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The
Write Stuff
The Little Company
Kenneth Kwok
25/08/2008
When we talk about developing new talent in the local theatre
scene, we rarely think about 12 year olds but that's exactly what the
Singapore Repertory Theatre has done. The best part about The Write
Stuff though is that it isn't just a playwriting competition for
primary 5 and 6 students (which would already make this an incredibly
worthwhile project) but that it is also a showcase for the winning works
as well. How utterly thrilling and, more importantly, inspiring an experience
it must be for the 12 finalists to see the words they have put down
on paper magically brought to life like this, especially when the SRT's
Little Company has clearly spared no expense in the staging of the scripts
- I marvel at the resources, thought and love that have clearly gone
into transforming the scripts to into such lavish and vibrant spectacles.
High praise for all involved, from director Michael Corbidge to the
incredible ensemble cast; from the multimedia team to the costume designers
- and everyone in between (including, of course, the young playwrights
themselves).
(Note: I have not commented in detail about the plays themselves as
I am actually one of the judges of the still-ongoing competition.)
Blood Binds (Sperm and The Lunar Interviews)
Magdalena (Singapore) and the Substation
Ng Yi-Sheng
24/08/2008
Tan Suet Lee's Sperm (**1/2) doesn't really work for
me. True, the story's very charming – a mother and her single,
middle-aged daughter clash when the latter decides to get pregnant via
DIY insemination, engendering a drama of merry mix-ups and explorations
of the changing definition of the family. Still, neither the sitcom-esque
comedy nor the more pointedly meaningful monologues are handled very
well – the acting is stilted, lacking the requisite energy for
a good, tight play.
Verena Tay's The Lunar Interviews (***1/2), on the other hand,
is modulated, delicious and intense: using the recurring motifs of the
moon and the goddesses thereof, the playwright describes a complex of
relationships between women, language and power, drawing on a wellspring
of poetry I've never seen before in her writing. A few clumsy moments
pop up, stemming from inexperience in physical theatre and some extremely
cumbersome props. But at the end of the day, I'm satisfied: this is
a good piece of theatre.
*** (full review coming)
To Kill A Mockingbird
Sharon Ang
Kenneth Kwok
22/08/2008
Although the play adopts a very literal and largely uninspired
approach to Harper Lee’s classic text about prejudice in 1930s
Alabama, I found it to be watchable nonetheless. Sure, the script had
way too much narration / exposition – remember, students: theatre
should be show not tell - and the whole production did have the trappings
of a conventional assembly show (you can’t put on a staging of
a perennial O level text and not, at least subconsciously, have in mind
your core audience to be secondary school Literature students), but
the power of Lee’s quietly moving narrative is just so strong
that it powered through any of this stage adaptation’s inadequacies.
To be fair, this no-frills production (no actual props are used throughout
the play, for example) was not without its own charm and its decision
to include an adult Scout reflecting on her childhood did bring some
poignancy to the story. The otherwise extremely uneven cast also boasted
some nice performances, notably Gerald Chew who, while no Gregory Peck,
was well-cast as Atticus Finch.
**1/2 (no full review planned)
Apocalypse: Live!
W!ld Rice
Amos Toh
22/08/2008
It is 2058 and Singapore has suffered the wrath of "fire
and brimstone from the unremitting heavens". Ken Kwek's nihilistic
construction of the aftermath rips through a familiar checklist of social
and political gripes, straining to revive age-old debates about staying
and quitting, restricted press freedom and religious fundamentalism
under the cover of easygoing irreverence. While fertile with ideas of
censorship, autocracy and dispossession, Apocalypse: Live!
renders them in fits and starts, failing to cohere into a fluent work
of theatre. The persistent din of socio-political rhetoric also reveals
a more incriminating neglect: Apocalypse's messages often drown
out its stories, depriving characters of the depth and emotion that
lend tragedies their heartbreaking poignancy.
Under Samantha Scott-Blackhall's direction, the production treads as
gingerly around Kwek's script as the actors do around the debris on
stage. Characters fade into Wong Chee Wai's spectacularly arranged clutter
of clothes, bags and television screens, devolving into a landscape
of surprising stasis. The result is a production that relies heavily
and dangerously on its protagonist, Brendon Fernandez's uptight newscaster
David Fong, to generate pace and direction for its otherwise static
mishmash of narratives. Fernandez nonetheless obliges with a performance
that radiates gritty reserve and nervous charm, drawing you into a slippery
world where idealism yields readily to compromise and tragedy lurks
at every turn.
The premise of Apocalypse is enterprising, attention-grabbing.
Unfortunately, the production also plays out that way, more curious
than compelling, more strenuously creative than revelatory.
