may bring some sense of connection to them.
Javanese artist Suprapto Suryodarmo (Prapto) created a non-stylised movement practice, named (Joged) Amerta Movement. It was inspired by Javanese Sumarah meditation and Buddhism as well as our human relationship and connection to the natural world and our environment. Daily movement and movement meditation, a sense of is-ness and non-identification in life and movement are inherent elements of the practice. Daily life and performance are interconnected.
For many years much of the practice took place at Padepokan Lemah Putih, near Prapto’s home in Java, an area of land on which he created different kinds of places for different kinds of practices. This is where I first met him. The work also took place at temple grounds, by the ocean, at market places, in musician’s homes, at art centres with pendopos and in other kinds of environments.
‘Amerta’ (Sanskrit) could be translated as ‘nectar’ or ‘elixir’, ‘joged’ as ‘childlike’, ‘playful’. The practice often goes by the name of Amerta Movement. I choose to sometimes include ‘joged’ as I’ve always been inspired by the combination of these expressions, which were so clearly present in Prapto’s dance.
You can find many resources and connect to practitioners worldwide on this website of Amerta Movers.
Prapto at a temple near Yogyakarta and at Parangtritis, 2018
I learned about the work of Suprapto Suryodarmo in the early ‘90s while studying at the School for New Dance Development when Ria Higler, one of the artistic directors of the school began working with him. Having a strong sense of only wanting to work with him in Indonesia, i waited till the right timing presented itself. I began practicing Amerta Movement with Prapto in Indonesia in 2003 until his passing in 2019 and have worked in Java as well as in Bali. In 2017 i co-facilitated ‘Field of Reciprocity’, together with Prapto, Margit Galanter, Julie Nathanielsz and Sally Dean, investigating performance, culture and practice. A few lines on this project here. You can find an interview inspired by this happening, with the same artists and Lisa Nelson about the use of imagery in Amerta Movement and Skinner Releasing Technique here, An Image that’s Alive in Contact Quarterly.
I continue to be inspired and moved by my training with Prapto. Still, layers reveal themselves and details, sometimes suddenly, unexpectedly seem to become clear. Other areas may perhaps forever move somewhat in the unknown, which appears to be a natural part of the actual practice. I’ve been sharing aspects of my experience with practicing with Prapto in Indonesia in workshops i offer, which always seems to deepen the work at hand, coming from and expanding into a larger cultural perspective and context.
‘Purification’ is one of the performances I danced in Java. This was on 1 January 2019, with Alexander Gebe, actor, dancer from Lampung, Sumatra. You can find a page with some images and video here
My mother was born in Surabaya, Java, Indonesia. I had an unexpected chance to travel there with her and my eldest brother in 2023. She went back to her place of birth, 75 years after she had left as a child during the war. In earlier years, I had made a performance ‘Saya Ikan | I Am a Fish | Ik ben een vis’ in relation to generational Indo-European history, experience and questioning. You can find more info on this project here.
With Fitri, Sastrodiharjo from Yogyakarta | connecting in the resonances of colonialism from different ancestries | Tejakula, Bali, 2017 | photos by Mary Peterson
In February 2026 I will dance a solo, titled ‘If only I could be here now (practices in presence) | #The ancestor’s call’, moved by my ancient ancestors in Indonesia.
You can find the book and an excerpt of ‘Embodied Lives, Reflections on the Influence of Suprapto Suryodarmo and Amerta Movement’ on the publisher’s Triarchy website (UK). It is also available at Contact Quarterly (USA) and Books on the Move (FR, EU).
A blog that I wrote as part of my Stillness project which was supported by a Development Budget of AFK in 2018, includes writing and images of my work with Prapto in 2018.
