W.S. Rendra

Willibrordus Surendra Broto Narendra (7 November 1935 – 6 August 2009), widely known as Rendra or W. S. Rendra, was an Indonesian dramatist, poet, activist, performer, actor and director.

==Biography== ===Early life=== Born in Surakarta to a Roman Catholic family and baptized as Willibrordus Surendra Bawana Rendra, he shortened his name to Rendra when he converted to Islam in 1970. After studying English literature and culture at Gajah Mada University in Yogyakarta, he chose not to graduate because he was already gainfully employed with his first theatrical project. He had staged his first play ("Dead Voices") in 1963, became fascinated with the craft, and from then on, with his mixture of traditional religious ritual performances and Western avant-garde experiments, was able to create a large following. Because of the nature of his poetry readings and his flamboyant performances on the stage, the press gave him the nickname "Burung Merak" (the Peacock).