Yogyakarta’s all-male Oyot Godhong cabaret
A spectacular night show with colorful lighting inside the center of a batik store on the famous Jl. Malioboro is one option.
A cabaret performance is regularly conducted at Oyot Godhong Resto, located on the third floor of Mirota Batik building.
Introduced in 2011, this cabaret might be rarely heard among tourists. However, it offers you another kind of art performance in the city.
The 90-minute cabaret was opened by three dancers performing a Javanese traditional dance. Traditional keroncong music accompanied their performance.
At a glance, there was nothing unusual about the show. The dancers moved perfectly and got along with the music. They wore a long feather crowns on their heads and scarfs coiled around their necks. Their make up was bold but could not hide the masculine faces of the dancers.
Yes, it was an all-male show!
After the Javanese dance, the show continued with a performance of four dancers performing to upbeat music.
The show went on when a man wearing a black shirt covered by a leather jacket came to stage and "sang" Girl on Fire, a current popular song from Alicia Keys.
He did not really sing the song, by the way.
His dark skin and short curly hair confirmed us that he was about to imitate the diva’s style by doing a lip-sync performance. "Alicia Keys" was the first artist on show that night.
Later, performances featured Pink, Lady Gaga, Mariah Carey, Agnes Monica, Indonesian X Factor idol Fatin Shidqia and other singers.
Most visitors were hypnotized by the dancers' ability to imitate famous singers. Their dances were incredible too.
The show was packed with glitz, glam, local art and a touch of humor.
More than 20 male artists were involved in the show. The attraction might be similar with the Ladyboy cabaret show in Thailand
but with touch of local culture.
The artists are not always men portraying women. At some sequences they portray the real men. In that night's show, a dancer imitated Nate Ruess from Fun on the song “Just Give Me A Reason”. That was the highlight of the show, with most of the audience singing along.
It only costs Rp 20,000 (around US$2) to watch the show, which takes place every Friday and Saturday from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. To get first row seats, it’s wiser to make reservations earlier.
While enjoying the cabaret, you can fill your stomach with hearty dishes from the Oyot Godong Resto.
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