Although it is possible to study every major non-English speaking Western culture through its translated literature, this has not been the case with the literature of Indonesia. This is one of the reasons why Lontar was established: to ensure the ancient literary tradition of Indonesia, and its thriving contemporary literature, are more accessible to international scholars.
Aware of the need abroad for text books, Lontar is publishing several multi-volume anthologies of Indonesian literature: one on the history of Indonesian drama, the other two on poetry and short stories.
In 2001, with financial assistance from the Luce Foundation, Lontar began to collect modern Indonesian playscripts. Hundreds were collected and scanned. With advice from Lontar’s editorial advisory board, 50 plays, representing the range of issues that were aired on the Indonesian stage in the twentieth century were chosen for transcription and publication in Indonesian. Of these, 35 were then selected for translation into English.
This decade-long project ended in 2011 with the publication of the four-volume Antologi Drama Indonesia and the three-volume Lontar Anthology of Indonesian Drama. The full contents of both can be seen in the following Publications pages:
Antologi Drama Indonesia, Jilid I-IV:
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 Antologi Drama Indonesia, Jilid 2 (1931-1945) |
 Antologi Drama Indonesia, Jilid 3 (1946-1968) |
 Antologi Drama Indonesia, Jilid 4 (1969-2000) |
Lontar Anthology of Indonesian Drama
