Maliq & D'Essentials Excited for Their Songs to be Adapted into a Musical Theatre
REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA – The songs of Maliq & D’Essentials will be adapted into a musical theatre titled “Senja Teduh Pelita”. In collaboration with Jakarta Movin, this project marks the first time that the band’s work has been adapted into a musical theatre format.
Maliq & D’Essentials member, Rivani Indriya Suwendi, or Indah as she is affectionately known, admitted that she never imagined their songs would be presented in another form. Indah also expressed her enthusiasm and amazement at seeing how Maliq’s songs were developed into a relevant and touching musical story.
“As someone who usually sings these songs on stage, I never expected that it could be made into such an amazing musical,” said Indah at a press conference at Galeri Indonesia Kaya, Wednesday (3/6/2026).
The musical “Senja Teduh Pelita” is inspired by around 20 songs by Maliq & D’Essentials from their first to ninth album, including “Senja Teduh Pelita”, “Himalaya”, “Aurora”, “Jalan Pulang”, and “Begini Begitu”. She also hopes that this musical can reach new listeners and extend the lifespan of the songs created during their 24 years of work.
“We have been creating works for 24 years. We want the works we create to be more than just songs. We want these works to have a longer lifespan and be more sustainable,” said Indah.
Although Maliq & D’Essentials is often associated with romantic songs, the meaning of love conveyed is actually much broader than just a relationship between couples. According to Indah, this has been successfully translated in the musical story “Senja Teduh Pelita”.
“Indeed, the songs we create are known for being about love, but as Nuya (the musical director) mentioned earlier, love has a broad meaning. It’s not just about couples, but also about family, about oneself, and about the environment,” she said.
Another member of Maliq & D’Essentials, Widi Puradiredja, revealed that they gave full freedom to the director and the Jakarta Movin team to explore their songs. According to Widi, this approach is indeed a principle that Maliq & D’Essentials often applies when working with various creative parties.
“When collaborating with people, for example, with visuals or artwork, we give them freedom. We actually need the views of our partners regarding Maliq,” said Widi.
He added that the new perspective from these collaborators ultimately brings a different color that is not usually done by Maliq & D’Essentials. “That ultimately gives a different color or something different from what Maliq usually does,” he said.