A True Beauty... my Review of Beauty and the Beast

I caught Beauty and the Beast a few weekends ago. It was staged at the Mastercard Theatres at MBS. In my opinion, the seats at the Mastercard Theatres are extremely uncomfortable and the acoustics here are not as good that at the Esplanade and Victoria Theatre. I also caught Phantom and Sound of Music at the Mastercard Theatres and the music and singing can be muffled at times. That is why I try to avoid catching anything there. I wonder sometimes why they choose to stage these musicals there. Anyways it was pretty full with way more adults than children. I guess these adults must have loved the original Disney cartoon. A bit of a spoiler here but though the storyline is the same as the cartoon, NOT all the songs are the same. So how was it?

It was good. Really beautiful backdrops, sets and props. The singing was absolutely marvellous. Especially Belle !! I think she really stood out amongst all the other cast members. The Beast was good and Gaston did his smug, strutting act well but next to Belle, they all paled in comparison. I think she will do an excellent Dorothy from Wizard of Oz. I can just imagine her singing “Somewhere over the Rainbow” in blue overalls and white blouse and red ruby shoes !!!  The other supporting cast – Lumiere, Cogsworth, Mrs Potts & Chip were all good too in their roles and brought everything together very nicely.  

The backup dancers were superb. They were very energetic and the costumes that they were in … WOW !! A lot of money must have been spent on the costumes and the backdrop sets and props. The props and sets were not just 2-dimensional but full 3 dimensional and interactive as well. That may be why tickets are so expensive !! But I feel that they were worth it. In fact, just watching “Be Our Guest” on stage was worth it !! The colors, the dancing, the effects .. spectacular !!

If I had any complaints, it would be minor things like the Beast and Gaston could up their singing more. I don’t think Disney or the production can do anything about the uncomfortable seats or the acoustics in the theatre.

So folks, go catch Beauty and the Beast … it will be here up to the 3^rd May 2015. This is the original Broadway production .. so expect really high production values and fantastic entertainment !! It is a real visual treat for the whole family !!! .. just make sure you bring some comfy pillows !!!

Tasteless Bubur Cha Cha : My Review of Great World Cabaret Let’s Bo Bo Cha Cha

When I bought the tickets to Great World Cabaret, I was thinking.. WOW Mark, Judee, Sebastian and Hossan all in one show .. CABARET STYLE … have to buy la. 4 blockbuster acts .. lots of Hokkien laughs .. tickets will surely be flying. Quickly buy .. however, the start of my disappointment came when I found out (on the day of the show) that they were separate .. one superstar one week. I told myself .. its ok .. Mark Lee will be super funny too even if it was for 1.5 hours. I was already contemplating buying tickets for the Sebastian shows as well (super big fan of Sebastian).

This was my first time to the RWS theatre and I must say it is very nice. Very plush and grand. VERY UNLIKE THE MBS MASTERCARD THEATRE which is grey and cold. I had super VIP seats right in the middle of the theatre and plenty of legroom with even a little table to put my drinks. ROCKSTAR SEATS. As it got nearer to 8pm, the seats began to fill up. As the RWS theatre is very large, I was thinking would it be possible for it to be full-house .. especially on the 3^rd day night of the Lunar New Year. Sadly, I was right .. it didn’t fill up.. it was barely 40% filled.

The show then started.

(DISCLAIMER !!!

Before I continue, I must stress that this is solely my opinion based on what I saw that night and comparing to other plays and shows and theatre that I have seen previously. If you do not agree, then go read something else. OK disclaimer done .. back to my review.)

The show was a mess. It was amateur and badly put together. The premise of the show was about this man who is now elderly remembering the days when he was younger and working in a carbaret show in Singapore in the 60s. The different 'segments' of the show were like different 'acts' which used to be featured at a cabaret at that time. The show opened with the big dance and song routine which though was very bright and colourful just felt short of exciting. This was followed up by the ‘three drunken sailors’ routine which was just unnecessary. There was no excitement to it. Next came the singing /dancing act where 3 ladies came out to sing and dance. The only one who stood out was the second lady singing ‘Bunga Melur’ as Kartina Dahari. Rose Chan and Sakura Teng wwere just bad imitations. I have seen Hui Xuan sing and dance before and this performance was muted and more focus on ‘removing her clothes’ rather than on her singing and dancing (which I know she is superb at). It did not help that the accompanying music drowned out their voices (which was the common thing throughout the show).

