Contest-ing Culture: Sundanese Wayang Golek Purwa Competitions in New Order Indonesia

Government efforts to monitor, regulate, and control the art of wayang dramatically increased during Soeharto's New Order regime (1966-1998). State-sponsored wayang competitions, as well as the aesthetic categories used for evaluating performers, became important sites for merging wayang performance with the goals of the state. Government-sanctioned performance standards were at odds with popular practice, however, which tended to emphasize entertainment, innovation, and communication with audiences.