Tamara makes her path in theater

Tamara makes her path in theater

Yusuf Susilo Hartono, Contributor, Jakarta

That night, actress Tamara Bleszynski looked tense, rushing from
her makeup room to the restroom several times. But when the gong
rang three times, she steadied herself, entered the stage and
transformed herself into Syarifah.

That particular night, Tamara took center stage at Gedung
Kesenian Jakarta, playing the beautiful, smart wife of Commander
Cik Awang in a comedy titled Musang Berjanggut (Bearded Civet).

In the play, staged for two consecutive nights, she performed
alongside experienced actors like Jose Rizal Manua, who also
directed the play, Nizar Zulmi, Rachman Jacob and Soultan
Saladin.

On the first night, she performed adequately but on the
second, the audience loved her, unable to stop laughing and
cheering.

"I always feel tense before appearing on stage; that's why I
had to go to the restroom several times," Tamara said in an
interview after the show while being congratulated by friends and
relatives.

But it was natural, as other players felt tense too, she
added.

The play marked her second taste of the theater world. In
1997, she took part in Julius Caesar, a drama produced by Jakarta
Arts Institute's Teater Lembaga group and directed by Josep
Ginting at Ismail Marzuki arts center, Cikini, Central Jakarta.
In the play, she performed as Calpurnia, Caesar's third wife.

"But these two plays have different challenges," said Tamara,
who is blessed with a son.

When playing in Julius Caesar, she said that she was adapting
to the country's theater world, although it might not have been
too difficult for the woman as she had taken speech and drama
lessons while studying in Perth, Australia. At that time, she
took part in several performances such as Shakespeare's Macbeth
and Julius Caesar.

In the new play, which was staged late December, she faced a
different challenge since the dialog was entirely in Malay verse,
something really new to her.

Fortunately, her husband, Teuku Rafli, is an Acehnese while
director Jose Rizal Manua is a native of Padang, West Sumatra.
Both have a good knowledge of Malay verse and could help her.

Now that she has become familiar with these verses, she has
grown to like them very much.

"You know why I like drama; because there is a process of
learning culture and life," Tamara said.

Her husband praised her wife's hard work for the play.

"My wife is a serious person. During the two months of
rehearsals for Musang Berjjangut, she often tried to memorize the
verses in bed. She often discussed with me the content of the
verses and how to recite them," said Rafli, a businessman.

Though Tamara has yet to become as experienced as her seniors,
such as Ratna Riantiarno or Ratna Sarumpaet, one must admit that
her acting deserves credit.

Following the successful Musang Berjanggut, she will again
appear on stage in Cleopatra, due to be performed this April. In
the upcoming play by Jose Rizal Manua, Tamara will be Cleopatra
herself.

Born in Bandung, West Java, at Christmas 1974, she was given
the name Tamara Natalia Christina Mayawati Bleszynski Pasya by
her Czech father and Sundanese mother.

Starting out as a photo model in a youth magazine, she became
a model for a famous soap brand. In 1996, she went into TV film
production until now and has starred in many TV series like Doa
Membawa Berkah (A Blessed Prayer), Wah, Cantiknya (How
Beautiful), Opera SMU (Senior High School Opera) and TV film
Jendela Astrid (Astrid's Window).

Her career has run just like flowing water, her philosophy in
life. Her late father earlier wanted her to go into business but
to the contrary, she found her love in acting. Once, she enrolled
at Indonesia's Esa Unggul University's business development
school but dropped out after only a year. Still, she could use
the knowledge she acquired there to manage her late father's
hotel in the Puncak, Bogor, West Java.

She has also stuck to her philosophy in her beliefs. "Before,
I was a Christian, but now I'm a Muslim. Everything has flowed
simply but I believe God's guidance is in everything," she said.

Now, deep down, the woman, who always wears perfume when she
is in a sexy mood, has a wish.

"I'm longing to have a second child but God has yet to grant
me this wish," Tamara said.