The Role of Women and Cultural Negotiation in Topeng Betawi Mak Kinang

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the role of women in preserving the Betawi Topeng Betawi through a study of Mak Kinang as a female maestro and Kartini Kisam as a tradition inheritor and preserver. The study uses a qualitative method with an ethnographic approach. At the same time, data are obtained through library research, interviews, and digital ethnography of audiovisual documentation containing track records and testimonies about both figures. The analysis is conducted using the Cavalli-Sforza and Feldman cultural transmission theory as the main foundation, combined with the concept of cultural negotiation to understand the dynamics of tradition preservation amidst social change. The results of the study indicate that the process of inheritance of the Topeng Betawi Dance takes place through vertical cultural transmission within the family environment, where Mak Kinang transmits not only technical dance skills but also the values ​​of honesty, sincerity, responsibility, and artistic ethics to Kartini Kisam through role models, direct teaching, and involvement in performance activities. As the function of the Topeng Betawi Dance changes from being a part of people's lives to being a performing art, entertainment, and educational medium, Kartini Kisam carries out a process of cultural negotiation by maintaining traditional values ​​while adapting inheritance strategies, learning methods, and performance spaces to suit the needs of today's society. This study concludes that women not only play a role as cultural inheritors, but also as transmission agents and cultural negotiators who maintain the continuity of the Topeng Betawi Dance through adaptations that remain grounded in traditional identity and values.