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Misc: Huayi Cool
- Part of the January issue of the EY Quarterly Newsletter
By Jerusha Tan
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Enjoy a vast range of ticketed and non-ticketed performances this Chinese New Year at Huayi - Chinese Festival of the Arts. Launched in 2003, Huayi is one of three cultural festivals held at Esplanade annually. Along with Pesta Raya and Kalaa Utsavam, the festival is organised to celebrate our multi-cultural heritage and the rich history that comes with it. Thus, Huayi goes beyond just serving as a platform for homegrown and international Chinese artists. It is also a means of education and outreach to other ethnic communities. Now in its seventh edition, Huayi is bound to add a further dimension to the usual Chinese New Year activities.
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| Art has always been a universal language of sorts- transcending culture and language. One does not need to be a great art critic to appreciate it. Visual art is just one such medium. Appreciate the various contemporary takes of Chua Boon Kee, Raymond Yap, Lee Yu Juan and Harry Tay on traditional art forms such as Chinese calligraphy and ink-painting. Scattered all over Esplanade, they liven up the arts centre with their accessible themes of identity and reunion. | |
| The problems explored in the theatre may seem at a glance overly dramatic but at root, they are relatable issues that we can all identify with. Providing a study in contrast would be the two main theatre pieces for this year’s Huayi. In “Design for Living”, the urban jungle is our backdrop as a struggle for power unfolds. Workplace intrigues and politics go on as a female boss, played by notable actress-director Sylvia Chang, dabbles in mind games with her office people. The following line sums up life and the play quite aptly- “survival calls for intelligence while living requires wisdom.” | |
| “The Village”, however, looks more to the past. Exploring an almost forgotten part of Taiwanese heritage, the production tackles the communities born from the influx of Chinese immigrants in the 1940s. It is a situation that we can easily relate to. The subculture that sprang from these | |
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Dependents’ Villages left an imprint of colour and vibrancy on Taiwan that is slowly disappearing. While it is easy to look back and reminisce, “The Village” reminds us that some traditions are worth conserving especially in the light of globalisation. Chronicling village life over three generations, this moving play by Stan Lai and Wang Wei Zhong pulls effortlessly at the heartstrings as it follows the highs and lows of these families. |
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| The emotional feast goes on in local production “Whispers”. An unconventional play told in a style that is purely The Finger Players’, three women debate their freedom after having ran away from their problems. | |
| With the use of traditional and contemporary puppetry, the theatre company breathe life into the tale of rediscovering oneself. This visionary style is also put to good effect in Chinese opera, “Tears of Barren Hill”. The timeless story of a faithful wife whose love for her husband enables her to overcome any obstacle is given an update. In a nod to creator Cheng Yanqiu who blended East and West, Danny Yung reinterprets this iconic classic with a new script, the use of multimedia and modern theatre concepts to stunning effect. | |
| Another offering that uses multimedia would be “Chinese Opera Meets Animation”. Six classic Chinese legends are brought to life thanks to the Singapore Chinese Orchestra and the China Academy of Art. A feast for the senses- be enthralled by the evocative music and captivating animation that range stylistically from traditional ink painting to sand art. | |
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Continue on the off-beaten track with in::music. Featuring some of the coolest Chinese indie bands and singer-songwriters around, 1976, Cao Fang, Mrs This, Lu Guang Zhong and Wonfu will knock your socks off. Audiences are in for a real treat with their quirky original compositions of alternative pop and rock. One cannot help but lighten up in their presence- providing the perfect antidote to the heavy dramas above. |
| All in all, Huayi - Chinese Festival of the Arts appears to have achieved all it has set out to do. With a line-up that effectively straddles traditional and contemporary, Huayi has managed to showcase some of the most dynamic forms of Chinese artistic expression.
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| For more details, check out http://www.huayifestival.com.sg/ | |
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on 10 October 2009 at 4:03 am
PLease help spread the word about Wonfu’s first US tour! They will be in the US from Oct.15th-Nov.10th, 2009 with shows in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Portland, and Seattle. For more info please check: www.myspace.com/wonfu