The next ‘segment’ was the Magic Show which was not too bad. One or two of the magic tricks were pretty impressive but then the others were like again just so ‘ho-hum.’ The magician’s assistant was applauding the magician more than the audience. This was followed by the ‘Siglap brothers’ routine which I feel must be the worst thing I have ever watched to date.

Mark Lee’s routine came next and it was above average for the evening. To be honest, it really would not have taken much to shine amongst all the other ‘segments’. He was funny in his unique gangster-ah beng way and though his jokes were very much cliché, his presentation and style made it all funny. However, he was BARELY on stage for longer than 20 mins. The next act was the Qing Dao Acrobatic troupe which was pretty good too. The stunts performed were quite entertaining and suspenseful. This was followed by another song-and-dance routine and rounded up with the entire cast (magician and acrobats included) singing on stage.

Before I wrote this review, I was read other reviews of this show. Generally the reviews from other reviewers were more negative and positive. My view is that the show was hastily put together and it showed. I was very surprised as it was directed by George Chan and written by the highly dependable Alfian Sa’at. I guess the dancing was well choreographed and there were not many lines in it anyway so it was not fair to judge George and Alfian based on this show.

I was very disappointed with the quality of the segments. It felt to me like lets get whoever wants to perform, add a dash of star power in the form of Mark / Judee / Sebastian / Hossan, add some nostalgic music and dancing and sell it to the public as a SG50 show to teach the young about entertainment in the 60s. There narrative which was meant to string the segments together was very flimsy, the quality of the segments was really mediocre and it just all felt amateur. I doubt that a cabaret show in the 60s was in English and with an American accent too. It was smart idea to push Mark Lee and Sebastian to lure the hokkien-speaking Aunty crowd but just for 15 minutes?

I am very surprised that Dream Academy came out with something of this low quality. I was very surprised that 40% of the seats were filled (there were 30% discount coupons being distributed in the Food court…  and IMHO .. it still wasn’t worth it). After watching ‘Great World Cabaret’ and ‘Dim Sum Dollies : History of Singapore Part 2’ late last year, I am beginning to wonder about the quality of productions by Dream Academy. I have nothing personal against anyone in Dream Academy and Dream Academy itself. I have always enjoyed their previous shows like Crazy Christmas and such but lately the quality of their productions seem to be going down ... STEEPLY. Ticket prices have increased and the audience will surely want to watch something highly entertaining and fun. Studying the audiences reaction after the finale, I could tell that they were not entertained at all. Very little laughter and applause throughout the show. When the segments ended, it was more like .. “err are we supposed to clap now” kind of reaction.

If anyone from Dream Academy want to contact me about this review and what I think about the show so that hopefully something can be improved, please feel free to. I will be glad to share my experience with you so that we can improve the quality of our local productions.

One thing’s for sure .. I will not be buying tickets for the Sebastian variant of Great World Cabaret.

Coming Soon. Vocaluptuous ... Love .. Laugh .. Live ... Charity concert

Hello folks …. its been a loooong time since I last posted here … sorry was working overseas and was really swamped blah blah blah .. Anyways what better way to get back into Singaporedramamama and to welcome the festive season than a Vocaluptuous preview !!!

 

Vocaluptuous is Singapore’s numero uno Acapella singing group. I can easily attest that they are also one of the best in the region … and some say Batam. They have performed all around the world and have been invited many times as special guests to international Acapella events. To date I have heard them about 6 times at various editions of Crazy Christmas, other Acapella events and of course their own concerts. They get better and better every time I see them, from the improved harmonies to the on-stage showmanship. Their singing style comes across to be as fun, heartfelt, perfectly in harmony and blended with a dash of jazz for added kick. The onstage actions are playful, cheeky yet sincere and heartwarming (you must experience them to understand what I mean). It is really a combination of all that makes them so good.

