Indonesia - "OH"

IVP is back in Chicago with its festival of contemporary plays in translation.

Join us for an evening of theatre across languages and cultures.

Experience a live reading of a newly translated script, bringing a fresh international voice to the stage. Following the performance, stay for a talk-back with the artists to explore the translation process, themes of the work, and the journey from page to performance.

A short reception will follow—an opportunity to connect, reflect, and continue the conversation.

“OH!” | Indonesia

May 21st, 2026

Written by Putu Wijaya

Translated by Cobina Gillitt

Directed by Warner Crocker

In partnership with

Synopsis

OH! explores difference, justice, and truth-both in the courtroom and in the conscience of the community. It depicts the paradox between a parent's longing for his child and the ambition of a brilliant but arrogant young man who places his career first. The play manifests the inner voice of a renowned Senior Attorney who can no longer speak or walk due to a stroke. He longs to see his only son, now a famous lawyer trained under his guidance.

The Young Attorney arrives to fulfill his father's request, but he comes not as a son, but as an ambitious lawyer seeking his mentor's opinion on a case: defending a drug dealer facing two death sentences. What becomes clear is that it is the Young Attorney's ghost who arrives-apologizing and confessing that he now understands he was wrong. When he last visited his father, he should have come not as an arrogant lawyer, but as a son. But all of that has already happened. Nothing can be done to fix it.