Authenticity of Commodified Heritage: A Case Study of Sala Chalermkrung Khon of Thailand and Sendratari Ramayana Prambanan of Indonesia in the Context of Cultural Heritage Tourism

Main Article Content

Anak Agung Lindawati Kencana

Abstract

In the context of tourism, cultural performances are predominantly a form of entertainment to be traded on the marketplace. A question central to this argument is, what happens to cultural performances when they become tourist attractions? This question concerns the authenticity of cultural performance: Is authenticity really an intrinsic quality which constitutes a genuine local or traditional culture, and can tourists recognize this quality? This paper attempts to investigate how the invention of authenticity in the case of Khon and Sendratari Ramayana illustrates the notion of constructive authenticity. The case study is conducted in the context of cultural heritage tourism. This study suggests that the commodification of Khon and Sendratari Ramayana does not necessarily lead to a loss of “authenticity” and meaning as cultural heritage products. It finds that the cultural producers of Sala Chalermkrung Khon and Sendratari Ramayana Prambanan as the centers of the case study have effectively maintained the specific attributes of authenticity, representing the heritage of the nations. The significant attributes or qualities which are associated with the genuine tradition of local cultures are the sacred rituals and the artistic features of the art forms which include story, dance, music, and costumes. This study argues that authenticity can be manifested by adapting traditional culture in modern context. It demonstrates how authenticity is constructed, reconstructed and negotiated.

Article Details

How to Cite
Kencana, A. A. L. (2020). Authenticity of Commodified Heritage: A Case Study of Sala Chalermkrung Khon of Thailand and Sendratari Ramayana Prambanan of Indonesia in the Context of Cultural Heritage Tourism. Connexion: Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 9(2), 38–56. Retrieved from https://so05.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/MFUconnexion/article/view/242553
Section
Research article

References

Appadurai, A. (1996) Modernity at large: Cultural dimension of globalization, Minneapolis, London: University of Minnesota Press.

Asworth, G. J., & Tunbridge, J. E. (2007) Pluralising pasts: Heritage, identity and place in multicultural societies, London: Pluto Press.

Bruner, E. M. (1994) Abraham Lincoln as authentic reproduction: A critique of postmodernism, American Anthropologist, vol. 96, no. 2, pp. 397-415.

Chhabra, D., Healy, R., & Sills, E. (2003) Staged authenticity and heritage tourism, Annals of Tourism Research, vol. 3, no. 3, pp. 702-719, Available: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160738303000446?via%3Dihub [6 June 2018]

Chhabra, D. (2005) Defining authenticity and its determinants: Toward an authenticity flow model, Journal of Travel Research, vol. 44, no. 1, pp. 64-73, Available: https://doi.org/10.1177/0047287505276592 [12 March 2019]

Chhabra, D. (2010) Back to the past: A sub-segment of Generation Y’s perceptions of authenticity, Journal of Sustainable Tourism, vol. 18, pp. 793-809.

Cohen, E. (1988) Authenticity and commodification in tourism, Annals of Tourism Research, vol. 15, pp. 371-386.

Cohen, E. (1998) Primitive and remote, hill tribe trekking in Thailand, Annals of Tourism Research, vol. 15, no. 3, pp. 371-386.

Cole, S. (2007) Beyond authenticity and commodification, Annals of Tourism Research, vol. 34, no. 4, pp. 943-960, Available: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160738307000552 [5 April 2017]

Csapo, J. (2012) ‘The role and importance of cultural tourism in modern tourism industry’, in M. Kasimoglu (ed.), Strategies for tourism industry: Micro and macro perspectives, pp. 201-232, Rijaka, Croatia: Intech Open Access Publisher.

Daniel, Y. P. (1996) Tourism dance performances: Authenticity and creativity, Annals of Tourism Research, vol. 23, no. 4, pp. 780-797.

Davison, G. (2008) ‘Heritage: From patrimony to pastiche’, in G. Fairclough et al., (eds.), The heritage reader, pp. 31-41, London: Routledge.

Du Cros, H., & McKercher, B. (2015) Cultural tourism, London: Routledge.

Glemža, J. R. (2002) Protection and management of intangible cultural heritage, Vilnius: Vilnius Academy of Arts Publishing.

Graburn, N. H. (editor). (1976) Ethnic and tourist arts: Cultural expression from the fourth world, Berkley: University of California Press.

Grunewald. (2015) ‘Pataxo tourism art and cultural authenticity in cultural tourism’, in M. Smith & M. Robinson (eds.), Cultural tourism in a changing world: Politics, participation and (re)presentation, pp. 203-214, Clevedon, UK: An Imprint of Multilingual Matters.

Hersapandi. (2000) Prambanan files a claim: The concern of Ramayana artists (Prambanan Menggugat: Kegelisahan seniman Ramayana), Yogyakarta: Perpustakaan Nasional. (In Bahasa Indonesia)

Hughes-Freeland, F. (2012) ‘Movement on the move: Performance and dance tourism in Southeast Asia’, in H. N. Kringelbach & J. Skinner (eds.), Dancing cultures: Globalization tourism and identity in the anthropology of dance, pp. 100-120, New York: Berghahn.

ICOMOS. (1997) Charter for cultural tourism, Available: https://www.univeur.org/cuebc/downloads/PDF%20carte/51.%20Cultural%20tourism.PDF [9 September 2017]

Kallayanapongsa, A., et al. (2006) Khon: Thai masked dance Sala Chalermkrung, Bangkok: The Crown Property Bureau.

