Tuesday, September 30, 2003
CAMP
For those who enjoyed four-lettered movie-cum-musical titles like Fame and Rent, Camp is THE movie for you. Why? Cos Camp is camp through and through...
Set in an acting summer camp for teenage wannabe Broadway thespians, the main plot centres around a very drooliscious and “an honest-to-God straight boy”, Vlad (and what a name too!)
Desperately trying to get into Vlad’s heterosexual pants are plain-jane-with-the-voice-but-not-looks Ellen; Her-Royal-Bitchness Jill; and teenage-wannabe-drag-queen Michael. Of cos a show would not be a show without the misfits, who come in the form of Jill’s-personal-slave Fritzi; spokesgirl-for-obese-teens Jenna; and an alcoholic-has-been-Broadway-songwriter Bert who drinks vodka with his coke...
Despite an ensemble cast of unknowns, Camp is surprisingly refreshing with highly energetic performance pieces. The cast is undeniably very talented (albeit raw in some bits), and they definitely sound better (and less raw) than any American Idol contestant. The actors truly shine in their musical numbers which are performed with polished panache and the-show-must-go-on fervor. In particular, the starting number featured a very powerful voice, with huge lungs for maximum oxygen capacity, singing a rather ritualistic “How Shall I See You Through My Eyes”. Some of the more memorable songs include “I Sing For You”, sang by our lovely doe-eyed Vlad as his audition piece, which will surely melt the heart of any gal; “Century Plant” a catchy number; and “Here’s Where I Stand” performed by Jenna to her authoritative father…(hmmm…now where have we heard that before?)
PupPiE highly recommends the movie to all musical theatre queens or drama-mamas and anyone who has harboured secret aspirations of being the next best thing to appear in the Esplanade, West End and/or Broadway!
Oh, and for those who now consider themselves to be Vlad’s ardent fans, his real name is Daniel Letterle…and he does have a nice body... Boy am I jealous!!!
For those who enjoyed four-lettered movie-cum-musical titles like Fame and Rent, Camp is THE movie for you. Why? Cos Camp is camp through and through...
Set in an acting summer camp for teenage wannabe Broadway thespians, the main plot centres around a very drooliscious and “an honest-to-God straight boy”, Vlad (and what a name too!)
Desperately trying to get into Vlad’s heterosexual pants are plain-jane-with-the-voice-but-not-looks Ellen; Her-Royal-Bitchness Jill; and teenage-wannabe-drag-queen Michael. Of cos a show would not be a show without the misfits, who come in the form of Jill’s-personal-slave Fritzi; spokesgirl-for-obese-teens Jenna; and an alcoholic-has-been-Broadway-songwriter Bert who drinks vodka with his coke...
Despite an ensemble cast of unknowns, Camp is surprisingly refreshing with highly energetic performance pieces. The cast is undeniably very talented (albeit raw in some bits), and they definitely sound better (and less raw) than any American Idol contestant. The actors truly shine in their musical numbers which are performed with polished panache and the-show-must-go-on fervor. In particular, the starting number featured a very powerful voice, with huge lungs for maximum oxygen capacity, singing a rather ritualistic “How Shall I See You Through My Eyes”. Some of the more memorable songs include “I Sing For You”, sang by our lovely doe-eyed Vlad as his audition piece, which will surely melt the heart of any gal; “Century Plant” a catchy number; and “Here’s Where I Stand” performed by Jenna to her authoritative father…(hmmm…now where have we heard that before?)
PupPiE highly recommends the movie to all musical theatre queens or drama-mamas and anyone who has harboured secret aspirations of being the next best thing to appear in the Esplanade, West End and/or Broadway!
Oh, and for those who now consider themselves to be Vlad’s ardent fans, his real name is Daniel Letterle…and he does have a nice body... Boy am I jealous!!!
What Breed of Dog Are You?
You're a Pug!
No bones about it, you're an intelligent, playful Pug. Witty and charming, you're a lot of dog wrapped in a small package. People just love you — a wonderful approachability and sense of humor put you at the top of everyone's list. And because you're smart and quick-witted, you attract a crowd wherever you go. (Have you ever considered running for office or starting a company? You've got the charisma for either.) But that doesn't mean you can't be a little naughty or mischievous when opportunity knocks — you've definitely got a nose for fun! A happy, optimistic breed, you're admired and respected by all. Woof!
But I sure don't look like a pug! ~arf arf~
You're a Pug!
No bones about it, you're an intelligent, playful Pug. Witty and charming, you're a lot of dog wrapped in a small package. People just love you — a wonderful approachability and sense of humor put you at the top of everyone's list. And because you're smart and quick-witted, you attract a crowd wherever you go. (Have you ever considered running for office or starting a company? You've got the charisma for either.) But that doesn't mean you can't be a little naughty or mischievous when opportunity knocks — you've definitely got a nose for fun! A happy, optimistic breed, you're admired and respected by all. Woof!
But I sure don't look like a pug! ~arf arf~
Sunday, September 28, 2003
Pimples!!!!!!!!!!
Argh!!! Pimples pimples everywhere!!! Boo Hoo Hoo!!!
FUCK! All these stress made all the pimples pop out like nobody's business...And it doesnt help that my itchy fingers like to mess around with them till the pus and blood come out...FUCK!
And I am not even due for my facial appt yet...looks like I need to rely on my handy home-made egg white and cucumber mask...
Argh!!! Pimples pimples everywhere!!! Boo Hoo Hoo!!!
FUCK! All these stress made all the pimples pop out like nobody's business...And it doesnt help that my itchy fingers like to mess around with them till the pus and blood come out...FUCK!
And I am not even due for my facial appt yet...looks like I need to rely on my handy home-made egg white and cucumber mask...
Thursday, September 25, 2003
My Colorgenics Personality test reveals that:
I am in a state of constant expectation and want interesting and exciting things to happen to me. But in fact, I am a 'Walter Mitty' at times - a dreamer - over-imaginative and often given to fantasy or day-dreaming. There is nothing wrong in 'dreaming' - how boring life would be if one just followed the doctrines of everyday life - but one must not continue leading a life of continuous fantasy. I need to face reality in spite of all its possible shortcomings.
Always anxious to accept the role of the leader, as indeed I often work well with people - but try to stay out of the limelight. I'd like a life of ease with no one to rock the boat and someone who understands me is so important in my life.
I am prepared to establish a particular relationship that is being made available to me at this time. It could be a satisfactory liaison but there could be a certain amount of conflict involved -try to avoid direct confrontation at all costs.
Unacceptable restrictions have been forced upon me and this is resulting in severe frustration and stress. I am looking for independence and consequently I shy away from any restriction and avoid obligations of anything which might prove hampering. I am being subjected to considerable pressure and want to escape from it so that I can obtain what I need, but unfortunately at this particular moment in time I lack the necessary strength of purpose to succeed in this.
Trying to cope with conditions which I think are beyond my capabilities has led to considerable anxiety and stress. I now feel that I am not capable of coping with this situation and indeed any situation which could arise from what I consider to be my personal inadequacy.
Hmmm...rather true I must say, especially the airy fairy side of me...plus the considerable amount of stress that I am currently facing...Why cant I be a baby again? ~sigh~
I am in a state of constant expectation and want interesting and exciting things to happen to me. But in fact, I am a 'Walter Mitty' at times - a dreamer - over-imaginative and often given to fantasy or day-dreaming. There is nothing wrong in 'dreaming' - how boring life would be if one just followed the doctrines of everyday life - but one must not continue leading a life of continuous fantasy. I need to face reality in spite of all its possible shortcomings.
Always anxious to accept the role of the leader, as indeed I often work well with people - but try to stay out of the limelight. I'd like a life of ease with no one to rock the boat and someone who understands me is so important in my life.
I am prepared to establish a particular relationship that is being made available to me at this time. It could be a satisfactory liaison but there could be a certain amount of conflict involved -try to avoid direct confrontation at all costs.
Unacceptable restrictions have been forced upon me and this is resulting in severe frustration and stress. I am looking for independence and consequently I shy away from any restriction and avoid obligations of anything which might prove hampering. I am being subjected to considerable pressure and want to escape from it so that I can obtain what I need, but unfortunately at this particular moment in time I lack the necessary strength of purpose to succeed in this.
Trying to cope with conditions which I think are beyond my capabilities has led to considerable anxiety and stress. I now feel that I am not capable of coping with this situation and indeed any situation which could arise from what I consider to be my personal inadequacy.
Hmmm...rather true I must say, especially the airy fairy side of me...plus the considerable amount of stress that I am currently facing...Why cant I be a baby again? ~sigh~
Tuesday, September 23, 2003
Social Ungraciousness
Singapore has changed very much over the last decade...I remember being away from Singapore for 6 mths and suddenly I find myself not recognising where I was. Or worse, how do I get home?
So physically this little island country of ours did change immensely. BUT what about the intrinsic values of our people? With development, we expect a country's population to develop evolutionarily as well. However, in Sg, this correlation seems to be somewhat inconsistent and sometimes proved the hypothesis wrong!
