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>spilt gravy on rice by drama lab and the singapore repertory theatre >reviewed by kenneth kwok >date:
25 feb 2003 >tired
already? go home then |
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In an interview for the programme of SPILT GRAVY ON RICE, Malaysian playwright Jit Murad talks about his "odd and otherwise useless ability to daydream anytime, anywhere", resulting in "scenes [being] played out in my head" which "months or years later fall into place [after] a larger unifying theme makes itself known". And this came across in this play, which, while ostensibly about five very different siblings with five different mothers returning home on the occasion of their father's death, often felt more like a series of vignettes strung together by the simplest of storylines. Brothers Zakaria and Husni singing karaoke with transsexual bar hostess Michelle; tai-tai Zaiton and her actress-wannabe best buddy Hortense in a spa; interpretive dancer Willow Gomez performing writer Kalsom's latest script; two angels passing (you had to have been there). Often it felt like the sums of the parts were greater than the whole, the contrivances of the narrative often holding the play back rather than pushing it along - one example being the extended scene in the elevator and another being the penultimate scene where each sibling was possessed in turn by their father's ghost. And so what stood out was not the much-buzzed-about commentary on Malaysian politics but the rich characters and the hilarious set pieces that Murad placed them in. Despite quite a bit of the play being in Malay and therefore lost to some audience members, myself included, the audience was hooting and roaring with laughter as each scene of this madcap family drama played itself out. The strength of Murad's humour is not only in his wit and insight but also in the sincerity and respect he affords each of his characters. No matter how rough or ridiculous they may be, he makes them so identifiably human and real. |
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>>'The strength of Murad's humour is not only in his wit and insight but also in the sincerity and respect he affords each of his characters.' |
Production values lacked the slickness of say, your latest touring musical extravaganza at the Esplanade, but were solid and I was particularly impressed by the set design. It would be wrong to say that the single square structure on stage merely "doubled" up as anything because really, it was used in a whole host of imaginative ways which involved it opening and closing to function as a single room, a house, the inside of a car, the doors of an elevator, etc. |
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English-Language Malaysian theatre company Dramalab brought in this time by the Singapore Repertory Theatre has received numerous accolades in Malaysia and has performed in Singapore before ('Gold Rain and Hailstones', 1999, 'A Flight Delayed', 2000). The next time they make the trip across the causeway, I strongly recommend you give their taste of homebrew a try. |