Show marks anniversary of Sukarno's birth

By Primastuti Handayani

JAKARTA (JP): Guruh Soekarno Putra's Menggugat (Guruh Soekarno Putra's Demands) would perhaps be a more appropriate title for his show commemorating the 100th anniversary of the birth of his father, first president Sukarno.

His piece, Perikemanusiaan (Humanity), which was presented by pop diva Reza, might well represent his own reflections on what happened to his father.

"Dia dihina, dicaci, dinista, dimaki/seakan tak pernah dia berjasa/seakan dia makhluk tak berguna...." (He was insulted, condemned, disgraced, cursed/as if he had never gave service / as if he were a worthless creature ....), says Guruh as he attempts to represent Sukarno's last days, especially after Soeharto took power in 1966.

But Guruh, 48, did not let himself be carried away by emotional memories of his father during the 90-minute show at the Jakarta Convention Center's Assembly Hall in Senayan, Central Jakarta, on Wednesday

He opted to present Sukarno's speeches to remind the audience of the spirit of nationhood, which has been declining recently, especially among the younger generation.

An archive film of Sukarno declaring Indonesia's independence on Aug. 17, 1945, which was displayed on two giant screens on each side of the stage, was preceded by an opening piece of Javanese sacred dance, the Warsa Wijaya bedoyo, performed by nine girls with long hair, wearing red camisole and parang batik as costumes.

Instead of being accompanied by a traditional gamelan orchestra, the dance was accompanied by the Erwin Gutawa Orchestra along with a choir.

The show, which was also attended by Guruh's sister President Megawati Soekarnoputri and husband Taufik Kiemas, along with Vice President Hamzah Haz and his wife, featured some of Guruh's old songs and dances from previous shows.

Melati Suci (Pure Jasmine) -- a duet by noted soprano Aning Katamsi and Sundanese sinden (traditional singer) Nenah Nurhasanah -- reminded viewers of Guruh's first work Untukmu Indonesiaku (To You My Indonesia) in 1977 with his Swara Mahardhika, a social and political organization he set up but then changed into a foundation, as he featured the same choreography where girls wearing white Makassar Baju Bodo traditional costumes performed Korean style dance with fans.

Guruh's old friend Chrisye, a noted Indonesian singer and songwriter, expressed his sadness about violence by singing Chopin Larung. The song was included in the Guruh-Gipsy album in 1978 and also performed during Guruh's Untung Surapati show in June 1998.

New boyband Fajar Baru Indonesia featured a new-rap- arrangement Zamrud Katulistiwa (Equatorial Emerald) along with a buffalo on stage, which raised a laugh from the audience.

But Guruh also presented new songs, including Simfoni Raya Indonesia (Symphony of Great Indonesia) by child sensation Sherina who proved her quality in the relatively difficult repertoire.

Unfortunately, tenor Christopher Abimanyu, who sang Bela Indonesia (Defend Indonesia), failed to perform to the maximum on stage as the song was too "pop" for his caliber.

A call for unity was made when Joice performed Putri Tionghoa (Chinese girl) in a Mandarin-arrangement accompanied by a lampion paper-lantern dance. The giant screens displayed the faces of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics gold medalist Susy Susanti, former minister of education and culture Fuad Hasan and other figures from the country's minorities.

In general, the event was just like other Guruh shows where young dancers from Kinarya GSP, his entertainment business, performed cabaret-style choreographies in lavish costumes.

But the stage was much too simple for such a performance as it was bare of decoration except for a kind of tower in the center back, red-and-white backdrops and some poles bearing flags.

Despite some repetitions, Guruh still received a standing ovation from the audience, which included former movie star Rahayu Effendi, former state minister of youth affairs and sport Hayono Isman, former model Sandy Harun, videoclip director Rizal Mantovani and child psychologist Seto Mulyadi.

Profits from tickets sales, sold at between Rp 100,000 and Rp 300,000 each, will go to the Bung Karno Foundation to build the Sukarno Center which is planned for a 10-hectare site close to the capital. The center, expected to be completed in 2004, will accommodate a museum, library, multipurpose hall, an archive and a research center.

In his show, Guruh managed to keep the story on track with documentary film of his father, including footage of when Sukarno met U.S. former president John F. Kennedy, the start of the construction of the Bung Karno Sports Complex in Senayan, a number of his speeches, and the last days before he passed away.

The chairman of the Bung Karno Foundation urged the country's younger generation to keep loving the country even though its image had been severely tarnished over the last four years.

In commemorating Independence Day, Indonesians should ask themselves what they had done for the country? Had they helped to improve it or had they helped to destroy it. Now was the time for all of us to start working together for the sake of the country.