Knudsen, B. T., & Waade, A. M. (2010) Re-investing authenticity: Tourism, place and emotions, St. Bristol, UK: Nicholas House.

Leite, N., & Graburn, N. (2009) ‘Anthropological interventions in tourism studies’, in T. Jamal & M. Robinson (eds.), The SAGE handbook of tourism studies, pp. 35-64, Los Angeles: SAGE.

MacCannell, D. (1976) The visitor: A new theory of the leisure class, New York: Schoken Books.

McDonald, J. (1993) Whose history? Whose voice? Myth and resistance in the rise of the new left in Mexico, Cultural Anthropology, vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 96-116.

McLeod, N. (2005) ‘Cultural tourism: Aspects of authenticity and commodification’, in M. Smith & M. Robinson (eds.), Cultural tourism in a changing world, pp. 177-190, Clevedon: The Cromwell Press.

Miettinen, J. O. (1992) Classical dance and theater in South-East Asia, Singapore: Oxford University Press.

Moehkardi. (2011) Sendaratari Ramayana Prambanan: The arts and the history (Sendratari Ramayana Prambanan: Seni dan Sejarahnya), Bogor: Grafika Mardi Yuana. (in Bahasa Indonesia)

Moungboon, V., Somtrakool, K., & Keeratiburana, Y. (2016) Khon (Masked Dance): Management to Promote Tourism in the Central Region of Thailand, The International Journal of Interdisciplinary Organizational Studies, vol. 11, no. 3, pp. 27-34.

Nuraini, I. (2003) The formation of style in the Ramayana ballet of the Roro Jonggrang foundation for the Prambanan outdoor stage (pembentukan gaya dalam Sendratari Ramayana Yayasan Roro Jonggrang di panggung terbuka Prambanan), Master’s thesis, Universitas Gadjahmada Indonesia. (In Bahasa Indonesia)

O'Connor, B. (2003) 'Come and daunce with me in Irlande': Tourism, dance and globalisation', in M. Cronin & B. O'Connor (eds.), Irish tourism: Image, culture and identity, pp. 122-140, Clevedon: Channel View Publications.

Pidokrajit, N. (2011) Thai traditional music in the Wai Khru ceremony, Fine Arts International Journal Srinakharinwirot University, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 10-20.

Prentice, R. (2004) ‘Heritage: A key sector of the “new” tourism’, in S. William (ed.), Tourism: Critical concepts in the social sciences, pp. 83-98, New York: Routledge.

Raj, R., et al. (2013) Cultural tourism, Wallingford: CABI.

Richards, G. (1996) Cultural tourism in Europe, Oxon: CAB International.

Richards, G. (2007) Cultural Tourism: Global and Local Perspectives, New York: Haworth International.

Rutnin, M. M. (1996) Dance, drama, and theater in Thailand, Chiang Mai: Silkworm Books.

Sala Chalermkrung Foundation. (n.d.) Appreciating Sala Chalermkrung Khon, Bangkok: Daoreuk Communication.

Sarup, M. (1996) Identity, culture and postmodern world, Edinburgh: Edinburhgh University Press.

Scottish Tourist Board. (1990) Visitor attraction survey 1989, Edinburgh: Scottish Tourist Board.

Sharpley, R. (1994) Tourism, tourist & society, England: St Edmundsbury Press.

Smith, M. K., & Richards, G. (2013) Routledge handbook of cultural tourism, London: Roudledge.

Smith, M. K., & Robinson, M. (2005) Cultural tourism in a changing world: Politics, participation and (re)presentation, Clevedon: The Cromwell Press.

Smith, M. K. (2016) Issues in cultural tourism studies, New York: Roudledge.

Sowat, S. (2018) Thai classical music for the Phrommas Episode in Khon Performance, Doctoral dissertation, University of York Music, UK.

Tanticharoenkiat, O. (1986) Khon, Doctoral dissertation, Kansas State University.

Taylor, J. (2001) Authenticity and sincerity in tourism, Annals of Tourism Research, vol. 28, pp. 7-26.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation. (2015) [Preservation Glossary] Today’s word: Heritage tourism, Available: https://savingplaces.org/stories/preservation-glossary-todays-word-heritage-tourism [23 January 2018]

UNESCO. (1989) Draft medium term-plan 1990-1995, Available: https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000084697 [9 September 2018]

The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). (2011) International tourists to hit 1.8 billion by 2030, Available: https://www.unwto.org/archive/global/press-release/2011-10-11/international-tourists-hit-18-billion-2030 [12 December 2018]

The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). (2012) Study on tourism and intangible cultural heritage, Available: http://cf.cdn.unwto.org/sites/all/files/docpdf/summaryview.pdf [4 June 2018]

Wang, N. (1999) Rethinking authenticity in tourism experience, Annals of Tourism Research, vol. 26, no. 2, pp. 349-370.

Williams, D. (1994) Traditional danced spaces: Concepts of Deixis and the staging of traditional dance, International Journal of African Dance, vol. 1, no. 2, pp. 8-20.

Williams, R. (1961) The long revolution, Canada: Broadviews Press.

Williams, R. (1989) Resource of hope: Culture, democracy, socialism, London: Verso.

Wong, C. M. (2013) Intangible cultural heritage of dance as medium for intercultural dialogue: Culture assimilator reinterpreted, Doctoral dissertation, Available: https://d-nb.info/1045604119/34 [5 April 2017]

Yupho, D. (2010) The custom and rite paying homage to the teachers of Khon, Lakhon and Piphat, Bangkok, Thailand: The Fine Arts Department.