Review of CATS The Musical at MasterCard Theatres

The musical CATS by Andrew Lloyd Webber is one of the most successful musicals in the 1980s.   Based on the T.S. Eliot's “Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats”, CATS was about a tribe of Jellicle Cats who met one evening and had to convince Old Deuteronomy that they were deserving to go to Heaviside Layer to be reborn.

As a musical, CATS does not have a strong narrative, but more a collection of musical numbers.  It is thus weaker in plot and rely more on the songs and the strength of the cast.

The ensemble cast surely did not disappoint. Formed for this tour which started in Korea last May, we saw a dedicated and enthusiastic team of singers and dancers, and their energy level rubbed on the audience.

Notable performances came from Earl Gregory (Rum Rum Tugger), Richard Woodfod (Gus), Christopher Favaloro (Mr Mistoffelees) and Martin Croft (Old Deuteronomy).   While Erin Cornell, as Grizabella, sang the main song "Memory" well, she looked too young for the part and did not convey the feeling of a down and out old cat to the audience.

Overall it was an enjoyable performance, the strength of the cast overshadowed the plot.  Cats will always remain a milestone in musical history - catch it for its historical significance.

The Three Little Pigs, SRT's The Little Company

This production marks Singapore Repertory Theatre's first foray into Chinese language theatre.  This children's production was written by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe and adapted into Mandarin by Danny Yeo and Xiaohan.

As in other SRT productions, this production is slick.  The cast delivers, in particular George Chan in the role of Big Bad Wolf. Overall, a more enjoyable performance than SRT;s previous English staging of Goldilocks and the 3 Bears.

The Mystery of Picasso's Creative Process: The Art of Printmaking

There aren't any masterpieces around, but this is a good opportunity to look at the print works of Picasso.  What is interesting is we were shown the work-in-progress of the print works, and how Picasso transform a realistic painting of a bull to its abstract form (see picture on the left).

There are not many art works (Women, Two Nude Women, Woman with a Hat), but definitely worth a visit to this exhibition. (ends 24 Aug 2013).

Machine by Orangedot Productions

Machine, written by Tan Tarn How, was restaged by Orangedot Productions at the Esplanade Theatre Studio.  Jeremiah Choy, director of the original 2002 version, returned to direct a totally new cast.

This play is about 2 electric appliance repairmen Rex and Heng who turned up at the home of Lina and Kim and trying to fix their washing machine.  Of course, more things were fixed.....

Songs for a New World

Songs for a New World was the first musical written by Jason Robert Brown.  Basically a song cycle, it concerns characters looking for new directions in their lives.

For this staging by local theatre group Theatre Lab Productions, Director Gavin Low introduced the role of a writer who typed out the stories of the characters.

Without a coherent storyline, the focus would be on the songs.  They turned out to be good tunes, and were beautifully arranged by Joanne Ho.  The 4 actors:

Playwrights' Boot Camp

This is an initiative by The Theatre Practice to groom more Chinese playwrights for Singapore theatre.  This year, Huang Shhuai, Su Chun Ying and Wang Liansheng were put under the spotlight.  They were given tight deadline to come up with a script, and the actors were given 6 hours to rehearse. 

The evening that I saw the "final" product, I found the work to be of good standards, and deserved to be developed further.

Hopefully more Chinese language playwrights could be discovered through this programme.

Review: Family Duets, Spell # 7

It is rare to see a family acting together on stage.  Spell #7's Paul and Kaylene Tan got their 2 girls and Kaylene's mother to appear on the Esplanade Theatre Studio stage for their latest production Family Duets.

The play was to "understand how life's big questions are present in the seemingly small and ordinary world of the family".  In certain respects, it worked - the interaction between Paul and the girls, Eleanor Song's account of her life. 

I did not really understand the lhe last segment, World Condo.  Probably I was getting a bit restless during the second half, where the direction of the production was a bit muddled.

A good attempt, maybe some tightening of the play would help.

Review: Dirty Dancing the Musical @ Marina Bay Sands

It was 80s nostalgia for the audience on Wednesday evening, where most of them, in their late 20s and 30s, came to relive the "Classic Story on Stage".   Most of us were familiar with the movie starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, which was about a 17 year old Frances "Baby" Houseman coming of age at a resort in the 1960s.  At the resort, Baby discovered the "alternative" dance moves by the resort staff and she was thrown in suddenly to be the dance partner of Johnny Castle, the resort dance instructor.

Dirty Dancing the musical was first performed in Australia in 2004 and it has since sold over a million tickets.  The musical in Singapore was presented by Base Entertainment and Lunchbox Theatrical Productions.