Anyway, I was TOTALLY annoyed today at the cinemas by peoples' phone constantly ringing. It was still ok when the 1st phone went off, cos it was just 1-2 mins into the show. But what pissed me off was the fact that that person actually picked the call up and started to converse (!!!) And no matter how softly she spoke, we are still distracted!! Such an inconsiderate bum!!!
Just when u think that the entire cinema had learnt its lesson, the 2nd phone went off. And this time it was in the middle of the show! My gosh! Why are Singaporeans like that? Shouldn't the 1st case remind u to turn off ur HP to silent or simply off it?
I can still tolerate the occasional sms noise going off, but we had this 3rd phone that went off...Gawd! Singaporeans are just SO SO BLARDEE INCONSIDERATE!!!!!!!!!!
And to wrap things up, the women whose phone went off the 1st time, had the privilege to end the show with her polyphonic tone going off...at least one could say that there is a start and end to it!!!
You wonder, when will Singaporeans EVER learn? Many of us had taken for granted on too many things in life. Just because no one said anything abt the phones going off, that doesnt mean that we approve of it. That's just because we still believe in the Asian values of tolerating one's nonsense. After all, Confucius did say that tolerance is a virtue, didnt he?
Well, up his arse then! In modern context, I believe in the freedom of expression. Hence, I deliberately and sarcastically said "how could anyone concentrate, let alone understand the show if they are busy picking up phonecalls?" as I walked passed her as we exited from the cinema.
Yes, I can be a bitch, so steer clear away from me if u ever catch me in such a mood!
Singapore has changed very much over the last decade...I remember being away from Singapore for 6 mths and suddenly I find myself not recognising where I was. Or worse, how do I get home?
So physically this little island country of ours did change immensely. BUT what about the intrinsic values of our people? With development, we expect a country's population to develop evolutionarily as well. However, in Sg, this correlation seems to be somewhat inconsistent and sometimes proved the hypothesis wrong!
Anyway, I was TOTALLY annoyed today at the cinemas by peoples' phone constantly ringing. It was still ok when the 1st phone went off, cos it was just 1-2 mins into the show. But what pissed me off was the fact that that person actually picked the call up and started to converse (!!!) And no matter how softly she spoke, we are still distracted!! Such an inconsiderate bum!!!
Just when u think that the entire cinema had learnt its lesson, the 2nd phone went off. And this time it was in the middle of the show! My gosh! Why are Singaporeans like that? Shouldn't the 1st case remind u to turn off ur HP to silent or simply off it?
I can still tolerate the occasional sms noise going off, but we had this 3rd phone that went off...Gawd! Singaporeans are just SO SO BLARDEE INCONSIDERATE!!!!!!!!!!
And to wrap things up, the women whose phone went off the 1st time, had the privilege to end the show with her polyphonic tone going off...at least one could say that there is a start and end to it!!!
You wonder, when will Singaporeans EVER learn? Many of us had taken for granted on too many things in life. Just because no one said anything abt the phones going off, that doesnt mean that we approve of it. That's just because we still believe in the Asian values of tolerating one's nonsense. After all, Confucius did say that tolerance is a virtue, didnt he?
Well, up his arse then! In modern context, I believe in the freedom of expression. Hence, I deliberately and sarcastically said "how could anyone concentrate, let alone understand the show if they are busy picking up phonecalls?" as I walked passed her as we exited from the cinema.
Yes, I can be a bitch, so steer clear away from me if u ever catch me in such a mood!
Swimming Pool
"And the title of Miss Legs-up-to-her-armpits-and -beyond-practically-up-to-her-boobs goes to....*drum rolls* Ludivine Sagnier!!!!!!"
If there is any ONE reason why you should watch the mobie, it gotta be Ludivine Sagnier, the latest sex puss from the land of romantic wine-tasters...
Last seen as the gawky tomboy in the corny cheesy and absolutely funny french movie, 8 Women, Ludivine has matured gracefully into the sassy and often topless lass in Swimming Pool.
Ludivine plays this really broken teenager, Julie, who is in need of affection so much so that she destroys herself with excessive nymphomania. Her meeting with British crime novelist, Sarah (played by Charlotte Rampling), is perhaps the chance for her to find balance in her life.
Sarah who is frustrated by the infamous writer's block, retreats to the summer mansion of her publisher (and lover) in Southern France. After her meeting with Julie's brazen voluptuosness, Sarah becomes recharged creatively and sexually.
Both actresses are a joy to watch, their tension in the movie is a delight despite a very haunting presence in the form of a swimming pool. When Julie's not shagging her brains out with men in the shape of balding pigs and wannabe cassanovas, she is found mostly skinny-dipping and sunbathing topless by the pool [drool factor to the max!!!]
The film is sensual (and sometimes sexual), suspenseful (cos u dunno what the hell is happening...how did it all begin? why did it all end?) and elegantly enigmatic (in the line of typical french movies).
To quote one reveiwer: "Reality merges with fanciful imagination until nothing is as it seems and the water is an invitation to the slippery, shifting narrative and all its hidden metaphoric depths."
If the public pools had just only ONE Ludivine, you'd find me there almost everyday...=P
"And the title of Miss Legs-up-to-her-armpits-and -beyond-practically-up-to-her-boobs goes to....*drum rolls* Ludivine Sagnier!!!!!!"
If there is any ONE reason why you should watch the mobie, it gotta be Ludivine Sagnier, the latest sex puss from the land of romantic wine-tasters...
Last seen as the gawky tomboy in the corny cheesy and absolutely funny french movie, 8 Women, Ludivine has matured gracefully into the sassy and often topless lass in Swimming Pool.
Ludivine plays this really broken teenager, Julie, who is in need of affection so much so that she destroys herself with excessive nymphomania. Her meeting with British crime novelist, Sarah (played by Charlotte Rampling), is perhaps the chance for her to find balance in her life.
Sarah who is frustrated by the infamous writer's block, retreats to the summer mansion of her publisher (and lover) in Southern France. After her meeting with Julie's brazen voluptuosness, Sarah becomes recharged creatively and sexually.
Both actresses are a joy to watch, their tension in the movie is a delight despite a very haunting presence in the form of a swimming pool. When Julie's not shagging her brains out with men in the shape of balding pigs and wannabe cassanovas, she is found mostly skinny-dipping and sunbathing topless by the pool [drool factor to the max!!!]
The film is sensual (and sometimes sexual), suspenseful (cos u dunno what the hell is happening...how did it all begin? why did it all end?) and elegantly enigmatic (in the line of typical french movies).
To quote one reveiwer: "Reality merges with fanciful imagination until nothing is as it seems and the water is an invitation to the slippery, shifting narrative and all its hidden metaphoric depths."
If the public pools had just only ONE Ludivine, you'd find me there almost everyday...=P
Saturday, September 20, 2003
Animal Farm
From a bizarre show about a eunuch admiral in the afternoon, I was transported to an even more bizarre show about animals in a farm. And they could talk and sing too! *gasps*
Animal Farm is directed in such a way that the heavy issues were layered in between the various comic acts. So much so that one may purely view it as an entertainment show featuring the who's who of our local theatre scene.
Special mention to Selena Tan, who is my all-time fave actor/comedian, for playing the roles of an extremely cute and girly pony Mollie; a pigeon that speaks in a Filipino accent and the young silly pig by the name of Minimus.
Another special mention is Pam Oei for her portrayal of Squealer, the right-hand pig of Napoleon, for all her propaganda efforts, downright from changing the commandments by painting extra words to using statistics and media for herd-control. Personally the mere presence of these two accomplished actor is well worth the ticket price.
Ivan Heng. I last saw him in Emily of Emerald Hill in 2000. And this is indeed a pleasant change to see him as a domineering male. Somehow, I still feel that Ivan is perhaps more suited to play controversial and highly strung roles. However, his portrayal of Napoleon was a very diplomatic one, slowing gaining your trust before he gives you the final push. As one reviewer said, "With his Brylcreemed hair and clipped accent, (Ivan) Heng is the very model of a modern Brigadier General, and reminds one irresistibly of - oh, you know - we're not allowed to say his name, but you know the one..."
Of course, that is not to say that the rest of the cast were no good. In fact, on the contrary, Lim Yu-Beng, Karen Tan and Gene Sha Rudyn all deserved our applause. Yu-Beng fitted the role of Boxer, a hardworking horse, perfectly. I couldnt imagine anyone else doing that role. Not only was his physique the correct one, even his pacing of words when playing Old Major was done flawlessly. Anyone would probably have made that piece of monologue sound boring, but not Yu-Beng.
The only thing that particularly put me off in terms of acting was perhaps the Caucasian actor. Many a time, I couldnt make head or tail what he was talking about. I blame mostly on his delivery of his parts. They were spoken way to fast to the extent that it is as if he was slurring. And mind you, before you accuse me of not being able to understand his accent, let me remind you that I was in London for 4 years, so I am pretty confident in understanding the British accent, even the extent of the highly incomprehensible Irish/Scottish accent.
Apart from this minor glitch (the ang-moh didnt appear too many times anyway), the entire show was a huge fun to sit in, with some interaction with the audience (seems like a trend these days huh?), and especially the localised context. There was a pseudo dragon dance in one scene and even the mention of "I must be suffering from amnesia..."in one Napoleon's more political speeches. Hilarious!