Vocaluptuous is having a concert this 22 December 2014 at the Esplanade Concert Hall. It is going to be a one-nite-only show. It is going to be a full-length Vocaluptuous-only concert and not the Vocaluptuous teaser of 1-2 songs. IMAGINE THAT - VOCALUPTUOUS FOR ONE AND A HALF HOURS !!! This concert is titled ‘Love Laugh Live’. This is the perfect time to spread the message of Living in Love and Laughter.  The song list includes new compositions, old classics and of course Christmas favourites with the Vocaluptuous twist.

 

It is a very special concert too as through this event as this concert is a Fundraiser for the Asissi Hospice.
So much recently has been about Pioneer Generation and how much it can save you on medical fees .. but what if there isn’t any medical care left .. then what subsidies are there? What is hospice care? The Asissi Hospice helps to ensure that the Love and Laughter goes on for the terminally ill. All ticket proceeds and donations will be donated to the Asissi Hospice. Vocaluptuous target is to raise $300,000 for the Hospice so that they are able to reach out further to more who need palliative and hospice care. (more details on donations can be found on the flyers)

So what are you waiting for guys, go share with your friends about this concert and head to Sistic to grab yer tickets for what promises to be a wonderful treat to your senses by Vocaluptuous. More information can be found at https://www.facebook.com/Vocaluptuous

 

It’s the season for giving .. it’s the season for sharing .. what better way than to give the present of Love and Laughter to the ones who need it most this Christmas.… it may be their last...

Italy has no Churches ... my review of Chestnuts 6.9

As many of you already know, I am a super big fan of Chestnuts. So after a 18 month hiatus, Chestnuts is BACK !!!!!!!!!!!!! 16^th August came .. and that was my first viewing of Chestnuts 6.9. I watched it again with my friends on the 18^th evening as well. I usually watch Chestnuts on opening night knowing that there will be some jitters amongst the actors as well as other technical issues. This is because this is when Jonathan usually bares all (not literally). After 2-3 shows, he will start trimming and making changes to the skits to make the show a lot better. Which explains why I watch it a second time. Ok enough about me .. more about the show …

There were at least 15 “segments” throughout the show. This is excluding all the minor video skits which serve as fillers while the actors do their costume changes and the production team does set changes. The show starts out with a song about what has been happening in Singapore since the last Chestnuts show. Jon’s witty lines could be seen as the cast sing about the recent sex scandals, money scandals, political scandals, Hello Kitty queues amongst other things. The lyrics were full of intended puns and innuendoes .. however it was quite hard to pick them up as they were sung very quickly. It was easier when reading the “subtitles” at the sides and there were video / photos on the backdrop of the specific subject. However it was difficult to try and view everything together. This made that skit lose its impact.

This was followed by a short video introduction of the guest actor… Tim. Scattered throughout the show, there were many short video clips of Tim serving National Service and how he took many of our local “lingo” literally.

The show then started on the main “Les Miserables” theme. The lyrics of popular Les Mis songs were given the Jon Lim treatment with a “skewed” undertone ending with a very passionate kiss !!! We were then treated to a local scene at a local toy shop. Other notable skit during the first half was the Phantom/Jersey Boys/Wicked/Addams Family musical skit. This was fairly entertaining though it could be seen that as much as the crowd liked the singing and the music, they were a bit lost with the Addams Family bit.

Theatre in 10 this year covered La Cage, Spring Awakenings, Romeo and Juilet, Othello, High Class, Army Daze and Cook a Pot of Curry amongst other local theatre productions. I felt that it was generally a bit ‘touch and go.’ There were bits which were genuinely funny but there were some which were downright “huh??? What was that about…”

First half ended with a skit showing the singing prowess of the main 4 actors. They were randomly given “Les Mis” parts to sing .. and were required to re-enact the Act 1 Finale of Les Mis. That means that each actor had to learn ALL 8 .. YES EIGHT parts and be able to sing it well and blend it well with each other. It was done well and deserved a standing ovation. The first time ... Judee Tan got Javert and Valjean which would have been super tough. In my second viewing, Jon got Cosette and Mdm Thenardier which was hilarious.

