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'Ibu': In war, all bargains fail
A scene from Teater Komaâs latest production, Ibu (Mother), which is being staged at the Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) arts center in Central Jakarta
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A scene from Teater Komaâs latest production, Ibu (Mother), which is being staged at the Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) arts center in Central Jakarta. (JP/P.J. Leo) (Mother), which is being staged at the Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) arts center in Central Jakarta. (JP/P.J. Leo)
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span class="inline inline-none">A scene from Teater Koma's latest production, Ibu (Mother), which is being staged at the Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) arts center in Central Jakarta. (JP/P.J. Leo)
At the end of a war, is there ever really a winner?
In its latest production, Teater Koma is adapting Bertolt Brecht's classic, Mother Courage and Her Children, which depicts the catastrophe of war.
The play, titled Ibu, follows the story of Anna Pirling, a woman who is determined to profit from a war between Black Sun and White Sun troops in 17th century Europe. Also known as Ibu Brani or Mother Courage, she refuses to be a victim of the war and decides to set up a stall on a wagon selling various items to both warring regiments.
She lives with her three children that help her to run the stall, which is called Kantin Ibu Brani.
One day, Ibu Brani, along with her three children, is stopped by the Black Sun's recruitment officer and a sergeant. The recruiter wants to hire Ibu Brani's eldest son, Elip Noyoki, who is tall, stout and brave. Ibu Brani says no, persuading the recruiter that Elip is not the young man he is looking for.
While the sergeant negotiates with Ibu Brani over some goods on sale, the recruiter successfully leads Elip to become the black regiments' new soldier.
She also loses her other two children because of the ill circumstances of war. She cannot survive the war just because she provides the warring parties things that they need. The war robs everything from her as she tries to gain something from it.
When the White Sun army captures her second son, Fejoz, Ibu Brani tries to pay a ransom to release him. Like so many earlier times, she tries to get a good bargain.
'Corruption within a man is equal to God's love. And now, corruption is our only hope. As long as we have hope, there's always a light punishment,' says Ibu Brani.
This time, she loses her luck. White Sun troops shoot Fejoz dead. His mother cannot recognize him because of his fatal wounds.
Teater Koma records another interesting performance with its 131st production, coming with a strong script that successfully meets the current condition of Indonesia.
Sari Madjid, who plays Ibu Brani, gives a strong appearance as a senior actress. Meanwhile, Ina Kaka, who plays Katrin, her youngest and only daughter, steals the show with her outstanding non-verbal routine.
Despite taking the story from a European background, the group ' under director Nano Riantiarno ' brings out the sad facts of war.
'Nothing is changed [in Ibu], but I want it to be produced with a mix of Germany and Indonesia, or something that is archipelagic,' said Nano.
'On stage, you'll see European rice paddies, sugar canes, eggplants, onions, chilies, yams and other crops. [There is also a portrayal of] the troubled morality of the ruler, which is caused by capitalism's power of economy and culture,' said Nano.
Ibu is on stage from Nov. 1 to 17 at Graha Bhakti Budaya of the Taman Ismail Marzuki in Central Jakarta.
