I wasn’t too sure where to begin writing my review of the plays I just had the pleasure of watching last night; should I begin with something seemingly closer to heart as a soon-to-be-graduate-again (Kopi Culture Kosong) or Period Play where the central topic is something I, as all other females, can relate to. In the end I settled to do it in a chronological sequence, exactly in the order they were both presented.
Period Play
Period Play revolves around two siblings – Chester Matthias Tan as Jack, the older brother who has just impregnated his girlfriend, and Jenny Ganeshrays as Domina, the younger sister who discovered about periods at the opening of the play and got her first period within a short span of time. Conflict is persistent throughout the hour odd long show; an absent mother, teenage love with the impending responsibility of a child, a loss of innocence – physically and mentally in both Jack and Domina as they deal with growing up.
Scripted by Teng Yen Lin and directed by Claudia Wong, it is a difficult decision to make when trying to figure out the morality behind Jack’s mindset in being firm that he cannot raise the baby with Arial (Vidhya Rajagopal). Is he being realistic, or is he the stereotype of a young man who thinks that having an unexpected kid is “game over”? The lack of a parental presence also indicates a gap in both children’s lives, having to find solutions out for their own problems. Does Period Play hope to shed some light on the importance of parental guidance and teenage sexual health education then?
Weaving into the play is a secondary plot about lesbian love between Ms Tan (Shakespeare Sim) and the Period Lady (Cheryl Wong). Unable to conceive, both women are drawn together at the end, though the process was not developed upon. However, it brings out a point that the scriptwriter was trying to make: Are these two women lesser beings just because they are unlike other ‘normal’ woman who can get pregnant and have families? What’s more, are they destined to be alone in their loss without companionship?
It is heavy matter, but artfully crafted by terrific casting and the use of appropriate humor. Mandy and Liting, as played by Muhammad Fazari and Mustafa, were mostly the driving force behind the endless laughter coming from the audience. In fact, there were gaps that the actors even had to pause between lines because the audiences were still laughing away. It is only attributed to superb acting chops and technique of the cast that this was ever so naturally concealed.
There was something very unique about Period Play, two ‘taboo’ topics about teenage sexuality/pre-marital sex (whichever you have it) and homosexuality combusted into a somewhat dark comedy. Though it defies logic in a situation as grave as a school-going girl getting pregnant and being actually happy about it, Period Play gets away with this easily. After all, as explained by the Period Lady, “All things happen for a reason”, and Arial probably understood this right.
Kopi Culture Kosong
Graduation, a hallmark of adulthood, unleashes a series of emotions that only the unstable twenty-something year old brain is capable of. As a soon-to-be-graduate, I went back home feeling a myriad of feelings, probably just the way the scriptwriter intended, and mostly, there was a twinge of hope, perhaps due to the Raymond Carver’s quote on Life as dropped around during the show.
In Kopi Culture Kosong, we have two best friends, Rachel Phua as Mel and Karynne Choong as Lin, approaching this hallmark in two dissimilar ways. Rich, neurotic Mel wishes to fly away to some foreign city to get away from life here; Lin, is the class valedictorian and has a scholarship bond to fulfill. Here, the dissimilarities end. Bonded together by coffee, cigarettes and music, Lin coaxes Mel out of the bathtub where she sits, unwilling to go for their convocation.
KCK works backwards, with Lin recollecting past memories with Mel, pondering over her own inability to cry, and the fact that she has always waited in anticipation that something life-changing was going to be happen, though it didn’t. Scripted by Jenny Ganeshrays and directed by Goh Koon Hui, KCK is a poignant tale about how we use things to reach our ends (like the interview scene when Lin was trying to get a scholarship), the occasional feeling that we are destined to be alone in our solidarity interests (and misery, such as the scene when Lin was trying to give out ‘free poems’ that nobody wanted).
Several acts were impressive out of the whole lot, and a few key ones were the funny poetry recital of Kopi Culture Kosong by Lin, well-scripted lines of Gracia Ting as Girl and Jimmy Lam as Boy in replying Mel on why she was still single, well-enacted protester scene by Muhammad Fazari and the comedic Mustafa as Librarian (who, by the way, “But I like it” line still rings soundly in my head).
Watching KCK helped me come to see myself and understand the process of growing older a little better. Ideals and dreams about life both girls have are probably consistent with many 21st century female tertiary educated students. For feminists out there, does it mean that they undeniably have lesbian tendencies? KCK does not address the issue fully, but instead leaves the conclusion open, possibly in the line of thought of the playwright to pose questions, not give answers.
The double bill by NUS Stage was well-presented, with awesome set design and close to perfect lighting and sound design. It was almost impossible to believe that it was entirely staged by students, and the efforts behind this two hour odd long double bill have to be commended. Now, if only the UCC theatre had a greater seating capacity so more people could enjoy the show…
**********************************
Read our interview with playwrights Yen Lin Teng and Jenny Rays here.