Nora sister Seminar and A doll's house Ibsen in Aceh

“The Future of Acehnese Women: Towards a Community of Solidarity”
Hotel Hermes, Banda Aceh, 28 April 2010,

Organized by Institut Ungu and Norwegian Embassy Jakarta and supported by Flower Aceh

Background

The seminar Nora’s Sisters has been organized 17 times in 15 countries around the world by Norwegian Embassies in cooperation with local institutions since 2006. The idea behind the seminars is to put women’s issues on the agenda in different cultures by using the writings of Ibsen as a source of inspiration.

Henrik Ibsen (1828 – 1906) was a Norwegian playwright who is the most performed writer worldwide after Shakespeare. His plays were highly controversial in his own time, and still remain contemporary in terms of topics and criticism – more than 100 years after his death.

The Centre for Ibsen Studies in Oslo is running a project called “Ibsen between cultures”. Its specific goal is to reach an understanding of Ibsen’s function as a global dramatist, i.e. how an Ibsen play is evaluated, and how the value of the plays are altered, shifted, transferred and appropriated, when localized in new cultural contexts.

Nora is the main character in Ibsen’s play A Doll’s House written in 1879. It was the first of Ibsen’s to create a sensation and is now perhaps his most famous play. It was controversial when first published – and is often characterized as the first true feminist play. The story portraits a woman who has been treated as a toy all her life – first by her father and then by her husband. Finally she is revolting by leaving her husband. Thus A Doll’s House criticizes the traditional roles of men and women in 19th century marriage. The end of the play, where Nora slams the door and leaves her husband has been subject to critics, interpretation and change ever since the original version and several alternative endings have been produced throughout theatres all over the world.

Both the topical interest and cultural flexibility in Ibsen’s writings make Aceh an interesting venue for a seminar of this kind. In the Acehnese context Nora’s life and destiny is highly relevant, as it is in many countries. The purpose of using Ibsen’s play as a starting point is to discuss under which conditions men and women are living together and what kind of expectations, traditions, laws and regulations that define their relationship, both at home and in society.

Consistant with the Acehnese context and cultural setting, the seminar is inviting panelists who can address these issues from different perspectives:
• How is the cultural and social history of Aceh encouraging women to take active part in society?
• What influence do Acehnese women have on their own situation? Where do they see themselves in 10 years? (since reformation era/post Soeharto era)
• What are the expectations for the future towards Acehnese women –from themselves, their family, the community?
• How can the women in Aceh create a community of solidarity, if they would like to change anything?
• To what extent is the current political and religious trends in Aceh conflicting Indonesian law and international obligations?
• To what extent is sharia law compatible with a society having modern aspirations?

PANEL discussion with opening A performance of excerpts from “A doll' house” by Henrik Ibsen, constructed onto a short dramatic piece by Faiza Mardzoeki and performed by Utami Aditia Wardani and Wawan Sofwan