The second half of the show started with Jon’s parody of Ah Boys to Men. This was followed by the continuation of the Les Mis arc. This time it was Les Mis meets Wolverine. Tim played the role of Wolverine well. His body statute and size seemed to fit nicely into that role. However, I personally felt that this whole segment was very draggy. There were sub-parts which were unnecessary and though the concept may have been good .. the execution was in my opinion poor. It was not the acting or the singing which was bad but just something wasn’t right. The Judee Tan ‘body morphing’ was a very original idea but I felt a bit irrelevant.

The highlight of the night was the irresistible Judee Tan as Ivory Low in the Pondan News Network segment. Somehow without Rodney, it was a bit different (one of my friends was extremely disappointed that Rodney was not in it .. yeah you JACQ!!!) but I felt Dwayne did well replacing Rodney. Hopefully Rodney comes back from his Brazil trip soon. The Water Wally bit had me in stitches for the longest time … the Amy Chia bit was amusing but when Ivory came on … all in the audience were gasping for air after laughing so much and loud !!! Shingz to u all ... Judee is quickly growing into the new queen of comedy albeit from the Ah-Lian perspective. And what did she say to the rude old Auntie???

The show ended (2.5 hours later) with the re-make of “Do you hear the people Sing” with lyrics focussed on the 6.9m White paper issue.

Since my second viewing, I have read many reviews of Chestnuts 6.9. Many of the reviews gave it the thumbs up because of the wit of Jon in the lines and the difficulty in putting together so many singing roles and skits amongst such a small cast. To me, this is the minimum in expectation from any Chestnuts production.

On a whole, as per previous Chestnuts … there were segments and skits which connected and some which didn’t. The reason why some connect is because of the familiarity with the content and the context of the segment. Another reason why is that they are just downright funny and honest (Ivory Low). To me, after watching the last 3 Chestnuts productions, I was quite disappointed with Chestnuts 6.9. It was entertaining at times, it was funny at times but it was mediocre most times. There seems to be something lacking this edition which I cannot put my finger on. Eventhough 2.5 hours is good value for money, I felt that easily an hour of that was below the high expectation I have seen of Jon’s direction and writing. The humour here was more slapstick and less witty. I have mentioned many times in my previous posts that this kind of slapstick humour is what the Singapore public enjoys but we must be careful and stick to our roots and reserve the slapstick-ah-beng-dialect-in your face humour to the likes of the Hossan Show, Broadway Beng and Kumar. Don’t get me wrong. I am not atas. I love such bawdy, obvious humour which I get from watching Hossan and Sebastian on stage. However, I expect different from Jon. More sharp jibes about  the local scene …. about the haze and PSI… about the Hello Kitty queues … something about Gangnam style … about the immigration issues rather than Les Miserables. What is the overall theme of Chestnuts 6.9? Why 6.9 when that was only discussed about in the last 15 minutes of the show?

I think this review is Chestnuts 6.9’s first semi-negative review so far. No matter what, I still encourage all Chestnuts virgins to go watch the show. I also encourage all readers to please comment on this blog and tell me what are your thoughts about Chestnuts 6.9. Very much appreciated … Shingz to you Jonathan Lim ….

Le Mis + Wolverine + 6.9 + Jon Lim = Chestnuts 6.9 : the Less Miserable White Paper Preview !!!

The last time there was a Chestnuts show was January 2012. It has been almost been 18-19 months since then. No Chestnuts. I have been pestering the producer .. when is the next Chestnuts?? When when when??? The response I got was usually .. Not so soon la .. or Not enough material to hold a meaty show. So we waited and waited … IT HAS FINALLY ARRIVED … a brand-new Chestnuts .. complete with all new content (this was what I was promised). The last Chestnuts show was Chestnuts 15 … this one is Chestnuts 6.9 : the Less Miserable White Paper. I guess most of us would know what the number 6.9 means !!! At least those of us in Singapore would.

