'King Lear' with an Asian touch

By Oei Eng Goan

JAKARTA (JP): William Shakespeare displays human nature in all its astonishing variety in his 37 tragedies and comedies. The accessibility of his stories and their universally relevant moral values has lead to his works being performed in various languages, styles and costumes throughout the years.

An original incarnation could be seen in the performance of Lear for Jakarta audiences last weekend, an international act based on Shakespeare's King Lear and embracing Asia's vernacular and beauty.

Performed by artists from six Asian countries -- China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand -- the play was a blend of choral speaking, dance and music incorporating traditional and contemporary manners.

Lear is about a tragedy that befalls a king who misjudges his two daughters. The Old Man entrusts his kingdom to the Older Daughter, who utters words of affection for him, and banishes the Younger Daughter, who remains silent, before beginning his journey with his loyal attendant, the Fool.

On the journey the Fool bets the Old Man that the Older Daughter will usurp the kingdom and forsake her father for her own power. Returning home, the Old Man finds the prediction fulfilled. The Older Daughter kills the king, saying "I do not need a father. I am a daughter of the gods."

Although the actors speak their lines in the languages of their own countries, their body movements and voices manage to communicate the drama and tragedy of the story for the audience to follow.

This is because Shakespeare's characters "are not modified by the customs of particular places ... but by the genuine progeny of common humanity, such as the world will always supply and observation will always find," as commented Samuel Johnson, a noted Shakespearean critic.

Johnson's remarks are well understood by the 17 players of Lear, so that every speech and song, although uttered in their own languages, is purely manifested without the slightest barrier. Although the producers, the Japan Foundation Asia Center, did in fact provide electronic subtitles in English and Indonesian.

The story's theme is familiar to many, as it concerns the age- old conflict between the young and the old. What is unique in the play is it's emphasis on the removal of paternalistic authority by a father's daughter (from King Lear by Goneril in Shakespeare's original work), which climaxes with the killing of the Old Man by the Older Daughter. The presence of the Mother, not in the original story, signifies that paternalistic authority should no longer dominate the Asian world, considering that the role of females is equal to that of males in this era of globalization.

"Mother is the figure who saves all beings," said Yuki Hata, the producer of Lear, dubbed the Asian version of King Lear.

Obviously, this is in stark contrast to Akira Kurosawa's Ran, a widely acclaimed film jointly produced by Japan and France in 1985, also based on Shakespeare's King Lear. In the film, director Kurosawa substituted the king's daughters with sons.

Although all the actors in Lear played wonderfully, thanks to their hard work and the guidance of Singapore's theater director Ong Keng Sen, special praise should be given to Japanese Noh master Naohiko Umewaka, who played the roles of the Old Man and Mother, Beijing Opera maestro Qiang Jihu (the Older Daughter), Thai dancer Peeramond Chomdavat (the Younger Daughter) and Japanese actress Hairi Katagiri (the Fool).

Umewaka's upright movements and firm footsteps epitomized the regal bearing of the Old Man still in power, while in the closing scenes his staggering and tottering was well suited to the desperate and broken-hearted Old Man who had lost his kingdom.

Qiang's melodious and often shrill voice beautifully depicted the conniving Older Daughter, while Peeramond played the Younger Daughter with the pitiful grace of an outcast.

Indonesia

Other performers worthy of praise were Benny Krisnawardi, Jefri Andi and Fitrik, Indonesian dancers from the Gumarang Sakti dance company who played the roles of the Warriors, and Singaporean actor Lim Yu-Beng and Malaysian choreographer Aida Redza who played the Loyal Attendant and the Mother's Shadow.

Kudos should also go to Indonesian choreographer Boi G. Sakti who introduced the movements of Minangkabau pencak silat, a traditional Indonesian martial art form, to add a dynamic balance to the slow and carefully controlled Noh gestures.

The same is true for musicians and composers Mark Chan and Rahayu Supanggah. Chan's popular music and Supanggah's tradition al gamelan blended nicely to add drama to Lear.

The lack of empty seats at all three performances in the 1,000-capacity Teater Tanah Airku is testimony to the success of Lear in Jakarta.

The play's success shows that a group of artists from different countries with diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds can produce a truly magnificent work of art. Hopefully this will inspire Indonesians to question if people here really have to get caught up in the racial and ethnic hatred that has recently lead to so much bloody violence.