Celebrating a Century of Pramoedya Ananta Toer, the Theater Production 'Bunga Penutup Abad' Returns

After successful productions in 2016, 2017, and 2018, the play "Bunga Penutup Abad" (The Flower at the End of the Century) produced by Titimangsa and presented by the Djarum Foundation's Bakti Budaya, is back to greet literature and theater enthusiasts across the country. This performance will be shown on August 29, 30, and 31, 2025, at Ciputra Artpreneur, Jakarta. Today's three-day performance is the result of the commitment, hard work, and love of all the actors and support team in bringing to life the spirit of the literary works of Indonesia's proud literary figures.

"Bunga Penutup Abad is back due to the longing of theatergoers and Pramoedya Ananta Toer fans." The story of Nyai Ontosoroh, Minke, and Annelies is very moving. For us, Pram's works have a spirit and values that are still very relevant to the current conditions of our nation. "Bringing it back to the stage is how we celebrate and remind us all to love this nation even more," said Happy Salma, the producer of this performance.

The theater performance of "Bunga Penutup Abad," which is also Titimangsa's 88th production, is an adaptation of the first two books of Pramoedya Ananta Toer's Buru Tetralogy, namely "Bumi Manusia" and "Anak Semua Bangsa." 2025 also marks the 100th anniversary of Pramoedya Ananta Toer's birth, making it a fitting moment for reflection and celebration of Pram's contributions to the development of Indonesian literature, history, thought, and culture. This year's Bunga Penutup Abad performance is even more special because it is part of the Pramoedya Ananta Toer Foundation's year-long program commemorating Pram's centenary.

We are very proud to be a part of this end-of-century performance, Bunga Penutup Abad, from the beginning until now. We see how Pramoedya Ananta Toer's literary works have strong stories and characters that are very memorable to the audience. "The return of this performance proves that quality theatrical works are always worthy of appreciation, and it serves as an effective bridge to introduce great Indonesian writers to the new generation," said Renitasari Adrian, Program Director of Bakti Budaya Djarum Foundation.

Bunga Penutup Abad tells the story of Nyai Ontosoroh and Minke's lives after Annelies' departure to the Netherlands. Nyai Ontosoroh is worried about Annelies' well-being and sends her employe, Robert Jan Dapperste or Panji Darman, to accompany Annelies wherever she goes. Annelies' life since leaving Surabaya Harbor was continuously reported thru letters by Panji Darman.

The letters are postmarked from various cities where the ship Annelies was traveling stopped. Minke always read the letters to Nyai Ontosoroh. Letter by letter, they opened doors of nostalgia between the three of them, like when Minke first met Annelies and Nyai Ontosoroh, how Nyai Ontosoroh was sued by her stepson, until Annelies was forced to be taken to the Netherlands based on a decision by the Dutch East Indies white court.

At the end of the story, Minke receives news that Annelies has died in the Netherlands. Despite being overcome with sadness, Minke still went to Batavia to continue his studies to become a doctor. On the journey, she brought with her a painting by her friend, Jean Marais. The portrait of Annelies was named 'Flower of the Century' by Minke.

The characters in "The End of the Century Flower" will be played by Happy Salma as Nyai Ontosoroh, and will feature Indonesia's best actors, namely Reza Rahadian as Minke, Chelsea Islan as Annelies, Andrew Trigg as Jean Marais, and Sajani Arifin as May Marais. Wawan Sofwan is back as both director and screenwriter.

This time, the Flower of the Century performance has differences compared to previous ones. In terms of the script, the story undergoes slight adjustments and is condensed so that the audience will receive a fresh presentation of the work. Stage scenography has also seen better development. The stage will utilize systems and techniques that have never been applied in the previous three performances.

There's something new about our manuscript. When I was offered the director's role again, I had one proposal for the producer: I wanted to rework the script to strengthen its dramatic structure. The story will remain relevant for today, especially for the younger generation. This adaptation will be a catalyst for the younger generation to learn what the Flower of the End of the Century is, what novel it's based on, and who the author is. Thus, the younger generation will get to know Indonesian literary works even better," said Wawan Sofwan, the director of Bunga Penutup Abad.

The cast composition also differs. The character of Nyai Ontosoroh, played by Marsha Timothy in 2018, will be brought to life this year by Happy Salma.

This performance was also made possible thanks to the support of PT Pertamina (Persero), Ciputra Artpreneur, BCA, the Jakarta Provincial Department of Culture, Jeeves Indonesia, and The Dharmawangsa. High appreciation was also given to the media partners who served as a bridge to disseminate information about this performance to the public, including: detikPop Part of detikcom, Harper's Bazaar Indonesia, Her World Indonesia, Cosmopolitan Indonesia, Radio The Rockin’ Life Jakarta (87.6 FM), Iswara Jakarta (101.4 FM), Femina, Medcom.id, Beritasatu, Beritasatu.com, BTV, Kumparan, Kompas.com, Elle Indonesia Magazine, Dewi Magazine, Kapanlagi.com, Liputan6.com, Fimela.com, Nyata Media, Akurat.co, Tangsel Life, Info Tangerang, Tatler Indonesia, and Katadata.