Am so looking forward to Cinderellah! in Dec, starring the who's who in theatre (again)!
From a bizarre show about a eunuch admiral in the afternoon, I was transported to an even more bizarre show about animals in a farm. And they could talk and sing too! *gasps*
Animal Farm is directed in such a way that the heavy issues were layered in between the various comic acts. So much so that one may purely view it as an entertainment show featuring the who's who of our local theatre scene.
Special mention to Selena Tan, who is my all-time fave actor/comedian, for playing the roles of an extremely cute and girly pony Mollie; a pigeon that speaks in a Filipino accent and the young silly pig by the name of Minimus.
Another special mention is Pam Oei for her portrayal of Squealer, the right-hand pig of Napoleon, for all her propaganda efforts, downright from changing the commandments by painting extra words to using statistics and media for herd-control. Personally the mere presence of these two accomplished actor is well worth the ticket price.
Ivan Heng. I last saw him in Emily of Emerald Hill in 2000. And this is indeed a pleasant change to see him as a domineering male. Somehow, I still feel that Ivan is perhaps more suited to play controversial and highly strung roles. However, his portrayal of Napoleon was a very diplomatic one, slowing gaining your trust before he gives you the final push. As one reviewer said, "With his Brylcreemed hair and clipped accent, (Ivan) Heng is the very model of a modern Brigadier General, and reminds one irresistibly of - oh, you know - we're not allowed to say his name, but you know the one..."
Of course, that is not to say that the rest of the cast were no good. In fact, on the contrary, Lim Yu-Beng, Karen Tan and Gene Sha Rudyn all deserved our applause. Yu-Beng fitted the role of Boxer, a hardworking horse, perfectly. I couldnt imagine anyone else doing that role. Not only was his physique the correct one, even his pacing of words when playing Old Major was done flawlessly. Anyone would probably have made that piece of monologue sound boring, but not Yu-Beng.
The only thing that particularly put me off in terms of acting was perhaps the Caucasian actor. Many a time, I couldnt make head or tail what he was talking about. I blame mostly on his delivery of his parts. They were spoken way to fast to the extent that it is as if he was slurring. And mind you, before you accuse me of not being able to understand his accent, let me remind you that I was in London for 4 years, so I am pretty confident in understanding the British accent, even the extent of the highly incomprehensible Irish/Scottish accent.
Apart from this minor glitch (the ang-moh didnt appear too many times anyway), the entire show was a huge fun to sit in, with some interaction with the audience (seems like a trend these days huh?), and especially the localised context. There was a pseudo dragon dance in one scene and even the mention of "I must be suffering from amnesia..."in one Napoleon's more political speeches. Hilarious!
Am so looking forward to Cinderellah! in Dec, starring the who's who in theatre (again)!
Descendants of the Eunuch Admiral
Originally staged in both English and Mandarin in 1996, this current version is an adaptation that had led the director and the cast to create a space drowned in the ocean. The stage was bare in the beginning and slowly each character was introduced as they brought in the props. Segmented into 10 scenes, this play is as bizarre as a fish knowing that it can’t survive out of water yet still craves to be out of it. Even though I knew that this is gonna be a very abstract adaptation, yet I still went on to be confused by it (and still am).
Unexpectedly, the director had chosen to make this a very movement and physical piece. Not only is his direction demanding on one’s physical being, the emotional aspect was not spared. In fact the emotional journey came across as the harsher and rockier of the two.
Unlike our layman understanding of musicals, this play made it possible to marry music to theatre together, where the score and the acting correlate intimately. There is no definite score for the music and each performance is different from the previous one, simply because the acting will affect the music and vice versa. This I must say is truly something new to me and I think it worked out well!
On the outset, the characters and their lives appeared to be irrelevant and unreal, but yet looking back, on a certain level, they are not. Stylistically, you will see things that are not entirely conventional. Characters had to submerged themselves in tubs of water, wearing huge oxygen tanks ala scuba-diving, eat eggs that are raw and hard-boiled and sunny side ups. You will also find martial arts, melodramatic concert style of speaking over a stand-up mike, and lots more water on stage.
“If we are to say that you
Are a descendant of
Zheng He,
Would we be glorifying you
Or putting you to
Shame?
It is ironic that this eunuch
Admiral
Who has endured unspeakable
Torture, and a lifetime of
Handicap
Should make ‘whole’ men like
Us
Feel incomparable
And
Inadequate”
Characters who have been ‘castrated’ in areas like cultural attachment, tradition and vitality, find their anchor here. Drifters will be put to rest here. Dreams will be laid in peace here. In the world, ideas are communicated through different frequencies. It is the director’s hope that audience will attune their inner frequencies to theirs.
Originally staged in both English and Mandarin in 1996, this current version is an adaptation that had led the director and the cast to create a space drowned in the ocean. The stage was bare in the beginning and slowly each character was introduced as they brought in the props. Segmented into 10 scenes, this play is as bizarre as a fish knowing that it can’t survive out of water yet still craves to be out of it. Even though I knew that this is gonna be a very abstract adaptation, yet I still went on to be confused by it (and still am).
Unexpectedly, the director had chosen to make this a very movement and physical piece. Not only is his direction demanding on one’s physical being, the emotional aspect was not spared. In fact the emotional journey came across as the harsher and rockier of the two.
Unlike our layman understanding of musicals, this play made it possible to marry music to theatre together, where the score and the acting correlate intimately. There is no definite score for the music and each performance is different from the previous one, simply because the acting will affect the music and vice versa. This I must say is truly something new to me and I think it worked out well!
On the outset, the characters and their lives appeared to be irrelevant and unreal, but yet looking back, on a certain level, they are not. Stylistically, you will see things that are not entirely conventional. Characters had to submerged themselves in tubs of water, wearing huge oxygen tanks ala scuba-diving, eat eggs that are raw and hard-boiled and sunny side ups. You will also find martial arts, melodramatic concert style of speaking over a stand-up mike, and lots more water on stage.
“If we are to say that you
Are a descendant of
Zheng He,
Would we be glorifying you
Or putting you to
Shame?
It is ironic that this eunuch
Admiral
Who has endured unspeakable
Torture, and a lifetime of
Handicap
Should make ‘whole’ men like
Us
Feel incomparable
And
Inadequate”
Characters who have been ‘castrated’ in areas like cultural attachment, tradition and vitality, find their anchor here. Drifters will be put to rest here. Dreams will be laid in peace here. In the world, ideas are communicated through different frequencies. It is the director’s hope that audience will attune their inner frequencies to theirs.
Love At First Sight
" They are both convinced
that a sudden passion joinded them.
Such certainty is beautiful,
but uncertainty is more beautiful still. "
~Wislawa Szymborska
" They are both convinced
that a sudden passion joinded them.
Such certainty is beautiful,
but uncertainty is more beautiful still. "
~Wislawa Szymborska
Thursday, September 18, 2003
Turn Left, Turn Right, Turn Left again, then Cross the Road...
Ok, that was a bad pun...it should have been Look Left, Look Right....
Watched Turn Left Turn Rightwith PlainCongee this afternoon after school... It is a simple movie with a simple story line, from a simple author called Jimmy Liao...The main stars Takeshi Kaneshiro and Gigi Leung were great in this love story about missed fate...and as audience, u almost wanna go into the movie and just bring them together, cos they were so near yet so far...
The movie has its fair share of laffs and sobs...laffs coming from the supporting cast...Edmund Chen played this rather camp doctor who is in love with Gigi...it's really quite cringy to watch him play this role as we r so used to his machoism oozing out of our tv screens...the other female supporting actress (dunno her name) was also gd in playing up this irritating Fast-88 delivery bitch who come between Gigi and Takeshi and played terrible pranks on them...
The sobs came from empathising for all the missed chances they had...it is was particularly sobby towards the end when they left phone messages explaining how much they wished to meet the other party and even reciting the Polish poem, about how the time is perhaps not ripe for them to meet as yet...~sigh~
Hmmm...come to think of it, there was not a single mention of the names of Gigi and Takeshi except 784533 and 763092 respectively...and the many phone numbers throughout the movie... made me wanna rush out to buy 4D...=P
Somehow, is it really true that one can have so many near misses in life? Be it love, frds, career opportunities or even family...is fate really that cruel? Like what i used to lament, "Got FA no TE"...
Ok, that was a bad pun...it should have been Look Left, Look Right....
Watched Turn Left Turn Rightwith PlainCongee this afternoon after school... It is a simple movie with a simple story line, from a simple author called Jimmy Liao...The main stars Takeshi Kaneshiro and Gigi Leung were great in this love story about missed fate...and as audience, u almost wanna go into the movie and just bring them together, cos they were so near yet so far...
The movie has its fair share of laffs and sobs...laffs coming from the supporting cast...Edmund Chen played this rather camp doctor who is in love with Gigi...it's really quite cringy to watch him play this role as we r so used to his machoism oozing out of our tv screens...the other female supporting actress (dunno her name) was also gd in playing up this irritating Fast-88 delivery bitch who come between Gigi and Takeshi and played terrible pranks on them...
