Wayang is the traditional puppetry and drama of Indonesia, which has been loved by the people of Indonesia for centuries, beginning since prehistoric times right down to the present day. Wayang comes from the word bayang, (shadow), and began in ancient times as a ceremony for calling departed spirits by hanging a coconut oil lamp and casting shadows on a wall or stretched white cloth. Wayang developed from the 9th and 10th centuries as a media for performance of scenarios with themes from the epics Ramayana and Mahabharata, and subsequently beginning from the middle ages scenarios with themes based on Islam were also created. The varieties of wayang have developed from age to age, until now there are more than 60 varieties of wayang, spread all over Indonesia.Some types of wayang are consisting of two dimensional puppets made of leather and operated by a dalang or puppeteer before a screen illuminated by a lamp, which can be viewed either from in front of or from behind the screen, eg. Wayang Kulit Purwa Goya Surakarta. Some types of wayang use three dimensional carved wooden puppets, eg Wayang Golek Sunda. Human actors play the roles in some varities of wayang, eg. Wayang Orang, while others use pictures painted on cloth scrolls (Wayang Beber) or even without any equipment at all, except human voices and body movements (Wayang Jemblung Banyumas).Wayang is a special form of art because it possesses qualities which are in Javanese referred to as adiluhung and edipeni, very noble and very beautiful, (ethics and aesthetics). Scholars of the world have referred to wayang as being the most sophisticated form of drama in the world.Wayang has the functions of entertainment as well as moral guidance , and is a combination of five arts, namely:1. Seni Widya (arts of philosophy and education)2. Seni Drama (performing and karawitan musical arts)3. Seni Gatra (leather cutting and painting arts)4. Seni Ripta (thematic and literaly arts)5. Seni Cipta (conceptual and creative arts)
