Morality and comedy meet in traditional Javanese play<\/p>\n
By Achmad Nurhoeri<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): What comes to your mind if your neighborhood
\ndoctor, your average motorcycle salesman, the local police chief,
\nthe local military officer and your regent are jumbled together
\nin one arena? A community meeting? A flag ceremony? A political
\ncampaign? A funeral?<\/p>\n
None of those events is the correct answer, if you saw them at
\nthe Bentara Budaya Art Center here Saturday night, Dec. 21. So,
\nwhat were they doing there? Believe it or not, they presented a
\nsatirical play titled Pak Pokil (Mr. Greedy). The common people
\nof Delanggu, a small regency in Central Java known only for its
\nsack factory, turned the prestigious art center into a village
\ncelebration and enthralled the 300 plus Jakarta audience, who
\ncould never imagine the actors' real jobs.<\/p>\n
The show was a traditional ketoprak play. The story was the
\ntypical black-and-white good versus evil tale. The atmosphere was
\namusingly Javanese -- complete with traditional Javanese
\nclothing, Javanese stage props, a Javanese gamelan orchestra and
\nJavanese language. Even the anecdotes were presented in Javanese
\nflavor, witty, tricky and subtle. They depicted the Javanese
\nphilosophy of Njiwit ora lara, or pinching without hurting.<\/p>\n
The plot was about big brother Sastro (played by talented
\nmotorcycle dealer Hussein Sastranegara) whose nickname is Pak
\nPokil, and his little brother, Pak Tulus (Mr. Sincere), who was
\nplayed adequately by Edi Sulistyanto (whose real-life profession
\nis selling garments).<\/p>\n
Pak Pokil really lives up to his reputation. He is the richest
\nguy in the village, with a hobby of counting money to the penny.
\nOne day, he and his brother try to divide their parents'
\ninheritance. With his cunning tricks and slick mouth, he manages
\nto get all of the inheritance. Pak Tulus, who portrays the ideal
\nJava man, just nods with disbelief. But fortunately, Pak Tulus
\ngets the family's sanctified Javanese dagger, the kris of Segoro
\nMuncar.<\/p>\n
The dagger turns out to have a glorified history. It is
\nbelieved the dagger was once the weapon of Pangeran Diponegoro,
\nJavanese prince and hero in the colonial era. And a lot of
\npeople, including the mayor, crave it.<\/p>\n
In between the acts, a couple of jesters take the stage with
\nhumorous songs jammed with spicy jeers toward the flaws of
\nsociety. Every political case seems to be on the hit list. They
\nbang members of the House of Representatives, whose daily routine
\nis rubber-stamping and echoing the word \"agree\". They make jokes
\nabout a minister's bank account, the Indonesian Democratic Party
\nmess and even about the comical homicide solving in the case of
\nUdin (a murdered journalist in Yogyakarta). Chuckles and laughter
\nquickly became prevalent.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile in the next act, Pak Tulus' son, Mancung (played by
\nSuprapto) and Pak Pokil's Pacak are in a messy encounter of their
\nown. Mancung is dating Maesaroh, a Jakarta girl, who actually is
\nalso on Pacak's target list. Pacak and his rowdies then beat the
\nhell out of Mancung, who fortunately is rescued by a couple of
\nlocal comedians.<\/p>\n
Mancung's bruises need medical treatment, but tragically, Pak
\nTulus is penniless. So he tries to ask his corrupt brother to be
\nresponsible for Pacak's misdemeanor. Pak Pokil says snobbishly,
\n\"Legally I'm his father. But actually, I did not take part in the
\nbashing. So I do not have any obligation whatsoever.\"<\/p>\n
Desperately, Pak Tulus begs for a loan, but Pak Pokil is
\nunmoved by his plea. Pak Tulus hopelessly tries to pound his
\nkris. He is willing to take any amount of money Pak Pokil gives.
\nBut his brother is just too penny-pinching. He even locks his
\ndoor so Pak Tulus can not bother him any more. Fortunately, Pak
\nPokil's wife becomes his brother-in-law's lifesaver by
\nsecretively giving some money to Pak Tulus.<\/p>\n
Not long after Pak Tulus leaves the house, someone tells Pak
\nPokil that the dagger is being pursued by serious purchasers. The
\ndagger was even slapped with a Rp 2 million (US$775) price tag.
\nPak Pokil's eyes just pop and his nose is tickled by the smell of
\nmoney. He attempts to get his brother's dagger, no matter what
\nthe cost. He then goes to his brother's house armed with itsy
\nbitsy items like toothpaste, bicycle spare parts and skin lotion.<\/p>\n
He puts on a phony regretful face, presents the small items
\nand asks for Pak Tulus' forgiveness. He begs his brother to give
\nthe dagger. But Pak Tulus replies firmly. \"This dagger is not for
\nsale!.\" Pak Pokil tries to threaten his brother by saying that
\nthe dagger is his right and even if Pak Tulus sues him, he will
\nwin anyway in Supreme Court. Pak Tulus maintains his stance. Pak
\nPokil leaves furiously, taking back the useless items he just
\ngave.<\/p>\n
Pak Tulus then devises a plan that will teach his selfish
\nbrother a lesson. He agrees to give the dagger to Pak Pokil. In
\nreturn, he asks Pak Pokil to give him half of the family's farm
\nand land that he (Pak Pokil) had previously was seized. Pak
\nPokil, blinded by greed, accepts the offer and signs the pact.<\/p>\n
Pak Pokil feels like he is on top of the world when the mayor
\ncomes to pay him a visit and to search for the historic dagger.
\nThe mayor offers him a huge amount of money, but Pak Pokil
\nrefuses. He overconfidently thinks that he can hike the price.
\nBut the village chief (played by the village doctor), who is
\naccompanying the mayor, tells him to check out the dagger first.
\nBut are they dumbfounded. The dagger's condition is far below
\neveryone's expectations. It is a broken dagger, worth nothing.<\/p>\n
The ketoprak play actually is a Javanese version of Broadway.
\nIt is a mixture of a simple comical plot, traditional musical
\ntunes, funny songs and anecdotes. It generally uses the Javanese
\nlanguage, but modern ones like Pak Pokil frequently mix the
\nlanguage with some Indonesian phrases, and even foreign words.
\nThe first ketoprak play was staged in 1898 as a form of
\nentertainment created by Raden Kanjeng Tumenggung
\nWreksadiningrat, a mayor of a remote small town in central Java,
\nto console his dying citizens when the plague came.<\/p>\n
The actors who performed in Saturday night's show actually are
\nmembers of the Association of Solo and Delanggu Merchants. Most
\nof them are Chinese traders who try to be part of the Javanese
\nenvironment by providing entertainment to the locals. This was
\ntheir second time on a real stage. The first was staged in Solo
\n(Surakarta) two years ago. Both plays were directed by Bondan
\nNusantara, who four years ago staged a ketoprak show at Bentara
\nBudaya with common army troops as the actors.<\/p>",
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