The sobs came from empathising for all the missed chances they had...it is was particularly sobby towards the end when they left phone messages explaining how much they wished to meet the other party and even reciting the Polish poem, about how the time is perhaps not ripe for them to meet as yet...~sigh~
Hmmm...come to think of it, there was not a single mention of the names of Gigi and Takeshi except 784533 and 763092 respectively...and the many phone numbers throughout the movie... made me wanna rush out to buy 4D...=P
Somehow, is it really true that one can have so many near misses in life? Be it love, frds, career opportunities or even family...is fate really that cruel? Like what i used to lament, "Got FA no TE"...
Wednesday, September 17, 2003
Cafe Cartel
~flutter flutter~
did you hear that? its my wings flapping in the air...why? cos i m a social butterfly! and i have *again* organised a social outing for my fellow econs classmates...this time round, its dinner at Cafe Cartel at PS
u see, the dinner outing came abt from the people who were at Sentosa last week...we wanted to share our sch experiences and bitch abt the schs we were posted to, and bascially to have a good dinner...
however, i was TUAHed big time by them lor...NONE of the sentosa pple turned up...this time round there were 7 of us for dinner, all of whom did not go to sentosa last week (except me)...so i was feeling slightly pissed that those who said they would come didnt turn up at all and didnt even have the courtesy to say they werent coming...so we waited quite a while for them...
sometimes i wonder, why in the world do i bother doing all these social activities? why am i such a sucker to take on such appreciate-less tasks? time and time again i have been let down (ok, to be fair, i had many great turn-outs for events too! but they were in london)...is it a singaporean thing to be LATE (ok, i m guilty of it tonite, but i didnt expect the traffic to be so heavy along orchard road) and/or to say they will attend, but something will have to happen last minute and all the plans will start to change?...sometimes it just shows where one puts his priorities...
but i m grateful to all those who came...at least i felt apprecaited...maybe it's just me craving for affections and attention (hey i do theatre afterall and its the applause that keeps me going)...or perhaps i cant take rejection lying down??
i dunno, i really dunno...a part of me just wanna say forget abt me planning and organising the next outing...i have done my best to connect pple and this is what i get?...yet the other part of me just wanna continue to do all these evnts management stuff...sigh! i dunno, i really dunno...
~flutter flutter~
did you hear that? its my wings flapping in the air...why? cos i m a social butterfly! and i have *again* organised a social outing for my fellow econs classmates...this time round, its dinner at Cafe Cartel at PS
u see, the dinner outing came abt from the people who were at Sentosa last week...we wanted to share our sch experiences and bitch abt the schs we were posted to, and bascially to have a good dinner...
however, i was TUAHed big time by them lor...NONE of the sentosa pple turned up...this time round there were 7 of us for dinner, all of whom did not go to sentosa last week (except me)...so i was feeling slightly pissed that those who said they would come didnt turn up at all and didnt even have the courtesy to say they werent coming...so we waited quite a while for them...
sometimes i wonder, why in the world do i bother doing all these social activities? why am i such a sucker to take on such appreciate-less tasks? time and time again i have been let down (ok, to be fair, i had many great turn-outs for events too! but they were in london)...is it a singaporean thing to be LATE (ok, i m guilty of it tonite, but i didnt expect the traffic to be so heavy along orchard road) and/or to say they will attend, but something will have to happen last minute and all the plans will start to change?...sometimes it just shows where one puts his priorities...
but i m grateful to all those who came...at least i felt apprecaited...maybe it's just me craving for affections and attention (hey i do theatre afterall and its the applause that keeps me going)...or perhaps i cant take rejection lying down??
i dunno, i really dunno...a part of me just wanna say forget abt me planning and organising the next outing...i have done my best to connect pple and this is what i get?...yet the other part of me just wanna continue to do all these evnts management stuff...sigh! i dunno, i really dunno...
Sunday, September 14, 2003
Voice Recording for Sing To The Dawn
Met up with Tracy today for a voice recording audition for an upcoming animated movie (ie cartoon)...yup I am trying to venture to voice now...talk abt diversifying...hahaha...
Anyway, its my 1st time doing voice thingys and I am quite excited really! I am one person who dislikes and hates the way i sound on tape or record...so this could potentially make my nerves crack!
Arrived at the studio (in Joo Chiat - east Sg) after along bus ride...didnt realise that it was Energy's concert tonite, so our bus was infested with all these idol-worshipping kids...argh!!! pests!!!
I digress...so we were at the studio and it actually took me and Tracy 1 hour just to warm up and be really in character...and we had to do so many takes until i was physically damn shacked! But the task must go on, i tell myself...if i m gonna pay for this, i'd better make the best use of it...and i realised that i cant do very young voices, nor old voices...it seems that my voice range is like late teens...and that greatly limited my abilities to do voice stuff next time...
Having dily-daly here and there, we took a good 4 hrs to do the recording and that costs us $200 in total!...BUt luckily the studo manager was a nice fellow and he actually guided us and gave us pointers as to how to do the voices and stuff...so i m very grateful...
At the end of the day, even if i dont get anything, it was defnitely a very good experience and it kinda boosted my confidence abt my voice...next step is to train to sing!!!
Met up with Tracy today for a voice recording audition for an upcoming animated movie (ie cartoon)...yup I am trying to venture to voice now...talk abt diversifying...hahaha...
Anyway, its my 1st time doing voice thingys and I am quite excited really! I am one person who dislikes and hates the way i sound on tape or record...so this could potentially make my nerves crack!
Arrived at the studio (in Joo Chiat - east Sg) after along bus ride...didnt realise that it was Energy's concert tonite, so our bus was infested with all these idol-worshipping kids...argh!!! pests!!!
I digress...so we were at the studio and it actually took me and Tracy 1 hour just to warm up and be really in character...and we had to do so many takes until i was physically damn shacked! But the task must go on, i tell myself...if i m gonna pay for this, i'd better make the best use of it...and i realised that i cant do very young voices, nor old voices...it seems that my voice range is like late teens...and that greatly limited my abilities to do voice stuff next time...
Having dily-daly here and there, we took a good 4 hrs to do the recording and that costs us $200 in total!...BUt luckily the studo manager was a nice fellow and he actually guided us and gave us pointers as to how to do the voices and stuff...so i m very grateful...
At the end of the day, even if i dont get anything, it was defnitely a very good experience and it kinda boosted my confidence abt my voice...next step is to train to sing!!!
Friday, September 12, 2003
BENT over
My inner social butterfly triggered me to organise a theatre outing for my frds to watch the much raved about play, BENT…I had frds from NIE, from London, from theatre and 1 of them is my property agent (!)…Since they all wanted to watch the play, so I did them a favour by consolidating the tix and buying them…and becos of bulk sales, we even managed to get a discount! =)
The set of BENT is most unusual…the stage is like a fashion show runway and the audience is seated along the flanks of the ‘stage’…getting to one’s seat was quite a task cos the space was very minimal…and fat pple like me find it extremely painful to move in and out of seats…
Show started with Max (Brendon Fernandez) being awoken by a very fast-speaking, almost to the point of sprouting gibberish, and camp Rudy (Chua Enlai), dressed in pink silk bedrobe. Max couldn’t remember what he did last nite and Rudy is not telling Max abt his wild nite and instead preferred to talk to his plants…In between their argument a cute boy (Ben Xiao) clad only in a pair of black leather thongs and chains appeared from the bathroom…It seems that Max and this boy-toy soldier had some S&M fun which resulted in bruises and chain marks over their bodies…
Anyway, the Nazi soldiers followed the S&M boy-toy to Max’s place and suddenly Max and Rudy were on the run away from their persecutors…they hid in forests (or jungle according to Rudy) but were alas captured and put on board a train to some concentration camp…The crunch came when Max was advised by a fellow inmate, Hurst (Keagan Kang) to refuse any form of acknowledgement if the soldiers asked if he knew anyone…Needless to say, they singled out Rudy and Max had to deny him even to the extent of killing Rudy with his own hands to save his own skin…
What followed on in the 2nd half was how the love between Hurst and Max developed and blossomed in between moving rocks through and fro…The ending was extremely sad when Hurst was shot to death when he refused to retrieve his cap from a electrified fence (either way he will die)…And for the first time Max could hold on to Hurst physically but alas…it was of no use…In despair, Max flung himself to the fence…awwww…the power of love….
