The Social Dramas, Ethnic Identity Reconstructions for the Regional and Global Tourism Industry: The Sister City of Medan and Penang

This dissertation compares the ways of Malays and Straits Chinese (Peranakan) of Medan N Sumatra and Penang Malaysia getting their identity reconstructed by the use of social dramas such as rituals and performing arts to represent their ethnicity in the regional and global spheres. In the currently situation, those two ethnic groups reclaim, retain and regain identities for the social and economic ends, and this phenomenon seems to be affecting factors. By using Goffman's Dramaturgical Approach, Victor Turner's social drama, and Richard Schehner's performance studies, the fildwork engages all types of dramaturgical behaviors of the Malays and Strait Chinese as objects of the study. Emperical Data of observation, interviews and social interaction were collected to get analyzed and interpreted symbolicly. In short, in public places/spaces, those predominantly groups reconstruct their identities in various kinds of the rituals, performance arts, carnivals, and festivals.