Sardono kusumo biography definition

Sardono Kusumo, described by the New York Times as Indonesia’s “most famous but also most rebellious choreographer and dancer”, was born in Solo on the island of Java in 1945. He trained in the alusan (refined) style of court dance yet cites his initiation into dance as having occurred via pencak silat, an Indonesian martial art.

As a child, Sardono embarked upon a course of study that blended martial arts with traditional Javanese dance, focusing on developing characters from the Mahabarata and Ramayana epics under the guidance of renowned Indonesian dancer Kusumo Kesowo.

At the age of 20, Sardono traveled to New York to immerse himself in American modern dance, which he stayed to study and observe for several years. The points he would draw, and the different styles he examined through this time, would help to shape his career to come.

Upon return to Indonesia, Sardono began to make his name as a leading figure in Indonesian dance, staging workshops at Jakarta’s este