What truly impressed me was the direction of the play. I must confess that Beatrice Chia did a very good job in dissecting and conceptualising the play. The use of pick raffia string to form interlinked triangles into a huge web, to represent the thick forests where Max and Rudy were hiding, to tied them round benches and chairs, seems to suggest the various forms of repression…and pink is of cos a very gay colour…
I particularly liked the 2nd half when the stage had 2 cavities to simulate the moving of rocks…much of the action and dialogue took place between the shifting of rocks (or rather tiles)…and the use of chalks to indicate the yellow star (of David) for Jews and the pink triangle for homosexuals…
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed the show…one of the better ones I have seen so far and it left me both impressed and teary at the end…
My inner social butterfly triggered me to organise a theatre outing for my frds to watch the much raved about play, BENT…I had frds from NIE, from London, from theatre and 1 of them is my property agent (!)…Since they all wanted to watch the play, so I did them a favour by consolidating the tix and buying them…and becos of bulk sales, we even managed to get a discount! =)
The set of BENT is most unusual…the stage is like a fashion show runway and the audience is seated along the flanks of the ‘stage’…getting to one’s seat was quite a task cos the space was very minimal…and fat pple like me find it extremely painful to move in and out of seats…
Show started with Max (Brendon Fernandez) being awoken by a very fast-speaking, almost to the point of sprouting gibberish, and camp Rudy (Chua Enlai), dressed in pink silk bedrobe. Max couldn’t remember what he did last nite and Rudy is not telling Max abt his wild nite and instead preferred to talk to his plants…In between their argument a cute boy (Ben Xiao) clad only in a pair of black leather thongs and chains appeared from the bathroom…It seems that Max and this boy-toy soldier had some S&M fun which resulted in bruises and chain marks over their bodies…
Anyway, the Nazi soldiers followed the S&M boy-toy to Max’s place and suddenly Max and Rudy were on the run away from their persecutors…they hid in forests (or jungle according to Rudy) but were alas captured and put on board a train to some concentration camp…The crunch came when Max was advised by a fellow inmate, Hurst (Keagan Kang) to refuse any form of acknowledgement if the soldiers asked if he knew anyone…Needless to say, they singled out Rudy and Max had to deny him even to the extent of killing Rudy with his own hands to save his own skin…
What followed on in the 2nd half was how the love between Hurst and Max developed and blossomed in between moving rocks through and fro…The ending was extremely sad when Hurst was shot to death when he refused to retrieve his cap from a electrified fence (either way he will die)…And for the first time Max could hold on to Hurst physically but alas…it was of no use…In despair, Max flung himself to the fence…awwww…the power of love….
What truly impressed me was the direction of the play. I must confess that Beatrice Chia did a very good job in dissecting and conceptualising the play. The use of pick raffia string to form interlinked triangles into a huge web, to represent the thick forests where Max and Rudy were hiding, to tied them round benches and chairs, seems to suggest the various forms of repression…and pink is of cos a very gay colour…
I particularly liked the 2nd half when the stage had 2 cavities to simulate the moving of rocks…much of the action and dialogue took place between the shifting of rocks (or rather tiles)…and the use of chalks to indicate the yellow star (of David) for Jews and the pink triangle for homosexuals…
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed the show…one of the better ones I have seen so far and it left me both impressed and teary at the end…
Thursday, September 11, 2003
Day trip to Sentosa
So its the hols... So one must enjoy the hols... So its Sentosa here we go... So very burnt we shall all get!!!
You see, I am so on about the social welfare for my class that I have actually organised something for them...yes its a deja vu feeling cos I am so used to doing this kind of nonsense even back in my undergrad days... And it is quitie interesting how I became the unofficial 'social rep' for the class...
*harp sound*~ One nite whilst doing nothing, I felt bored and sent an email to my class about the coming holidays and suggested a few alternatives as to what we can do to de-stress after a hectic 7 weeks at NIE...And being away from Sg for quite some time, I didnt realsie that the one who usually takes the initiative will kenna 'arrowed' to do the task...So i received replies that said "thanks for sending out the email and organising the outing...' (?????) I didnt know that by sending out an email listing th eepossible options will implicate me to become the organiser of the outing... ~bummer~
But being the gracious person that i have ALWAYS been (*puke*), i graciously accepted the task...and decided to go to Sentosa for the day, praying since for good weather and nice company...(u see, in a class of 39 students, clicks are inevitably formed, but becosi didnt want to appear rude or ungentlemanly, i extended the invitation to all in the class, so was quite apprehensive as to who will turn up...and i was too lazy to compile of who is coming and who is not...cos again, knowing singaporeans, they will tuah you if something better comes along...)
So in the end there were 11 of us (out of 39), and thank God they were nice pple..ie pple with the same frequency and whom we can click with...phew! But getting to Sentosa was quite a task...supposed to meet at 10am at Harbourfront mrt, but we only managed to reached Bora-Bora beach at 12 noon! Various reasons for the delay...main one being pple were LATE (whats new in Sg??), 2nd was that I had very bad sense of direction and we were actually sightseeing Sentosa whilst trying to locate the beach and parking apaces. 3rd, Sentosa management didnt have very claer signs and directions and whats worse was that we intended to go to Palawan Beach but it was closed...and most footpaths were blocked and for once we felt like tourists in our homeland!!
But finally 'huang tian bu fu you xin ren' (loosely translated as the heavens did not deny pple with determination) we arrived at Bora Bora beach, managed to find a shady spot and a volleyball court and started to go about doing our usual beach stuff...suntan, eat, drink, play, volley, frisbee, soccer, gossip, get burnt...the usual...
We played volley with a bunch of Sec 3 kids cos we didnt have a team at first...u see pple started strolling in at 1ish, but then again i thank them for turning up and giving me face...=) There was even a pommie with us, cos Lyndon brought it along...its a bitch but a very well-behaved one...so cute!!
Dinner was spent at Pasta Mania at HarbourFront before going our separate ways...And becos i derived such immense ultility / satisfaction from the whole event, i have decided to arrange for our next outing...its a dinner next weds...and for further outings, its either paintballing or go-carting...i m so excited already!
So its the hols... So one must enjoy the hols... So its Sentosa here we go... So very burnt we shall all get!!!
You see, I am so on about the social welfare for my class that I have actually organised something for them...yes its a deja vu feeling cos I am so used to doing this kind of nonsense even back in my undergrad days... And it is quitie interesting how I became the unofficial 'social rep' for the class...
*harp sound*~ One nite whilst doing nothing, I felt bored and sent an email to my class about the coming holidays and suggested a few alternatives as to what we can do to de-stress after a hectic 7 weeks at NIE...And being away from Sg for quite some time, I didnt realsie that the one who usually takes the initiative will kenna 'arrowed' to do the task...So i received replies that said "thanks for sending out the email and organising the outing...' (?????) I didnt know that by sending out an email listing th eepossible options will implicate me to become the organiser of the outing... ~bummer~
But being the gracious person that i have ALWAYS been (*puke*), i graciously accepted the task...and decided to go to Sentosa for the day, praying since for good weather and nice company...(u see, in a class of 39 students, clicks are inevitably formed, but becosi didnt want to appear rude or ungentlemanly, i extended the invitation to all in the class, so was quite apprehensive as to who will turn up...and i was too lazy to compile of who is coming and who is not...cos again, knowing singaporeans, they will tuah you if something better comes along...)
So in the end there were 11 of us (out of 39), and thank God they were nice pple..ie pple with the same frequency and whom we can click with...phew! But getting to Sentosa was quite a task...supposed to meet at 10am at Harbourfront mrt, but we only managed to reached Bora-Bora beach at 12 noon! Various reasons for the delay...main one being pple were LATE (whats new in Sg??), 2nd was that I had very bad sense of direction and we were actually sightseeing Sentosa whilst trying to locate the beach and parking apaces. 3rd, Sentosa management didnt have very claer signs and directions and whats worse was that we intended to go to Palawan Beach but it was closed...and most footpaths were blocked and for once we felt like tourists in our homeland!!
But finally 'huang tian bu fu you xin ren' (loosely translated as the heavens did not deny pple with determination) we arrived at Bora Bora beach, managed to find a shady spot and a volleyball court and started to go about doing our usual beach stuff...suntan, eat, drink, play, volley, frisbee, soccer, gossip, get burnt...the usual...
We played volley with a bunch of Sec 3 kids cos we didnt have a team at first...u see pple started strolling in at 1ish, but then again i thank them for turning up and giving me face...=) There was even a pommie with us, cos Lyndon brought it along...its a bitch but a very well-behaved one...so cute!!
Dinner was spent at Pasta Mania at HarbourFront before going our separate ways...And becos i derived such immense ultility / satisfaction from the whole event, i have decided to arrange for our next outing...its a dinner next weds...and for further outings, its either paintballing or go-carting...i m so excited already!
Tuesday, September 09, 2003
BadPupPiE's grooming day!!
~Arf Arf~
Hiya all blog readers! Welcome to BadPupPiE's KeNneL!!! How have u all been?
PupPiE's on a 1 week holiday this week, taking a break from all his theatrical work and commuting to the western most end of our little island country... ~yey~
So basically PupPiE's been extremely lazy, sleeping till the sun shines bright in the middle of the sky, procastinating on doing the tonnes of homework and assignments, eating lots and napping lots too...PupPiE fears he will become a FatPupPiE in no time... ~heheh~
After staring at himself in the mirror and noticing the zits and acne spots, as well as the untidy mane of his, PupPiE decided to take a day off to go for a complete grooming course...
First stop: the hairdressers...As most of PupPiE's friends unanimously agreed that his last hairdo was great, he requested the same to be done to his hair this time round...Having apent 45 mins or so under the skilful hands of Agnes, PupPiE emerged somewhat not quite the same as last time...it seems shorter than the previous visit...But he shall see how it goes, cos the hair wasnt gelled up yet...Anyway, it is to prepare PupPiE for a one week observation expereince at ACJC...