As expected from the penmanship of Mr Jonathan Lim … the show promises new mash-ups, bash-ups and an evening full of ‘roll-on-the-floor’ laughter. From what I have read in Jon’s rehearsal notes, there is going to be singing (le Mis + Jonathan style) .. there is some physical stuff with barriers .. there is going to be parts about the latest Wolverine movie (so advice is to quickly catch the movie before you watch Chestnuts)… and MORE. You can view videos of their past “works” at their facebook page ( https://www.facebook.com/groups/18575522912/ ). You can also read my preview / review of their last show somewhere on this blog.

Why change something when it ain’t broken right? So the original cast are back minus Rodney plus a ‘special guest.’ Both Judy and Judee, Dwayne and of cos Jon will be acting / singing / dancing. The venue for this edition of Chestnuts will be at the Drama Centre Theatre from the 16^th – 25^th August. There will be no shows on Monday and Tuesday (hey 5 actors – 3 hours .. need to rest leh!!). You can find out more details from again from the FB page and you can grab your tickets from Sistic.

If anything .. Chestnuts is one of the funniest shows put together in Singapore. It is no slapstick ha-ha comedy .. but witty lines and super good/accurate parodies translated to Singapore context. So if you need a night or more of laughter to get away from the 6.9million people .. there is no better place than to catch Chestnuts !!! Anyone fancy more nuts???

The Beauty of Melancholy ... My review of "Melancholy Play" presented by Couch Theatre

To start off, let me ask you this question … who do you find more attractive and fall in love with :

·         Someone who sighs wistfully, looks out of the window, has a facial expression like a forlorn puppy, always seems to vulnerable and just on the edge of depression … or

·         Someone who is running around screaming in joy, growing happier daily, perpetually grinning and singing and humming a merry tune and just on the edge of insanity …

For me, I would prefer the former. Why? I guess I want to provide for the person and care for the person and seem like I am “protecting” the person. What more can I do for a really happy person?

This is what I got from watching “Melancholy Play” by Sarah Ruhl. I caught this on Friday evening at the Drama Centre BlackBox at the National Library. This play was presented by Couch Theatre. The theme of the play is the feeling of “Melancholia” and how someone who is melancholy can have such an effect on others feelings and emotions. When the melancholia goes away .. the feelings change. The play also showed me the beauty of being melancholy and why it isn’t such a bad thing after all.

I have never read this play, or neither did I do any deep research into it prior to attending the play / writing my preview several weeks ago. All I knew was that this play was about “Being Melancholy” and something about an “almond.” But I got so much deeper meaning from watching the play. I guess this was only because the direction and the cast was excellent.

It is extremely refreshing and joyous to see a cast of actors and actresses whom I have never seen before. This is because then everything starts from a clean slate .. no expectations, no “previous” roles kind of baggage in my mind. Couch Theatre was formed by a group of students .. young ‘tweenagers’ who have a strong passion for the theatres. I has the chance to speak to the director and the production manager after the show and I was very impressed by the aims and aspirations of Couch Theatre. Currently, they are planning 2 productions a year with an aim of 4 yearly in the future. They also want to move away from the mainstream ha-ha-ha kind of play (which I personally think we have too much of) and more into something more engaging and thoughtful. I truly support their aims !!!

The acting was above par. Considering that the main cast of 6 persons have never had any prior professional training, their acting is above par to that of some of the so-called “professional actors” here in Singapore. The one person who stood out for me was Ms Cheryl Foo who played the main role of “Tilly.” The transition between the mournful melancholy Tilly to the slightly crazed, wild-eyed Tilly was seamless and looked effortless on her part. Her facial expressions were spot on.. delivery of her lines were clear and timing was excellent. Cheryl had a very polished and confident performance with a strong stage presence.  Cheryl will go far if she wishes to continue in theatre. I can see her being the new Emma Yong (just needs to improve her singing)… and I say that honestly !!! I haven’t seen such a bright and great talent since I saw Erwin Shah.

The acting of the two main male roles played by Ziyad and Shien Hian were of a high standard. Again they were confident actors, had good poise, spoke strong and well (though for Shien Hian, sometimes the accent resulted in words being mumbled), had the right expressions and most important did not ‘overact.’ My pet peeve is with actors and actresses who overact. A good actor / actress acts with just the right amount of emotion in their poise, stance, tone and expression.

