Review: Svatuhari’s THE PANDAWAS: From the Community, For the Community
This production was part of Svatuhari's annual event "Svathefest" and brought the theme "Jagat Fantasi"
Review by Nabila “Hana” Hananti, editing by Rakaputra Paputungan
On April 30th-May 3rd 2026, the theatre community Svatuhari hosted their annual event Svathefest 2026 with the theme “Jagat Fantasi”. This event was hosted for four days, with each of the four days having a different pre-show before their main one. In 2026, their main show was titled THE PANDAWAS: AMBISI TRI MANDALA. We from Broadway World Indonesia had the opportunity to watch their show on May 2nd, and here’s our review.
THE PANDAWAS: AMBISI TRI MANDALA was a packed show made by the people from the Svatuhari community. So many people contributed to this show, be it as part of the performing team or the one behind the stage. There were so many characters and names mentioned within the play that sometimes it became difficult to keep up on who’s who. Yet somehow, all of the characters managed to shine in their own way and swept the audience. None of them outshined the others – a very fascinating balance to be found in such a large collective.
THE PANDAWAS: AMBISI TRI MANDALA successfully introduced the whole new fantastical world it had built to the audience without making it feel unintelligible or incorrigible. Despite the fantastical premise, it also didn’t take itself too seriously and leaned towards its lighthearted, humorous side, making it one of the most entertaining shows of the year.
This show was a direct political critic of the current government situation in Indonesia, set within a fantasy school. Within this story and within this country, the people in charge were responsible for creating and maintaining policies for the betterment of the masses. And yet, the only thing that they actually wanted to do was to maintain – and even increase – their power and influence over their domain, reminiscent of a dictatorship. It also directly criticized the country’s decreasing interest in educating its people. It was a show that was completely and perfectly on the nose.
It had a strong chaotic energy while maintaining the balance of keeping everything organized. It had a vision to tell the story of THE PANDAWAS: AMBISI TRI MANDALA while also conveying what makes Svatuhari the community that it is. It showed the ambition of the people involved within this show, delivering its intense teamwork and organized chaos.
Artistic-wise, there were so many things going on on the stage, be it the use of multimedia, puppetry, as well as lighting. There was an overwhelming amount of activity happening on the stage, and yet the technical synchronicity of everything was near-perfect.
It’s unfortunate, however, that the titular group “The Pandawas” itself didn’t play a significant role within the story that would make them stand out within the crowd. They were just part of the collective that is Svatuhari.
While THE PANDAWAS: AMBISI TRI MANDALA was far from polished, it was a production full of heart consisting of people genuinely interested in performing. I would say that this was a show made from the community for the community; a warm collective full of spirited people working together in order to achieve the results that they did. The constraint of the small venue that they had gave them an opportunity to utilize it as best they could, and best they did.
All in all, I’d say this was a fun show. And I am very interested to see what Svatuhari will create next.
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