2nd stop: Hopped over to his beautician at Hendersons and underwent a full 2hr treatment of his face...Yah, kill those zits, exterminate them forever...muahahhaha...The delicate hands of the beautician comforted the pain of extracting the zits and acne and made PupPiE feel much better...In particular the massage of the face and neck was most pleasureable! ~oh la la~
3rd and final stop: Nothing beats a nice cosy nap in his aircon kennel to repay all the previous sleep debts... ~zzz~
SuperPup's all ready to rock the world and paint the town red!!
~ruff ruff~
~Arf Arf~
Hiya all blog readers! Welcome to BadPupPiE's KeNneL!!! How have u all been?
PupPiE's on a 1 week holiday this week, taking a break from all his theatrical work and commuting to the western most end of our little island country... ~yey~
So basically PupPiE's been extremely lazy, sleeping till the sun shines bright in the middle of the sky, procastinating on doing the tonnes of homework and assignments, eating lots and napping lots too...PupPiE fears he will become a FatPupPiE in no time... ~heheh~
After staring at himself in the mirror and noticing the zits and acne spots, as well as the untidy mane of his, PupPiE decided to take a day off to go for a complete grooming course...
First stop: the hairdressers...As most of PupPiE's friends unanimously agreed that his last hairdo was great, he requested the same to be done to his hair this time round...Having apent 45 mins or so under the skilful hands of Agnes, PupPiE emerged somewhat not quite the same as last time...it seems shorter than the previous visit...But he shall see how it goes, cos the hair wasnt gelled up yet...Anyway, it is to prepare PupPiE for a one week observation expereince at ACJC...
2nd stop: Hopped over to his beautician at Hendersons and underwent a full 2hr treatment of his face...Yah, kill those zits, exterminate them forever...muahahhaha...The delicate hands of the beautician comforted the pain of extracting the zits and acne and made PupPiE feel much better...In particular the massage of the face and neck was most pleasureable! ~oh la la~
3rd and final stop: Nothing beats a nice cosy nap in his aircon kennel to repay all the previous sleep debts... ~zzz~
SuperPup's all ready to rock the world and paint the town red!!
~ruff ruff~
Saturday, September 06, 2003
THE vaginaLOGUE
“Chee-bye. Let me say it again. Chee-bye. If Chee-bye is the only common name to call a vagina, then I will have to use it.”
Inspired from Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues, THE vaginaLOGUE is a profoundly honest, essentially provocative and brutally human piece of theatre that is a journey into the private reaches of oneself without any shred of indulgence...
The monologue sees a very talented Li Xie performing a multiplicity of roles like Hua Mulan (from virginal to dead), married women, schoolgirls, middle-aged ladies, and weaves of recorded interviews with women (including transvestites and prostitutes) of various ages, as well as plain facts about genital mutilation and female circumcision at different scenes...
Having watched the West End's version of The Vagina Monologues which used 3 actresses, I must say that I truly enjoyed our Asian/Eastern version of the show... For one, the portrayal of Mulan in several scenes served as a linking thread that gave the play the essential Chinese feel... The use of symbolism and parodies further enriched the content of the script and gave audience a deeper meaning of what being a vagina is all about. Ensler's version, I felt, only skimmed on the surface of things as it was more of a touch and go concept...The use of multimedia in this local production was effective, although I felt the use of tape recordings and transparencies was somewhat excessive...but I suppose they did bring out the local context of the play...
Perhaps the only piece of dislike I had about the production was the abrupt and sudden scene changes, as it caused my flow of thought to be cut short prematurely, but then again, thats just me!
It is a pity that the NAC did not fund this production...And it is a further pity that Drama Box had to retrench all its full-time staff, due to funding problems and the overused excuse of 'economic downturn'...But I am pretty sure that struggling artistes have a greater hunger to showcase the best that they have in time to come!
“Chee-bye. Let me say it again. Chee-bye. If Chee-bye is the only common name to call a vagina, then I will have to use it.”
Inspired from Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues, THE vaginaLOGUE is a profoundly honest, essentially provocative and brutally human piece of theatre that is a journey into the private reaches of oneself without any shred of indulgence...
The monologue sees a very talented Li Xie performing a multiplicity of roles like Hua Mulan (from virginal to dead), married women, schoolgirls, middle-aged ladies, and weaves of recorded interviews with women (including transvestites and prostitutes) of various ages, as well as plain facts about genital mutilation and female circumcision at different scenes...
Having watched the West End's version of The Vagina Monologues which used 3 actresses, I must say that I truly enjoyed our Asian/Eastern version of the show... For one, the portrayal of Mulan in several scenes served as a linking thread that gave the play the essential Chinese feel... The use of symbolism and parodies further enriched the content of the script and gave audience a deeper meaning of what being a vagina is all about. Ensler's version, I felt, only skimmed on the surface of things as it was more of a touch and go concept...The use of multimedia in this local production was effective, although I felt the use of tape recordings and transparencies was somewhat excessive...but I suppose they did bring out the local context of the play...
Perhaps the only piece of dislike I had about the production was the abrupt and sudden scene changes, as it caused my flow of thought to be cut short prematurely, but then again, thats just me!
It is a pity that the NAC did not fund this production...And it is a further pity that Drama Box had to retrench all its full-time staff, due to funding problems and the overused excuse of 'economic downturn'...But I am pretty sure that struggling artistes have a greater hunger to showcase the best that they have in time to come!
Forbidden City: Portrait of an Empress
Ok so it's another Dick Lee music thing-a-mi-jig, and yes it does star Singapore's very own Kit Chan...The story surrounds its protagonist Empress Dowager Cixi (1835-1908), as the dragon lady, the witch of China, the murderess of her own son....
The catalyst of the tale is Kate Carl, the artist summoned to the court to paint the Empress' portrait. In the best conventions of a portrait capturing the personality behind the persona, Kate gets the Empress to open up about her life - which forms the bulk of the musical's flashback narrative. We see Cixi's brief spell as the Emperor's favourite; the birth of her son; her uncertain fate against an implacable foe, the emperor's brother Prince Tun (an evil manipulator with persuasive onstage relish).
Men, in particular journalists, do not come out of the story very well; Kate entrusts the Dowager's secrets to an English journalist, George Morrison, but she was betrayed when he revealed that he was planted to meet her, fall in love with her, get information about the Empress and ultimately conjured false stories abt the latter so that the allies could have an upper edge...Its all about politics and how strong women are weakened by loving foolishly...
Expect high drama and high emotion, including humour provided by the record keepers (Hossan Leong, Sebastian Tan); set pieces of colour and songs like the choosing of Yehenara by the Emperor, the prostitute song....
The staging of the musical was stylish. Those who came nervous about overblown Orientalism on stage needn't have worried - the piece was defined by clean lines, sharp lighting and careful accents of lantern or gilded throne - not a fan or lion dance was in sight...nor was there gawdy goldish looking props...(the only golden gawdy looking things were the decoration in the theatre itself)
For those who wanna know who is involved in the musical, let me just say that it featured the famous, the popular and the well-known. And a few 'others'...
Famous - EVERYONE knows who you are. Eg. Kit Chan... Popular - Some people know who you are and they really like you. Eg. Amy Cheng...Well-known - Some people know who you are but the popularity votes are split. Eg. Darren Seah...Others - erm… I better not say anymore...
A spectacular production that is equivalent to any West End productions..."starting with the eyes..."
Ok so it's another Dick Lee music thing-a-mi-jig, and yes it does star Singapore's very own Kit Chan...The story surrounds its protagonist Empress Dowager Cixi (1835-1908), as the dragon lady, the witch of China, the murderess of her own son....
The catalyst of the tale is Kate Carl, the artist summoned to the court to paint the Empress' portrait. In the best conventions of a portrait capturing the personality behind the persona, Kate gets the Empress to open up about her life - which forms the bulk of the musical's flashback narrative. We see Cixi's brief spell as the Emperor's favourite; the birth of her son; her uncertain fate against an implacable foe, the emperor's brother Prince Tun (an evil manipulator with persuasive onstage relish).
Men, in particular journalists, do not come out of the story very well; Kate entrusts the Dowager's secrets to an English journalist, George Morrison, but she was betrayed when he revealed that he was planted to meet her, fall in love with her, get information about the Empress and ultimately conjured false stories abt the latter so that the allies could have an upper edge...Its all about politics and how strong women are weakened by loving foolishly...
Expect high drama and high emotion, including humour provided by the record keepers (Hossan Leong, Sebastian Tan); set pieces of colour and songs like the choosing of Yehenara by the Emperor, the prostitute song....
The staging of the musical was stylish. Those who came nervous about overblown Orientalism on stage needn't have worried - the piece was defined by clean lines, sharp lighting and careful accents of lantern or gilded throne - not a fan or lion dance was in sight...nor was there gawdy goldish looking props...(the only golden gawdy looking things were the decoration in the theatre itself)
For those who wanna know who is involved in the musical, let me just say that it featured the famous, the popular and the well-known. And a few 'others'...
Famous - EVERYONE knows who you are. Eg. Kit Chan... Popular - Some people know who you are and they really like you. Eg. Amy Cheng...Well-known - Some people know who you are but the popularity votes are split. Eg. Darren Seah...Others - erm… I better not say anymore...
A spectacular production that is equivalent to any West End productions..."starting with the eyes..."
