Review: BUN Musical

The smile of Shangkarta town has disappeared. The smell of "Bun" bread that has always been fragrant, hadn't come out for a long time. Even the magic chose to hide in the darkness.

Aileen, the sole successor of "Bun" Bakery walks lonely and sadly along the streets. Her kindness has been wrongly used by her merciless competitor, Tjwan.

But life always seems to find a way for each and every person. The presence of Ario the nomad gives Aileen hope and proved Aileen that being good is not enough, it takes wits and smarts to take over hardships and face the world.

Aileen is torn between sincerity and wits in running her store back to the original, and more successful state before it's too late. The journey begins as Aileen has to find the secret behind success.

BUN Musical, a production from JPCC (Jakarta Praise Community Church) Performing Arts Division, tells a story about a girl named Aileen who tries to live up her grandmother's way of business in a little bakery shop of Shangkarta. The conflict arises as her grandmother's ex-employee, Tjwan, created his own bakery in success while Aileen struggled with the recipes left out by her grandmother. Aileen was then helped by a nomad named Ario, who helped her create the perfect bun by stealing Tjwan's recipe. After watching the musical, I think the story tries to tell us that every step you take is a chain reaction that leads you to different consequences, whether good or bad.

There are many characters in the show, including supporting characters. For starters, the main protagonist is Aileen, a girl who is really kindhearted but afraid to try something new. Then we have Tjwan, the main antagonist who is selfish and provocative. Another one is Ario, a nomad who tried to help by stealing, trying to justify his actions as if it is for something good. There's also Koh Budi, a narcissistic junkie with big heart. But my personal favorite lie on the supporting characters. They are Pia & Cia, Tjwan's employees who really lighten up the show. Their witty punchline with comical body language really embodies the fun of how a musical should be.

A musical without numbers is like bread without butter, so I tried to listen every number in the show. The lyrics are very simple and literal in my opinion. But the music, I have to give an applause for the composer. The music takes the audience to a whole new level. The composer succeeded in combining several genres, creating a new, fresh, and edgy melodies that fit the lyrics.

Concluding my review for BUN Musical, The actors portrayed the characters very well, and their musical score complimented the acting and put icing on the cake. There's room for improvement in some parts of the story line but overall I enjoyed watching it.

Watching BUN Musical makes you want to know more, what comes next in this beautiful saga. The thought of leaving Shangkarta hasn't occurred to you even after the curtain call. It's like falling in love in the story of a wonderful city that you wish existed.

(Co-written with Kevin Aldrian, Photos Courtesy of Jakarta Praise Community Church)

To post a comment, you must register and login.