*** (full review coming)
Blood Binds (Bond-Age and Just Late)
Magdalena (Singapore) and the Substation
Ng Yi-Sheng
21/08/2008
In this doublebill, playwrights Dora Tan and Ng Swee San turn their
gaze on the place of senior citizens in our society – neglected
by their children, betrayed by their ageing bodies, yet still full of
dignity and anger. Tan's play Just Late (***1/2) does this
more successfully: we're drawn into the life of a blind old man as we
witness two robbers burgling his home on his 70th birthday, alternately
tickled by situational comedy and touched as we delve deeper and deeper
into his sad biography. In fact, my only grievance with the play is
that it's not very ambitious – it accomplishes beautifully what
it sets out to do within the tiny, domestic limits of its scope.
By contrast, Ng's piece is more daring – Bond-Age (**1/2)
offers an uncompromising look at ageing in its tale of two old women
as one attempts to escape from a hospital. It's a delightfully frank
affair, complete with sex, drugs, mysterious grudges and adult diapers.
Unfortunately, the performance is dragged down by inconsistent acting
and a lack of clear directionality in its second half which comes to
an end rather suddenly without a satisfying resolution.
*** (full review coming)
Own Time Own Target
W!ld Rice
Kenneth Kwok
21/08/2008
It’s hard to believe the first two plays of this triple-bill were
written by the same person. Laremy Lee’s Full Tank about
four army boys who go AWOL in a tank is extremely funny and even finds
the space to squeeze in some smartly written social commentary (it’s
also very well-directed by Jonathan Lim). His Radio Silence,
on the other hand, is as lost as its two lead characters: it moves about
onstage with little meaning or purpose and worst of all, is deathly
dull. I suggest watching the first hour of Own Time Own Target,
then sneaking off during the interval for an hour-long coffee break
- and then bribing the usher to sneak you back into the theatre for
the third piece, the musical Botak Boys by Julian Wong which
is essentially Army Daze for the noughties. Boys is
wildly inconsistent both in terms of quality and tone but is entertaining
for the most part and the ridiculously flamboyant 302 musical
number is easily the highlight of the evening. Own Time Own Target
certainly isn’t golden throughout its three-and-a-half-hour
running time but there are definitely plenty of laughs to be had and
I also generally enjoyed the versatile and indefatigable ensemble cast,
being especially impressed by Hansel Tan and Terence Tay.
*** (full review coming)
I Am Queen
The Theatre Practice
Ng Yi-Sheng
14/08/2008
Quah Sy Ren and Liu Xiaoyi have put together a great script, not only
telling the story of '50s cabaret dancer Betty Yong (an obvious homage
to the real-life stripper Rose Chan), but also exploring the entire
sphere of Chinese womanhood in that era of Singapore. The women of the
play are interchangeably performed a trio of versatile actresses, metamorphosing
from rape victims to child brides to beauty pageant contestants, nude
photographers' models and forced prostitutes - a panoply of humanity,
bartered and sold based on the only thing the world wants from them:
their bodies. Notably, though, the playwrights tell their tales with
tenderness and respect, giving these women a sense of dignity and pride
that complicates the standard narrative of exploitation. I'm also impressed
by the set, allowing actors to hide and vanish behind sliding panels
that double as projection screens. In fact, the only thing that seriousy
peeves me is the failure of the play to generate a sense of bawdy, noisy,
rambunctious bustle in its cabaret scenes - a big flaw, considering
that the show begins and ends with (and often revisits) the cabaret.
***1/2 (full review coming)
The Swordfish, Then The Concubine
W!ld Rice
Kenneth Kwok
08/08/2008
Singapore audiences will be familiar with the Bukit Merah legend of
the little boy who saves Singapore from killer swordfish only to be
executed by a weak and petty king. The tale is retold here as part of
a larger narrative about a virtuous and favoured concubine who is similarly
put to death by the Sultan because of his foolish pride. Production
values are high (especially in terms of the costumes by Moe Kasim and
the lighting design by James Tan) and the ensemble cast are clearly
committed to their performance but the play never really works for me
aside from a colourful Singapore Idol parody and a well-judged,
bittersweet ending (“The kingdom thrives, the people carry on
their daily lives”). The playwright swerves wildly from silly
slapstick to moments of high drama without any real sense of a journey
and, worse, much like Eleanor Wong in her The Campaign To Confer
The Public Service Star on JBJ, seems to think that taking easy
potshots at the government with scattershot references to Singapore’s
current social and political climate means that the play is somehow
relevant, daring and funny. Direction by Ivan Heng is clean but by-the-numbers,
leaving only empty spectacle (stage combat, singing and dancing, live
gamelan music): little about the play, aside from a nuanced performance
by Farahliza Ong, feels organic and sincere in the way that the similar-styled
Ma'ma Yong by panggung ARTS did. It is also nowhere near as
funny as the recent The Soldier and His Virtuous Wife which
took its pantomime farce to the over-the-top levels such comedies need
to be taken to. Swordfish is amusing if you like comedy beards
and laugh whenever you hear someone speak Singlish on stage.
**1/2 (full review by Matthew Lyon coming)
Site last updated 02 Sep 2008 - Review of The Last Temptation
of Stamford Raffles uploaded. What's On listings updated.
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