'Pesta Terakhir' unravels the ugly side of human nature

By Oei Eng Goan

JAKARTA (JP): Ratna Sarumpaet's latest play Pesta Terakhir (The Last Rites) depicts a tragedy that befalls a self-assertive woman, Haryati, who, having the illusion that her father was a respectable man, plans to administer the last rites to the old man.

To her surprise and despondency, however, no one comes to pay their respects even though the deceased has been lain in state for five days. Worse still, no one shares her anguish, not even Duha, her husband the general. Duha even persuades her into admitting that her father was actually a covetous businessman who pretended to be a sociable person and a champion of the poor.

Duha's indifference to her plight and the absence of mourners in her house awaken Haryati to the ugly part of human nature: greed, hypocrisy, and ingratitude.

Confronted with such a situation, Haryati then hits out at the unjust system of a society already corrupted by material wealth and power. She thus attacks the community where she lives in which has blinded its members to the good moral values that human beings ought to adopt and undertake.

Dissipation gives birth to arbitrary acts of the authorities who do not hesitate to trample the rights of the poor and the marginalized people under the pretext of national interest and development. This view is clearly expressed in chorus by a dozen ghosts who come to fetch the soul of Haryati's father.

"With naked eyes we witness how people are being deprived of their rights. Right under our noses, human freedom has been infringed upon ... and rifle butts have gone on the rampage, claiming the lives of (innocent) people" thus protest the ghosts against officials' call to move out from their graves which will be converted into a new project.

The plot of Pesta Terakhir, which Ratna stars in and directs herself, is simple. So is the presentation of the 90-minute drama with the stage sparsely furnished only with a couple of chairs and a bamboo stretcher commonly used to carry a corpse for a Moslem burial.

The setting, movements and positioning of the players take the style of a Greek tragedy. The presence of a chorus, represented by players who wear masks and play the role of ghosts, to add details to the story development and the infusion of Sophoclean irony are other examples of how the basic elements of conventional drama are faithfully adhered to.

The play is produced by Satu Merah Panggung theatrical group, artistic works for decor and lighting are done by a group of artists that include up-and-coming choreographer Boi G. Sakti and stage experts Roejito while music accompaniment by Sugeng Pratikno.

The strong point of Pesta Terakhir is more on the dialog than it is in the acting. Not all the actors play their roles well except the portrayals of Haryati (played by Ratna Sarumpaet), the faithful dog Domky (Joel Taher) and the ghosts are truly up to the audience's expectation.

In fact, what makes the drama interesting is the message underlying the play, performed at Taman Ismail Marzuki's Graha Bhakti Budaya until tomorrow evening. The message, or rather the outcry of the underprivileged, is of the widening gap between the rich and the poor due to unequal distribution of wealth and unfair practice of monopoly.

Besides, a short but clear reference to the need for human beings to respond to a muezzin or a chime's call to prayer encapsulates the playwright's ideas on the importance of religious harmony in Indonesia, which over the past few months has been hit by sporadic ethnic riots and dissension during which a number of Christian and Buddhist houses of worships were burned down.

This alone makes Pesta Terakhir a worth-seeing play.