Last Wednesday a blue day for Rendra 'the peacock'
Last Wednesday a blue day for Rendra 'the peacock'
By Johannes Simbolon
JAKARTA (JP): Rendra, whose poetry reading usually stuns his hundreds of fans, fell flat last Wednesday amid protests.
Wednesday's show at the Graha Bakti Budaya auditorium in the Taman Ismail Marzuki Arts Center that was marred by some youngsters who tried in vain to make a fuss, crying "Long Live Tempo!" and "Go to Hell with Gatra". The show was sponsored by Gatra.
Tempo was one of three publications banned by the government last year, and Gatra is its government-approved replacement.
On the second night protesters unfurled banners and read poems condemning the Rendra and Gatra cooperation as going against the struggle for press freedom.
Rendra, who protested the banning of Tempo last year, was aware that the cooperation looked somewhat expedient to some people.
He stated at the beginning of his Wednesday's reading, "In our joint struggle, let none brag as having struggled more than the others, because each person struggles in his or her own way."
Nobody can argue that he is not one of the most attractive Indonesian poets, or that he basically founded modern Indonesian poetry reading. He has made poetry reading a commodity that can even compete with films and music.
The "Peacock", who earned his nickname for his notorious flair with women, managed to lure five hundred fans to his performance but many ended up falling asleep or leaving before the show finished.
Boredom? Apparently.
The show was technically flawed. Rendra didn't allow his audience a break for the entire three hours. He was too confident that his theatrical talent would glue people to their seats.
Besides ego, Rendra's biggest mistake was his selection of poems. Only two of the 20 long epics and ballads he read were biting, cynical or touching; the rest were too serious, meditative and philosophical.
Rendra broke the tenets of the country's theatrical arts that he himself formulated.
During his 20-year domination of the country's theatrical arts, Rendra successfully developed poetry reading as a time when people could take a break from their routines to channel their frustration or laugh at the hypocrisy or Indonesia's rulers and sociopolitical system. Through Rendra, poetry reading and theatrical arts in general became a symbol of resistance.
Rendra painted himself as a dauntless leader of public resistance against oppression. He served jail terms for several months and was forbidden to perform for years.
Lately, however, he has become less controversial, less biting and less critical towards his environment.
It was obvious that many in the audience were expecting to see the same old Rendra, to hear his trademark poetic sociopolitical critiques and touching description of human tragedies.
Rendra is known as an excellent entertainer, whose poems are deep but conceivable to all ages. So much so that some people dragged their kids to the show.
To their disappointment, Rendra was more occupied with serious thoughts and read few critiques and human tragedies that night.
Only Rendra's old poems Pesan Pencopet Kepada Pacarnya (A Pickpocket's Advise to His Girlfriend) and Disebabkan Oleh Angin (Because of the Wind) really managed to grab the audience.
In Pesan Pencopet Pada Pacarnya Rendra relived past glories by piquing the audience with cynical critiques.
In the poem, the pickpocket advises his pregnant girlfriend to continue her affairs with several people, including a minister, which he describes as no different from the pickpocket. Here and there in the poem, Rendra launched his innuendoes.
"Ajarlah anakmu mendapat kedudukan tinggi/ Jangan dia nanti jadi professor dan guru/Itu celaka uangnya tidak ada/ Kalau bisa ia nanti jadi polisi atau tentara/ Kalau dia perlu beras, dia dapat dari negara... (Teach your son to vie for high position/ Don't let him become a professor or a teacher/ It would mean hell because he will have no money/If possible, let him become a policeman or soldier/ if he needs rice, the state will provide him..."
The audience laughed throughout the poem.
Among the few tragic ballads was Perjalanan Aminah (Aminah's Journey), which is about a pregnant woman from the village who seeks her younger sister in Jakarta and finds that the money her sister routinely sends home comes from prostitution.
Rendra has produced many touching poems which tell of the tragic lives of the people.
Rendra read most of his best tragedies during a show at the same venue in July. It was far more successful and interesting than this week's show.
It was a blue week for Rendra who turned 60 recently.