Literature Festival 2002 promises to be exciting

Literature Festival 2002 promises to be exciting

Tantri Yuliandini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

In conjunction with the Language and Literature Month this month,
the H.B. Jassin Documentation Center for Literature will organize
Literature Festival 2002 over the weekend at Galeri Cipta II,
Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM).

Together with the Coca Cola Foundation and Lontar Foundation,
the festival on Oct. 26 and Oct. 27, will include an exhibition,
film screening, book sale, meet-the-author time and poetry and
short-story readings by noted artists.

"Who says literature isn't fun? You don't have to be a poet or
writer to enjoy it, because literature belongs to everyone," Endo
Senggono, the center's manager said in a media conference here.

The weekend festival will open with a documentary screening of
noted Indonesian literary figure Nh. Dini Sosok Pengarang Wanita
dan Dunianya (A Figure of a Woman Writer and Her World) at 1 p.m.
followed by noted director Garin Nugroho's film Puisi Tak
Terkuburkan (Unburied Poetry).

Later in the day, Garin will do a poetry reading, together
with famous Indonesian artists such as actresses Rieke Diah
Pitaloka and Ria Irawan, poets Joko Pinurbo and Hamid Jabbar, and
a short-story reading by Gus Sakai.

In the evening, Agus Nuramal PM Toh will perform an Acehnese
oral literature accompanied by a Seudati dance. The day will end
with a documentary by H.B. Jassin titled Yang Duduk di Kursi
Imajinasi (Sit on the Imagination Chair).

The second day of the festival will open with a documentary of
Toeti Heraty Potret Penyair Toeti Heraty (Figure of a Poet Toeti
Heraty), followed by a documentary of Wiji Thukul Penyair dari
Kampung Kalangan Solo (Dimanakah Kamu?) (Poet from Kalangan
Kampong Solo [Where Are You?]), and Taufiq Ismail Tirani dan
Puisi (Tyranny and Poetry).

Puppeteer Sujiwo Tejo will meet fans for his new book Dalang
Edan (Mad Puppeteer), followed by poetry readings by artists
Peggy Melati Sukma, Maudy Koesnaedy, and Didi Petet, a short-
story reading by Hamzad Rangkuti, and poetry adapted to music by
Jose Rizal Manua.

During the festival, the H.B. Jassin Documentation Center for
Literature will also award former Jakarta governor Ali Sadikin
for his dedication and concern for the preservation of literary
works.

The Lontar Foundation will also award the late H.B. Jassin and
author Nh. Dini with a Life Time Achievement Award. The
foundation will also launch two new translated books, winners of
the 2001 Lontar Literary Award, Joko Pinurbo's Trouser Doll and
Gus Sakai's The Barber and Other Short Stories.

A discussion on the existence of the H.B. Jassin Documentation
Center for Literature and its role in Indonesian culture will
also take place Saturday, featuring guest speakers former
minister of education Fuad Hassan, Toeti Heraty and Taufiq
Ismail.

The Literature Festival 2002 will be open to the public on
Saturday, Oct. 26, 2002 from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. and on Sunday,
Oct. 27, 2002 from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. located at Galeri Cipta 2,
Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM), Jl. Cikini Raya No. 73, Central
Jakarta. For more information please call Endo Senggono 021-336-
641.