Friday, September 05, 2003
End of Term!!!!!!
Yey!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Its end of term and i will be on a one week holiday...I so badly need this break to catch up and repay all my sleep debts...
So the finale to the term is putting up the show which i had been diligently directing at a local sec sch...so the kids (all 7 of them) had to do this short skit for their mid autumn festival...the journey from day 1 to today had been a long and arduous one...
1) It had to be conducted in mandarin, cos its a Chinese Language Club event...but thank got the kids could still understand english, so i managed to get away with english but mixed and peppered with mandarin here and there...
2) The kids had absolutely no acting background...and really it's difficult to teach them how to act...but i must say that its a great learning expereince for me (and hopefully for them)...i have learnt to be more patient (i only blew up once and only for a short time out of my 10 rehearsals with them) and gotta appreciate them for what they are and try to finetune their mentality abt things...u see i dont only talk drama to them...i sometimes incorporate national education and the menaing of life in my interaction with them...(okok, i know i m being very NIE-ish here...but hey, it's a occupational hazard mah...)
3) Never ever expect to have everything swee swee for u when doing school plays...sometimes u wont get the equipment u want, sometimes u wont get the venue for rehearsals, and almost ALL the time u wont get a full cast turning up for the rehearsals...all these really tests your limits, esp i m such a 'i want everything right now' kinda person...this had made me more humble... =)
4) I realised that i can be quite brilliant at times at directing and/or injecting extra things into the play...the audience liked the nonsensical stuff and frills...and i am really glad that it all turned out well...it like saying 'awwww...my kids have all grown up...' =P
Well, now i can finally enjoy my personal space during th coming hols...doing things i like and of cos trying to meet my deadlines of assignments due when sch starts...damn NIE!! =P
Yey!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Its end of term and i will be on a one week holiday...I so badly need this break to catch up and repay all my sleep debts...
So the finale to the term is putting up the show which i had been diligently directing at a local sec sch...so the kids (all 7 of them) had to do this short skit for their mid autumn festival...the journey from day 1 to today had been a long and arduous one...
1) It had to be conducted in mandarin, cos its a Chinese Language Club event...but thank got the kids could still understand english, so i managed to get away with english but mixed and peppered with mandarin here and there...
2) The kids had absolutely no acting background...and really it's difficult to teach them how to act...but i must say that its a great learning expereince for me (and hopefully for them)...i have learnt to be more patient (i only blew up once and only for a short time out of my 10 rehearsals with them) and gotta appreciate them for what they are and try to finetune their mentality abt things...u see i dont only talk drama to them...i sometimes incorporate national education and the menaing of life in my interaction with them...(okok, i know i m being very NIE-ish here...but hey, it's a occupational hazard mah...)
3) Never ever expect to have everything swee swee for u when doing school plays...sometimes u wont get the equipment u want, sometimes u wont get the venue for rehearsals, and almost ALL the time u wont get a full cast turning up for the rehearsals...all these really tests your limits, esp i m such a 'i want everything right now' kinda person...this had made me more humble... =)
4) I realised that i can be quite brilliant at times at directing and/or injecting extra things into the play...the audience liked the nonsensical stuff and frills...and i am really glad that it all turned out well...it like saying 'awwww...my kids have all grown up...' =P
Well, now i can finally enjoy my personal space during th coming hols...doing things i like and of cos trying to meet my deadlines of assignments due when sch starts...damn NIE!! =P
Thursday, September 04, 2003
Maddy's in town!
This Maddy just came home for hols without prior information...was very surprised when she told me she's back in sg over icq the other nite...and i was like...'u kidding me?'...but apparently not...this sassy pussy is really on a 2 week break from her demanding IB job, which i quit not too long ago...oh well, some pple just like what they do, and they get paid tonnes for that, albeit its not much after 40% taxation in the UK...
So we met up with XY and YSF for dinner at this jap restaurant at the esplanade next to the tatami store...food was quite nice, altho slighty pricey...had the full set for $22.80, which included salmon sahimi, chawanmushi, unagi, rice, soup, fruits...but the service was crap...somehow they can simply ignore hands swinging up in the air...like what YSF said...they r professional waiters..they make pple wait for them..
Adjourned to Embargo for drinks, but along the way, I realised that UKBound was being held at Centro, and so we dropped by and I saw so many friends...those my age and my other juniors...somehow it felt as if i m being transported back to the UK again, attending one the many SingSoc end of term discos...and it didnt help that blardee YSF mentioned that the freshies this year are like almost 6 yrs our junior... And one of my juniors even jokingly asked if i m too old for the party...and so i coolly replied that can't i be a freshmen going over to the UK for masters or phd?
Anyways the four of us, managed to get a seat at embargo and caught up with whats happening for the last 6 mths or so...Maddy was my flatmate and so naturally i asked abt the house and the toilet (u see, altho i was the only guy staying with 2 other gals, i was the one who managed to keep the toilet clean)...and apparently the toilet condition had worsen since i left...so who says gals do a better job at household chores??
XY and her bf are facing a problem right now, cos the bf decided last minute to go to UK to work and she is having a difficult time to deal with it...i shall not say anything but reserve comments to myself...cos i can go into a long essay on it...
so lets move on to YSF...well, apparently the 'graight' or gay straight man, a termed coined for him by his gay boss who likes 'white round things' is back together with his ex-gf...something which XY's, Maddy's and my crystal ball had predicted like almost a year ago when they 1st broke up...but the "scary" thing according to Maddy is how receptive our once-homophobic YSF is towards the pink culture...i myself am generally shocked that he is actually using pink terms in his language...hmmm...to the extent that Maddy even asked me if i think he is gay...*LOL*...we even made a joke outta it..."if we opened up YSF's closet, we will find him there"...WOahhahahah...i must say that i was pretty impressed by my one-liners tonite...
Should be meeting Maddy for night safari next week before she zooms off into her high flying and super busy life...
This Maddy just came home for hols without prior information...was very surprised when she told me she's back in sg over icq the other nite...and i was like...'u kidding me?'...but apparently not...this sassy pussy is really on a 2 week break from her demanding IB job, which i quit not too long ago...oh well, some pple just like what they do, and they get paid tonnes for that, albeit its not much after 40% taxation in the UK...
So we met up with XY and YSF for dinner at this jap restaurant at the esplanade next to the tatami store...food was quite nice, altho slighty pricey...had the full set for $22.80, which included salmon sahimi, chawanmushi, unagi, rice, soup, fruits...but the service was crap...somehow they can simply ignore hands swinging up in the air...like what YSF said...they r professional waiters..they make pple wait for them..
Adjourned to Embargo for drinks, but along the way, I realised that UKBound was being held at Centro, and so we dropped by and I saw so many friends...those my age and my other juniors...somehow it felt as if i m being transported back to the UK again, attending one the many SingSoc end of term discos...and it didnt help that blardee YSF mentioned that the freshies this year are like almost 6 yrs our junior... And one of my juniors even jokingly asked if i m too old for the party...and so i coolly replied that can't i be a freshmen going over to the UK for masters or phd?
Anyways the four of us, managed to get a seat at embargo and caught up with whats happening for the last 6 mths or so...Maddy was my flatmate and so naturally i asked abt the house and the toilet (u see, altho i was the only guy staying with 2 other gals, i was the one who managed to keep the toilet clean)...and apparently the toilet condition had worsen since i left...so who says gals do a better job at household chores??
XY and her bf are facing a problem right now, cos the bf decided last minute to go to UK to work and she is having a difficult time to deal with it...i shall not say anything but reserve comments to myself...cos i can go into a long essay on it...
so lets move on to YSF...well, apparently the 'graight' or gay straight man, a termed coined for him by his gay boss who likes 'white round things' is back together with his ex-gf...something which XY's, Maddy's and my crystal ball had predicted like almost a year ago when they 1st broke up...but the "scary" thing according to Maddy is how receptive our once-homophobic YSF is towards the pink culture...i myself am generally shocked that he is actually using pink terms in his language...hmmm...to the extent that Maddy even asked me if i think he is gay...*LOL*...we even made a joke outta it..."if we opened up YSF's closet, we will find him there"...WOahhahahah...i must say that i was pretty impressed by my one-liners tonite...
Should be meeting Maddy for night safari next week before she zooms off into her high flying and super busy life...
Tuesday, September 02, 2003
Jap gals suck!!
Did anyone say the Japs are a bunch of kinky people?
_____
Head honchos give blow by blow lowdown on 'going down'
By Ryann Connell
Staff Writer
It may be a difficult concept to swallow, but the number of Japanese women who enjoy fellatio is growing remarkably, according to The Best (September).
Of the 100 ordinary women the monthly surveyed, a gobsmacking 91 dealt a blow for sexual liberation and professed a liking for providing oral services.
"I'm six months pregnant at the moment. I don't want to harm the fetus, so it's hard when my husband comes looking for some sex. But I give him fellatio instead. I suppose he could go off to a brothel, but if he uses my mouth, we can get by for free. After all, we can't go wasting our money with a little one on the way," housewife Manami, a confessed fellatio fan, tells The Best.
Others were willing to head down to a partner's nether regions depending on the circumstances.