For the remaining two female roles, Rei-En and Selene did a good job. However, their roles were too small to make a very long lasting impression as compared to the role of Tilly. Also their roles were rather one-dimensional so I am unable to see the depth in their acting.

If I had anything to complain about, it would be for two small things. Firstly, the singing. It is quite clear that none of the cast (except for Adrian, the cellist) had much or any singing background. The singing was not exactly well blended amongst the 5 voices and the cello. It was rather jarring at certain points. However, I thought this somehow fitted into this “melancholy” theme. When we are happy, we hear music with happy, strong melodies of a Major chord. When we are sad and down, we tend to enjoy music which is more of the disjointed and of a Minor chord. Next is the follow-on spotlighting. But there were a few times when I felt that the spot lighting was not spot-on (pun intended). I know this is a very small issue but it does have an effect on the overall performance.

Overall, I really enjoyed myself at “Melancholy Play,” and I would really like to thank Jasmine for the invite and the great seat. The Drama Centre BlackBox is a great venue because it gives a very intimate and cosy feeling to the audience. It also gives the chance for the audience to view the cast close-up. I was seated between family of one of the cast members. I spoke to the father and was glad to hear that he encouraged and supported his daughter to do this. The whole family seemed to be enjoying themselves and must have been very proud to see their daughter in action (I am not sure if it was Cheryl, Rei-En or Selene). These days parents are too busy telling their children that they should be a professional so that can earn lots of money blah blah blah. Again I hope to see more of Couch Theatre’s future productions and I wish them all the best on fulfilling their aims and aspirations. If their future productions are going to be like this production of “Melancholy Play,” I will proudly be a supporter. Keep up the hard work !!!

Could have been better .. Review of Phantom of the Opera (Singapore 2013)

I watched Phantom of the Opera in Singapore on 20^th July 2013 at 2pm at the Marina Bay Sands Mastercard Theatre. This musical first debuted in 1986 and is still showing in London. It has been viewed by at least 150 million people all over the world.

I know of many people who have seen Phantom of the Opera several times, either on Broadway or in London’s West End or in the countless of re-productions in Australia, Singapore, Japan and many other countries in the world. Countless of people have also bought and listened to the CD recordings of this musical by the original cast of Michael Crawford (Phantom), Sarah Brightman (Christine) and Steve Barton (Raoul). I for one have seen Phantom of the Opera in London (not the original cast) in 2002 and more than 10 years later .. I watched it again in Singapore.

Somehow, I wasn’t as overwhelmed by the recent viewing as compared to watching it the first time. Why? Firstly, I felt that the singing was not as good. There were many parts where I could hardly hear the singing (this may be due to the bad acoustics at the MBS Theatre) … but there were parts where I could hear .. but the words were either being mumbled or just mashed up with the orchestra. I have listened to the original cast CD (..in fact I own two copies) .. many times since I got it in 1986 as a present from my sister. I know it is unfair to compare the CD to the performance as the CD may be a studio recording as compared to a live performance. However, I can’t help but feel that the singing can be better .. clearer and brighter. The acting was good by the 3 leading cast members (Phantom, Christine and Raoul). The supporting cast members did their part well but yet again when it was time to sing, I found it quite lacking. Again it is rather unfair as the singing I am accustomed to is off the Phantom CD.

The stage / backdrops and effects were very good though I wished the chandelier could have come crashing a lot faster.

As Phantom of the Opera is a musical, the orchestra plays a very big part of the entire production. The orchestra was not too bad except for some parts where I felt that the tempo was going “Allegro” rather than “Adagio.” This was highly apparent during their performance of “All I Ask of You.” Again this is when compared to what I am more familiar with.

Overall, it was a satisfactory performance but to be brutally honest, not a ‘standing ovation’ kind of performance. For first-timers to Phantom of the Opera, this production would be a good one … but for Phantom of the Opera “veterans,” the differences are too wide to go unnoticed.