Rendra to stage 'Dragon Tribe'

Rendra to stage 'Dragon Tribe'

JAKARTA (JP): A foreign company has just set up a joint
venture in a country called Astinam to work on a mining project
located near the Seloka Valley, home to the indigenous Suku Naga,
(the Dragon Tribe).

The Astinam government is very enthusiastic about the project
because it can generate a lot of cash for the country, not to
mention for the officials themselves.

To make way for the project, the government plans to evict a
village's residents. This development project, which benefits
only a few people, will destroy the centuries-old civilization
and ancient religion of the Suku Naga.

The efforts to fight for their rights to their land is the
focus of W.S. Rendra's play Perjuangan Suku Naga (The Struggle of
the Dragon Tribe) which is to be staged at Graha Bhakti Budaya at
the Taman Ismail Marzuki art center on Tuesday and Wednesday as
part of the Second Art Summit Indonesia: Performing Arts.

"The essence of this play is still relevant to the current
situation in Indonesia although I wrote and staged it 23 years
ago," explained Rendra, one of the most prominent theatrical
figures in Indonesia.

Perjuangan Suku Naga deals with corruption, collusion, social
injustice, natural exploitation and other development excesses
perpetrated by a government which ignores its people's voices.

The struggle of Suku Naga actually symbolizes the continuing
endeavors of the Indonesian people to fight the unscrupulous
practices of the authorities and their cronies.

"After more than 20 years, Indonesia has not yet changed that
much. Only the cast members are new; the system remains
unchanged, said Rendra.

To fit with the present sociopolitical situation, Rendra made
slight changes to his script. He also replaced some of the old
cast with new actors.

The play involves senior members of Bengkel Teater such as Ken
Zuraida (Rendra's wife) as the Queen of Astinam, who replaces
Yati Angkoro. Adi Kurdi plays the chief of the Suku Naga.

The three-and-a-half hour play is written in a Javanese puppet
tradition, presenting a dalang (puppeteer) and wayang (puppet)
characters.

Supported by more than 30 cast members from Bengkel Teater
and musicians from the Surakarta Arts Institute (STSI), Rendra,
through his Perjuangan Suku Naga, invites the audience to search
for a solution to the current crisis and to think of the
country's future.

For many Indonesians, Rendra's works have always provided new
horizons and clear perspectives on current issues.

He was born Willibrordus Surendra Broto Rendra in Surakarta 63
years ago. The son of devout Catholics, he converted to Islam
later in life. His father was a language teacher and his mother
an accomplished classical dancer.

Rendra has five children from his first wife, the late
Sunarti, four from second wife Sitoresmi and two from his current
wife, Ken Zuraida.

He originally wanted to be an army officer, but he did not
meet the standard enrollment prerequisites as he majored in
social sciences instead of physics at high school.

He studied English Literature at Gadjah Mada University in
Yogyakarta and taught drama there although he did not complete
his studies. He continued his study at the American Academy of
Dramatic Arts in the United States.

Upon his return from the United States, Rendra started to
shake local campus lives by echoing social criticism through
poems, monologues and plays.

He fueled students' lives in the early l970s with new energy
and new spirit to fight against corrupt authority. His poems and
plays were the voice of the underprivileged groups in society.

He was jailed in the early days of his career for public
readings of his poems and plays, which the government argued
could threaten national unity. The government also banned his
group in l979 from performing for eight years.

Rendra and his Bengkel Teater is still flourishing despite
efforts to curb their freedoms of artistic expression.

Rendra founded Bengkel Teater in Yogyakarta in l967. Among its
graduates are noted scriptwriters, film directors, and actors
including the late Arifin C. Noor, Putu Wijaya, Azwar A.N. Deddy
Sutomo, Sardono, Adi Kurdi, Putu Wijaya and Syu'bah Asa.

Rendra's works, loaded with trenchant social criticism, have
served as a moral conscience for many. It has also often got him
into trouble with the authorities.

His debut as playwright came at the age of 17 in l952 with
Goncangan Pertama (First Snag). He wrote his first short story
titled Drama Pasar Pon (Pon Market Drama).

He also wrote Orang Orang di Tikungan Jalan (People in the
Corner of the Street) in l954, which won him an award from the
Yogyakarta Ministry of Education and Culture office.

Other works include Sekda, Mastodon dan Burung Kondor,
(Mastodon and the Condor Bird), Kereta Kencana (The Royal Coach),
Panembahan Reso and Oedipus Rex.

Among his poetry anthologies are Potret Pembangunan Dalam
Puisi (The Portrait of Development in a Poem), Bersatulah
Pelacur-Pelacur Kota Jakarta (Unite Prostitutes of Jakarta) Pesan
Pencopet Kepada Pacarnya (A Message of A Thief to His
Girlfriend).

Rendra and Bengkel Teater has just staged Selamatan Putra-
Putri Solomon (The Rituals of Solomon's Children) at the
International Theater Festival in Kwa Chon in South Korea. (raw)