"If my partner is somebody I like, I'll gladly perform fellatio, but if it's just a casual sex partner, I won't do it unless I'm asked. As long as I have those two choices, I suppose I enjoy giving oral sex. Anyway, I love the way the penis reacts to it," 18-year-old Emi says.
Only a few women polled said they deplored the trip down under.
"I hate it. I once had a guy grab the back of my head and force me to do it. His thingy hit the back of my throat and almost made me barf," university student Natsumi says.
Reasons why the women enjoy fellatio are varied, ranging from the pleasure obtained by pleasing a partner to surprising power play aspects.
"It's usually the guy who takes the lead during sex, right? But fellatio is one of the few acts where women can take the lead. I look up when I'm performing fellatio to see how the guy acts and this allows me to determine whether our relationship is going to be a long or short one. If he's looking down his nose at me, I can see all the faults in his character. I can't stand it if the guy just lies there, either. At least give a moan of pleasure. I like fellatio because it gives me a chance to see how guys react," 27-year-old secretary Tomoe tells The Best.
Fellow respondent Yuri, a hostess, adds: "Fellatio is a woman's weapon. For girls like me who're short, fat and ugly -- all the worst possible attributes in a woman -- being able to perform in the sack is vital if we want to keep a good guy. But you can't always have sex in a bed, so that's where it's important to be good orally. I've done more than my fair share of it and am generally regarded as being pretty skillful. I like fellatio because if you're good at it, it can be a good way to catch a man."
Of those surveyed, 87 percent reported having experienced a partner ejaculating in their mouth, usually without them knowing at first.
"It was during my last year of junior high school. My boyfriend and I cut classes and were hanging out on the roof of the school building. It started to get a bit steamy and he asked me to do it to him orally. He lasted about 20 seconds. I was worried about getting my school uniform clean, so I had to let him do it in my mouth," Asako, a 24-year-old transport company employee, says.
Getting a mouthful drew mixed reactions from women. Some loved it.
"I was rapt! Part of the person I loved was inside my body," says 28-year-old Tamae.
Others weren't so keen.
"You have got to be kidding. All he had to do was say something like 'Watch out!' I'm not a love doll. I let him ejaculate inside me when it's safe, so there's no reason why he has to do it in my mouth. It's rude to women. I once let an unthinking guy do it in my mouth and it was stuck in the back of my throat for ages. It was gross," Rika, a 21-year-old student, says.
Still more see the act as the lesser of two evils.
"When I was in high school, I got pregnant and had to have an abortion. To be honest, I'm glad he only ejaculates in my mouth," publishing company employee Emiko says.
Many respondents were also happy to gobble up the fruits of their labor. Mostly, they did so to make a partner happy, but some simply liked the taste, a handful felt that it was bad manners not do to so and a few did so because they believed it was good for their skin.
"Spitting it out in front of a partner is extremely rude. I've learned to swallow because all the partners I've been with so far told me that, though it was normal for a brothel worker to spit it out, girlfriends usually drink it," 23-year-old dance instructor Hitomi tells The Best. "I think it's just a woman's instincts to want the genes of somebody she loves sucked into her own body."
Did anyone say the Japs are a bunch of kinky people?
_____
Head honchos give blow by blow lowdown on 'going down'
By Ryann Connell
Staff Writer
It may be a difficult concept to swallow, but the number of Japanese women who enjoy fellatio is growing remarkably, according to The Best (September).
Of the 100 ordinary women the monthly surveyed, a gobsmacking 91 dealt a blow for sexual liberation and professed a liking for providing oral services.
"I'm six months pregnant at the moment. I don't want to harm the fetus, so it's hard when my husband comes looking for some sex. But I give him fellatio instead. I suppose he could go off to a brothel, but if he uses my mouth, we can get by for free. After all, we can't go wasting our money with a little one on the way," housewife Manami, a confessed fellatio fan, tells The Best.
Others were willing to head down to a partner's nether regions depending on the circumstances.
"If my partner is somebody I like, I'll gladly perform fellatio, but if it's just a casual sex partner, I won't do it unless I'm asked. As long as I have those two choices, I suppose I enjoy giving oral sex. Anyway, I love the way the penis reacts to it," 18-year-old Emi says.
Only a few women polled said they deplored the trip down under.
"I hate it. I once had a guy grab the back of my head and force me to do it. His thingy hit the back of my throat and almost made me barf," university student Natsumi says.
Reasons why the women enjoy fellatio are varied, ranging from the pleasure obtained by pleasing a partner to surprising power play aspects.
"It's usually the guy who takes the lead during sex, right? But fellatio is one of the few acts where women can take the lead. I look up when I'm performing fellatio to see how the guy acts and this allows me to determine whether our relationship is going to be a long or short one. If he's looking down his nose at me, I can see all the faults in his character. I can't stand it if the guy just lies there, either. At least give a moan of pleasure. I like fellatio because it gives me a chance to see how guys react," 27-year-old secretary Tomoe tells The Best.
Fellow respondent Yuri, a hostess, adds: "Fellatio is a woman's weapon. For girls like me who're short, fat and ugly -- all the worst possible attributes in a woman -- being able to perform in the sack is vital if we want to keep a good guy. But you can't always have sex in a bed, so that's where it's important to be good orally. I've done more than my fair share of it and am generally regarded as being pretty skillful. I like fellatio because if you're good at it, it can be a good way to catch a man."
Of those surveyed, 87 percent reported having experienced a partner ejaculating in their mouth, usually without them knowing at first.
"It was during my last year of junior high school. My boyfriend and I cut classes and were hanging out on the roof of the school building. It started to get a bit steamy and he asked me to do it to him orally. He lasted about 20 seconds. I was worried about getting my school uniform clean, so I had to let him do it in my mouth," Asako, a 24-year-old transport company employee, says.
Getting a mouthful drew mixed reactions from women. Some loved it.
"I was rapt! Part of the person I loved was inside my body," says 28-year-old Tamae.
Others weren't so keen.
"You have got to be kidding. All he had to do was say something like 'Watch out!' I'm not a love doll. I let him ejaculate inside me when it's safe, so there's no reason why he has to do it in my mouth. It's rude to women. I once let an unthinking guy do it in my mouth and it was stuck in the back of my throat for ages. It was gross," Rika, a 21-year-old student, says.
Still more see the act as the lesser of two evils.
"When I was in high school, I got pregnant and had to have an abortion. To be honest, I'm glad he only ejaculates in my mouth," publishing company employee Emiko says.
Many respondents were also happy to gobble up the fruits of their labor. Mostly, they did so to make a partner happy, but some simply liked the taste, a handful felt that it was bad manners not do to so and a few did so because they believed it was good for their skin.
"Spitting it out in front of a partner is extremely rude. I've learned to swallow because all the partners I've been with so far told me that, though it was normal for a brothel worker to spit it out, girlfriends usually drink it," 23-year-old dance instructor Hitomi tells The Best. "I think it's just a woman's instincts to want the genes of somebody she loves sucked into her own body."
Monday, September 01, 2003
Got a role...What a woe...
I m in a fix...i've gotten a lead role in an upcoming production in Jan, but somehow i just dont feel like taking up this one...Actually i kinda expected to get it esp since there were only 2 of us auditioning for the lead role...but i was actually more interested in doing a female impersonation of another role (but alas the director couldnt see the artistic point of that), so hence i was left with this male lead role...
And what's really freaking me out is that I will have to sing and dance...dance is ok for me...but SING??? ask any of my friends and they would cringe and rather be shot in the head than to hear me sing...yes, i m THAT bad...it's kinda very discouraging u know, to know that i cant sing on tune in pitch at key...ie i m certified TONE-DEAF!! *sigh*
So anyway, KJ was disappted that he didnt get the lead role, and was even more frustrated to know that the other roles had understudy except for this male lead...so being the kind soul that i have ALWAYS been, i consoled him and told him that i will speak to the director and 'demand' that i need an understudy for this lead role...so hopefully she will relent and KJ will be able to do at least 2 shows and so i dont have to work so hard for something i didnt really want...
But for now, just keep your 1st week of Jan free...those are the performing dates...
I m in a fix...i've gotten a lead role in an upcoming production in Jan, but somehow i just dont feel like taking up this one...Actually i kinda expected to get it esp since there were only 2 of us auditioning for the lead role...but i was actually more interested in doing a female impersonation of another role (but alas the director couldnt see the artistic point of that), so hence i was left with this male lead role...
And what's really freaking me out is that I will have to sing and dance...dance is ok for me...but SING??? ask any of my friends and they would cringe and rather be shot in the head than to hear me sing...yes, i m THAT bad...it's kinda very discouraging u know, to know that i cant sing on tune in pitch at key...ie i m certified TONE-DEAF!! *sigh*
So anyway, KJ was disappted that he didnt get the lead role, and was even more frustrated to know that the other roles had understudy except for this male lead...so being the kind soul that i have ALWAYS been, i consoled him and told him that i will speak to the director and 'demand' that i need an understudy for this lead role...so hopefully she will relent and KJ will be able to do at least 2 shows and so i dont have to work so hard for something i didnt really want...
But for now, just keep your 1st week of Jan free...those are the performing dates...