Ali Topan: A rebel to die for

Love tragedy: The cast of the musical Ali Topan salutes the audience at Graha Bhakti Budaya, Taman Ismail Marzuki art space in Central Jakarta. Antara/Andika WahyuBad boys — or those who appear bad but are secretly good — are to die for. Ali Topan is one of them.

The romantic grungy character from a 1970s novel by Teguh Esha has come to life again in an Ali Topan musical, put together by production house Artistika Mahaswara Indonesia or ArtSwara.

A rebel against authority, a free spirit, a wounded soul, Ali Topan is the epitome of youth, rage and idealism. But the musical of Ali Topan Anak Jalanan (Ali Topan The Street Boy) does not solely center on the restless and angry Topan. It is a love story between Topan and Anna Karenina. It is essentially a tragedy.

The story is also laden with moral messages, while highlighting the battle between authorities and individual freedom.

It shows the hypocrisy and superficiality of Jakarta’s materialistic upper class and its ignorance of other people’s suffering.

All this was presented in an enjoyable and moving 160-minute musical, with high quality performances from the tightly selected cast.

Open to the public from April 11 to 17, the musical is staged at Graha Bhakti Budaya, Taman Ismail Marzuki art space in Central Jakarta.

The quality of the cast, the flow of the show, the high-tech setting of the stage, the great musical repertoires show the seriousness of AsrtSwara in carrying out this production.

After producing Gita Cinta The Musical in March last year, ArtSwara executive director Maera A. Panigoro teamed up again with choreographer Ari Tulang to produce Ali Topan.

They learned from observing musicals presented in the West End, UK’s center for musical performances.

Dian HP, who was responsible for musical’s repertoire, said she based the whole musical on rock music. She included classical music in a particular scene as well as traditional music in other scenes.

Dian arranged for the cast to sing songs from Guruh Sukarno Putra and Chrisye. She also wrote new arias for the musical.

Love story: Ali Topan (left — played by Dendy Mulya Pasha) and Anna Karenina stand in the street, in the musical Ali Topan, playing at Taman Ismail Marzuki art space until April 17. JP/Prodita SabariniAli Topan is a story about a young idealist who feels neglected by his rich parents. He becomes disillusioned by their constant bickering. His father frequents hotel rooms with different women, while his mother has become apathetic and seeks pleasure in the arms of a younger man.

His only escape is when he speeds down Jakarta’s streets at night on his trail bike. He befriends the marginalized on the street — the street children, sex workers, street vendors and organizes a music festival for street children to join.

Meanwhile, Ana Karenina comes from a family with a Nobel background. She feels trapped in the confines of her controlling parents, and finds courage and freedom in Ali Topan.

“We love each other/ he opened my eyes and my heart/ made me a courageous girl”, Ana sings of Topan to her parents.

Ana shows Topan she isn’t the spoiled rich girl he thought she was, and they eventually fall in love. Ana’s parents disapprove of their relationship and with the help of Boy — their choice of partner for Ana — they frame Topan who ends up in the hands of police authorities.

Ari and Maera said they combined the story from the novel and the Ali Topan film. The musical is set in the 1970s, giving it a retro yet contemporary feel, Ari said.

Auditions for the cast gave the lead role to Dendy Mulya Pasha, the former vocalist of the band Kunci and vocalist of Mike’s. Dendy’s husky voice did not produce a beautiful, good pitch, but was also able to make the audience feel the wounded and romantic soul of Topan.

Kikan Namara, meanwhile, successfully acted out the transformation of Ana Karenina from an unhappy rich girl to a brave rebellious free woman.

The chemistry between the two lovers was portrayed on stage through kissing and lovemaking scenes.

The voice of Trie Utami, who played Mbok Yem, the loyal and loving house cleaner of Topan’s family, gave the audience goose bumps. Mbok Yem had raised Topan and told him once that “warriors never run away”. Trie sang sinden (classical Javanese female vocals) in her part.

Candra Satria and Lisa Depe, who played Mr and Mrs Surya, Ana’s parents, deserve a round of applause for their impressive operatic duet. The same goes for Ricky Jo and Sita Nursanti, who played Topan’s parents.

Other cast members also gave a rich and sometimes comical touch to the tragedy. Tike Priatnakusumah as the voluptuous street side coffee shop owner brought laughter to the audience for her sexually charged jokes toward Topan; and Putu Sutha did a wonderful job portraying the dirty and evil Boy.

The setting of the stage changed fluidly between the 12 scenes. Most impressive was the use of multimedia to recreate Topan’s speeding during the night.

Dendy mounted the trail bike positioned in the middle of the stage, while moving images of buildings and the street were projected on the background screen as well as the stage’s floor.

The video mapping gave the audience the impression Ali Topan was riding through the night. When Topan brought Ana to the seashore, and professed his love to her, the images in the background changed to stars twinkling in the galaxy.

Rebellious soul: Ali Topan, played by Dendy Mulya Pasha, the former vocalist of the band Kunci and vocalist of Mike’s, takes to speeding through the streets of Jakarta at night on his trail bike, as an escape from his life. JP/Prodita SabariniIt took the cast six months to prepare for the musical. After the first performance for press and special guests on Sunday, Dendy said he felt like fainting. Kikan, whose last scene was an emotionally draining performance for both the audience and herself as the actor, kept quiet.

Musicals have regained popularity over time. In the last two years, Jakartans have been presented with Jakarta Love Riot by EKI Dance Company; film director Joko Anwar brought Onrop! to the audience; and Mira Lesmana with Jay Subiakto put together Laskar Pelangi (Rainbow Warriors).

Ari said the aim of the musical was to create a space for artists to express themselves in a different way. He added they wanted to give Jakarta alternative entertainment.

“ArtSwara wants to develop the musical industry in Indonesia,” Maera said. Through musicals she said they could invite the audience to appreciate the work of Indonesian artists.

Tickets cost between Rp 200,000 (balcony seats) and Rp 1 million for platinum seats. The venue can seat 750.

Ali Topan The Musical
Until April 17
Graha Bhakti Budaya
Taman Ismail Marzuki
Jalan Cikini Raya No. 73
Central Jakarta
www.artswara.com