Sri is a young girl from a coastal village married to an old Javanese nobleman, Hendro. Sri is still but Hendro is in his seventies. They have a child, Aji, and live in a traditional Javanese house young in present-day Solo (Central Java). Thanks to Hendro, Sri has become a classical Javanese dancer. One day, after gambling for days, Hendro returns home and is taken ill. She takes care of him. Her more difficult job, however, is to persuade the God of Death (known as Yamadipati in shadow- puppet stories) to postpone her husband′s death. Sri argues that Hendro has obligations to perform: apologizing to his first wife; returning their heirloom kris because it is not suitable; and asking leave of his spiritual teacher. Yamadipati is touched by Sri′s words. Secretly she invites a traditional medicine man to cure her husband, but Yamadipati finds out. He decides to test Sri′s loyalty, alleging that she is loyal to her husband just because he transformed her from an ordinary girl into a noble woman. She responds that it is not a matter of indebtedness, but rather being faithful to her decision to become an independent woman. One night, Yamadipat decides to take Hendro′s life. Sri invites Yamadipati to dance together in the pendopo (open veranda). They dance while Hendro is dying in his bedroom. At dawn, controlling her grief, Sri watches her husband die. She sits in Hendro′s chair on the pendopo, graceful in her silence. (production note)