``PIN IPIN`` TO BE STAGED IN FIVE CITIES IN INDONESIA

By Ahmad Fuad Yahya

JAKARTA, Jan 13 (Bernama) -- The "Upin and Ipin" cartoon series, which is a
favourite among children and adults here, will be staged for the first time in
five major cities in Indonesia during school holidays in June and July.

The cities are Jakarta, Bandung (West Java), Makassar (South Sulawesi), Surabaya
(East Java) and Solo (Central Java).

In the play, Upin and Ipin cartoon characters as well as that of his friends
will be brought to life by actors wearing enlivened costumes but the dialogues
will retain the original version in the series with the aid of multimedia
technology.

Rina Novita of DNA Production, the publishing company which holds the rights in
staging the Upin and Ipin play in Indonesia, said the dialogue would be in Malay
with the exception of tok dalang (the narrator), who would address the audience
in local dialects.

"It is not easy to adapt a cartoon series into a play but with the help of the
parody singing groups, P Project and Project Pop, I am confident that the
humorous Upin and Upin story will be well received by the local community," he
said at a news conference here Wednesday.

The Upin and Ipin soundtrack songs produced by the Padi band was launched in
Jakarta last year.

Rina also planned to stage the play at Istana Budaya, Kuala Lumpur in June
besides taking the play to Singapore and Manila.
-- BERNAMA