Synopsis
Juno is just a child when his father abandons him. Left to his own devices, he’s drawn to a local Lengger dance troupe in which male dancers dress as women and take on feminine roles. As he becomes more immersed in the sensual roots of the art form and in touch with his own burgeoning sexuality, the provocations of the dance within the provincial chauvinism of his community lead to devastating violence—against him and those around him. Exploring the intimate history of an individual, and using striking poetic imagery to showcase the beauty of Lengger traditional dance, Nugroho has crafted a sharp political commentary that critiques the tumultuous and contradictory nature of Indonesia’s past four decades.