By Peter Maddern
Festival director Joseph Mitchell identified early on with his appointment that his imprint on the OzAsia Festival would centre around contemporary work. On cue, show 1, night 1 and Teater Garasi has taken us to the streets of modern day Jakarta.
As patrons arrive the vibe starts to embrace you. There are singers, whores, police and rowdy announcers roaming. And whereas western audiences may seek out the comfy chairs to view the passing parade, here we are made one with the performance; sitting on cushions or leaning back on the walls, adjusting our vantage spots as scene changes require, all the while keeping our focus varied as activity comes and goes along the road.
It’s messy, everything is in a hurry as the players take us through elements of street life for the vast majority of Indonesians – from capricious property dispossession and the impact of the whims of world markets for food to unconsummated weddings and street badminton. There is corrugated iron, in fact lots of corrugated iron, lady boys and pair of bare feet and shins wrapped up in a mattress.
The Streets path the way for this year’s OzAsia Festival so head for them. But make sure to allow enough time to feast up at the Noodle markets across the plaza as you arrive.
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