Why Not
I’m on sick leave. Have been completely floored by a particularly virulent strain that causes feverish aches in bones, nose to run determinedly and random loss of voice.
The personal calamity did not stop me from attending an informal dialogue session last night chaired by the SRT meant to suss out our views on local theatre productions and groups. In a cosy setting with an intimate (and un-intimidating) number of eight (even though nothing would affect my frank assessment of the entertainment scene), we made new friends and exchanged thoughts. I have to admit unabashedly that this mini forum would have been pretty dull without me. I was an even more exciting participant than Minxiu (whom I had expected to be more verbose, but he was subdued and restrained). Perhaps all the germs and medication have made me tipsy.
We, that is, Minxiu and I, walked away triumphantly with two bottles of wine and four complimentary passes to any SRT production. Yay!
It’s so difficult to get company for theatre. Minxiu is often first choice, followed by Best Friend and maybe Beautante. Mr Dimples - if only I need an escort – for I don’t think he’s the avid theatre-goer yet, more like he’s going to 陪我 . And that’s the last thing what I want!! It will be great to discuss and analyse in an intellectual, geeky manner and go on endlessly, ecstatically, esoterically about themes, layers and intensity. Ha. Ha. Ha. Mr Dimples is more company for musicals and the big ticket items that other friends baulked at paying for. Sigh. I need new friends.
A thing that has been bugging me ever since 2000: why is Chinese theatre languishing?
I find myself still asking this question 6 years later. It’s definitely not cyclical, in the sense of it having its ups and downs. Chinese theatre 没落了！！！每况愈下，一蹶不振！！！
I don’t understand, I really don’t. My friends and I come from a predominantly Chinese theatre background. Through exchanges with other schools and watching school productions (we started going for the then named HCJC’s 黄城夜韵 in formative years. And even attended the lesser known RJC Chinese drama productions enthusiastically), I can swear that there was a talented pool of youngsters who are very into Chinese theatre and made it seem so prominently promising and enticing (it is always attractive and aphrodisiac to work with talented and attractive people – irresistible). English drama, on the other hand, was always blah and I don’t recall attending any English school productions at all.
So it just doesn’t make sense how come all the promise and potential just vaporised when we left school, and no one I know personally still engages in Chinese and is a Chinese theatre practioner. How come English theatre flourishes when no one was paying attention to it? What happened to the glorious school days when Chinese theatre was the It thing?
Being the Chinese Chinese, I’m quite traumatised by this theatrical state of affairs. I’m still trying to find the reasons to account for why Chinese theatre groups are struggling so hard.
I’m doing my bit. I try to attend as many Chinese local productions I can when I do find company and the themes appeal to me. (I have a particular soft spot for DramaBox but they are venturing into themes that I don’t care for. So too bad).
Why Chinese theatre? I think it is more human, more sentimental and less pretentious, less in-your-face. I like to see a play slowly unfolding to revel in its complexities. And I find Chinese speak ever so much more lyrical and poetic.
Please look for me when you want to watch Chinese theatre. Please reconsider your decision the next time I ask you and your instinctive reaction is the no on the tip of your tongue. Bite it, darling. Why not.
The personal calamity did not stop me from attending an informal dialogue session last night chaired by the SRT meant to suss out our views on local theatre productions and groups. In a cosy setting with an intimate (and un-intimidating) number of eight (even though nothing would affect my frank assessment of the entertainment scene), we made new friends and exchanged thoughts. I have to admit unabashedly that this mini forum would have been pretty dull without me. I was an even more exciting participant than Minxiu (whom I had expected to be more verbose, but he was subdued and restrained). Perhaps all the germs and medication have made me tipsy.
We, that is, Minxiu and I, walked away triumphantly with two bottles of wine and four complimentary passes to any SRT production. Yay!
It’s so difficult to get company for theatre. Minxiu is often first choice, followed by Best Friend and maybe Beautante. Mr Dimples - if only I need an escort – for I don’t think he’s the avid theatre-goer yet, more like he’s going to 陪我 . And that’s the last thing what I want!! It will be great to discuss and analyse in an intellectual, geeky manner and go on endlessly, ecstatically, esoterically about themes, layers and intensity. Ha. Ha. Ha. Mr Dimples is more company for musicals and the big ticket items that other friends baulked at paying for. Sigh. I need new friends.
A thing that has been bugging me ever since 2000: why is Chinese theatre languishing?
I find myself still asking this question 6 years later. It’s definitely not cyclical, in the sense of it having its ups and downs. Chinese theatre 没落了！！！每况愈下，一蹶不振！！！
I don’t understand, I really don’t. My friends and I come from a predominantly Chinese theatre background. Through exchanges with other schools and watching school productions (we started going for the then named HCJC’s 黄城夜韵 in formative years. And even attended the lesser known RJC Chinese drama productions enthusiastically), I can swear that there was a talented pool of youngsters who are very into Chinese theatre and made it seem so prominently promising and enticing (it is always attractive and aphrodisiac to work with talented and attractive people – irresistible). English drama, on the other hand, was always blah and I don’t recall attending any English school productions at all.
So it just doesn’t make sense how come all the promise and potential just vaporised when we left school, and no one I know personally still engages in Chinese and is a Chinese theatre practioner. How come English theatre flourishes when no one was paying attention to it? What happened to the glorious school days when Chinese theatre was the It thing?
Being the Chinese Chinese, I’m quite traumatised by this theatrical state of affairs. I’m still trying to find the reasons to account for why Chinese theatre groups are struggling so hard.
I’m doing my bit. I try to attend as many Chinese local productions I can when I do find company and the themes appeal to me. (I have a particular soft spot for DramaBox but they are venturing into themes that I don’t care for. So too bad).
Why Chinese theatre? I think it is more human, more sentimental and less pretentious, less in-your-face. I like to see a play slowly unfolding to revel in its complexities. And I find Chinese speak ever so much more lyrical and poetic.
Please look for me when you want to watch Chinese theatre. Please reconsider your decision the next time I ask you and your instinctive reaction is the no on the tip of your tongue. Bite it, darling. Why not.
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