Short and Sweet
Cherry blossoms bloom
A while, are then remembered
Nature���s Short and Sweet.
Short & Sweet is the name of a play festival which started in Sydney way back in 2002. Five years later, Singapore, often labelled as a cultural desert, is finally part of this festival. As its name says it all, this festival invites fellow Singaporeans to write plays which are short, without compromising on its quality. The top twenty entries are then selected to be acted, with each play lasting a mere ten minutes.
Well, yesterday, I had the good fortune to be present at the inaugural session of Short & Sweet where ten such plays were performed over two hours. Two of my favourites, amongst many others, are: ���Cigarettes��� and ���Fat���.
The play, ���Cigarettes��� was acted by four women, all tastefully dressed in black, all holding a cigar between their fingers and all given individualized attention with a beam of light slanted towards each of them. Not a smoker myself, with no intention of ever becoming one and definitely not promoting smoking, I like this play very much for the wit packed into the dialogue of the four ladies. Each complemented the other as they throw up a dozen of reasons for smoking. I was also enthralled by the adjectives (white, sleek, small, convenient) they use to describe the cigarette so that for that split second, it becomes something close to elegant. The turning point, however, came when the ladies take turns to cough and decide that perhaps, they will not strive to enter the hall of fame (to smoke the most number of cigarettes in their lifetime) after all but try to cut down on smoking. All in all, I thought that the play was cleverly written, well directed and performed.
The other play, ���Fat��� is particularly relevant to our society. It is about a girl���s obsession to lose weight. Her emotional catharsis comes through very strongly as she discloses to her mirror image the sort of treatment she receives for being 'fat' in a society that glamorises "thinness". Examples she gives included how some women are not allowed to try on clothes at the malls lest they leave behind stretch marks, how those who slant towards the plump side are sniggered at by salesgirls when they pick up a midriff or mini-skirt as well as the wide stares she is familiar with for taking up one and a half seat on the train as if it is her fault that the seats were designed for anorexics. Concealed beneath the laughter is a strong signal that this play is sending--an obsession to be thin has become a social disease. Something must be done to address this issue!
At the end of the show, the audience was told to cast their votes. It was a tough decision for me but I made my choice anyway. Which of the two do you think I voted for?
A while, are then remembered
Nature���s Short and Sweet.
Short & Sweet is the name of a play festival which started in Sydney way back in 2002. Five years later, Singapore, often labelled as a cultural desert, is finally part of this festival. As its name says it all, this festival invites fellow Singaporeans to write plays which are short, without compromising on its quality. The top twenty entries are then selected to be acted, with each play lasting a mere ten minutes.
Well, yesterday, I had the good fortune to be present at the inaugural session of Short & Sweet where ten such plays were performed over two hours. Two of my favourites, amongst many others, are: ���Cigarettes��� and ���Fat���.
The play, ���Cigarettes��� was acted by four women, all tastefully dressed in black, all holding a cigar between their fingers and all given individualized attention with a beam of light slanted towards each of them. Not a smoker myself, with no intention of ever becoming one and definitely not promoting smoking, I like this play very much for the wit packed into the dialogue of the four ladies. Each complemented the other as they throw up a dozen of reasons for smoking. I was also enthralled by the adjectives (white, sleek, small, convenient) they use to describe the cigarette so that for that split second, it becomes something close to elegant. The turning point, however, came when the ladies take turns to cough and decide that perhaps, they will not strive to enter the hall of fame (to smoke the most number of cigarettes in their lifetime) after all but try to cut down on smoking. All in all, I thought that the play was cleverly written, well directed and performed.
The other play, ���Fat��� is particularly relevant to our society. It is about a girl���s obsession to lose weight. Her emotional catharsis comes through very strongly as she discloses to her mirror image the sort of treatment she receives for being 'fat' in a society that glamorises "thinness". Examples she gives included how some women are not allowed to try on clothes at the malls lest they leave behind stretch marks, how those who slant towards the plump side are sniggered at by salesgirls when they pick up a midriff or mini-skirt as well as the wide stares she is familiar with for taking up one and a half seat on the train as if it is her fault that the seats were designed for anorexics. Concealed beneath the laughter is a strong signal that this play is sending--an obsession to be thin has become a social disease. Something must be done to address this issue!
At the end of the show, the audience was told to cast their votes. It was a tough decision for me but I made my choice anyway. Which of the two do you think I voted for?
posted by sharon_lam @ 9:21 PM
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