'Madame Dasima' not quite a tale of the times
By Hera Diani
JAKARTA (JP): Supposedly, it tells of a dysfunctional family. Supposedly, it portrays women's position in a relationship and society. Supposedly, it is about betrayal, and the consequences of "falling in love with someone you are not supposed to".
Supposedly.
It is Eksotika Karmawibangga Indonesia (EKI) dance company's Madame Dasima, an adaptation of a popular Betawi (native Jakarta) folktale, which will be presented for a second night at 8 p.m. on Thursday at Graha Bhakti Budaya in the Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) arts center in Central Jakarta.
The setting of the original story, Nyai Dasima, was during Dutch colonialism some two centuries ago. Nyai Dasima was a mistress of a Dutch man but she fell in love with a married man named Samiun and they in turn wed.
There was no happy ending here, however, as the marriage did not work out and Dasima was killed.
Dasima the concubine is now a wife, transplanted to a more modern setting in EKI's musical-drama. It's also an all-star cast of celebrities, like singer Sujiwo Tejo, actor and dancer Rudy Wowor, emcee-talk show host Indra Safera, dancer and actress Vicky Burki, singer Sita and jazz singer Syaharani.
The show opens with dozens of dancers, dressed as maids, preparing a poolside birthday party for Nina (child singer Nana), a daughter of Rudy (Wowor), a famous producer.
At the party, Rudy announces that he plans to make a movie based on the story of Dasima. His director then suggests casting Rudy's wife (Syaharani) as Dasima.
Rudy and Syaharani balk at the idea, but change their minds after a makeup artist named Sita professes that she can turn Syaharani into a movie star. Sita also proposes that her husband, a poet, become the scriptwriter.
The crowd disperses, leaving little Nina alone, singing Happy Birthday to herself.
The scene then changes to Sita's house, where she sets about persuading her eccentric husband Tejo (Suwijo) to write the movie script and earn some money for their soon-to-be-born baby.
Tejo first refuses but then gives in. At the movie studio, he meets Syaharani and they fall in love, leaving Sita in despair.
The show climaxes at a restaurant, where all the characters come together. Syaharani rendezvous with Tejo, Nina parties with her grown-up friends and Rudy dates another woman. And then Sita, and conflicts, come along.
Syaharani wants a divorce, Rudy refuses, Tejo preaches on how to handle women, Sita cries on the shoulder of her brother Indra (Safera) and little Nina gets drunk.
But, this time around, Madame Dasima gets a happy ending.
Director Rusdy Rukmarata, who is also the choreographer and founder of EKI, said he faced the dilemma of killing off Dasima as in the original tale, or letting her live.
"In the past, stories about women always ended tragically. So, we decided to change the ending," he said at the press preview.
The intention is clearly to show the downside of modern life, with characters like a gay director, Nina, the abandoned child, Rudy the womanizer and Tejo the slacker poet.
Unfortunately, the story does not pan out well and the emotional intent gets lost in the jumble of singing, dancing and dialog. Nina's sad looks, after mommy and daddy fail to pay attention to her, fall flat, like most of the scenes.
The director also tries to get a few quick laughs by having a pudgy guy dancing only in his boxers, and with Indra being himself talking up a storm. Again, the attempts do not come off.
It would probably have been better with more dancing and singing, instead of superficial dialog based on the trendy-speak of Jakarta youth. It was telling that the restaurant scene was the only one which drew any emotion, mainly due to less dialog.
One of the good points of the show is the cast of celebrities. They were not a disappointment, especially Syaharani in a dazzling performance.