Paper Crane (尾聲)

Paper Crane or 尾聲, the latest musical in town (ok, not so 'latest' but still, the first show was on 27th July), is one musical that impressed me greatly! I mean usually, I am entertained by shows and performances but Paper Crane bought me to new heights. I experienced a real emotional roller-coaster ride during the whole performance!

Before going further, perhaps the story line needs to be known. Basically, Paper Crane chronicles the rise and fall of a Chinese Opera star, Ah Kit. In this chronicle, I saw how he started out as a stagehand, grabbing the opportunity to step onto the stage when chance presented itself, the changed person he became due to arrogance and fame, the love story between him and Fei Mui (trust me, she is one cute lass) and how he came crashing down.
Of course, you can get a better synopsis and show details at : http://theactorsstudio.com.my/papercrane/
Side note : All pictures in this post were taken by Kelab Shashin Fotografi KL

Fui Koh (the original lead opera star) and Ah Kit (main character of  Paper Crane)

Aside from the storyline, the next thing that captured my attention was the costumes. Being the huge-ass Japanese fan I am, upon knowing the costume designer is none other than Shingo Tokihiro, it will definitely be my loss if I did not appreciate the costumes. From the start of the musical, I realised the hakama structure of the pants that the dancers wore throughout the musical, the samurai armour form on the opera singer's costume with intricate details and colours and on some head gear, the kabuto influence. Also, if you are perceptive enough, it seems that some costumes does carry the Japanese 'feel' and was modified and weaved in nicely with Chinese garments of yesteryears. Needless to say, there were other forms and designs to identify but I am leaving that up to you. XD Perhaps you can share what else you saw or noticed?

Get to see more cast members but main focus here is, I want to illustrate some of the costume designs.

After feasting my eyes, its time to treat my auditory senses! Initially I thought the tracks were pre-recorded as the timing and loudness were really spot-on but when I further read the programme booklet ( RM10, reasonably priced, honestly!), turns out that the melody/music was played by 7 musicians. I was damn surprised and impressed because to me, the music and songs were near to perfect (or maybe my ears are easily satisfied) andddd I heard traditional chinese instruments like the guzheng. Turns out, none of them played any such instruments, instead only keyboards, guitar, bass and drums were used. Yeah, I was totally in awe.

In terms of the actors, storyline and the language used during the musical, I only have one word. Diversity. This play was performed in a well-balanced mixture of Cantonese and English, be it during conversations or singing. I did have some issues keeping up with the languages during the singing when the singers switched the language from Cantonese to English and vice versa, but on the other hand, I give my full respect to them. I mean, it is by no means, an easy feat yet it was performed flawlessly, effortlessly and naturally. Not to forget, they had to dance too! Talking about the dancing, I would say this casts is one of the most interesting I had ever seen! Reason being, the dancers came in all shapes and sizes, but one thing for sure, they certainly looked like they enjoyed themselves immensely! For the storyline (if you had read the above link), there was friendship, rivalry, love and all things 'life' involved. Personally, I went through a lifetime while watching the musical and was a real emotional see-saw. In one scene, I would be laughing my guts out, along with the light-hearted moment and the next, goosebumps and teary eyes! Oh, how the musical affects me!

Due to size changes, the picture looks a little distorted >.<
More importantly, can you see Fei Mui's cuteness? XD Also, the dude at the most left is Siu Ngau, who is a character which is worth paying attention to! XD

I still had not covered a few aspects in detailed but I suppose this will do. For now (hint! hint!). Again, if you want to catch Paper Crane, it will run from Wednesday to Sunday only ( do give them a break, Monday and Tuesday not too much to ask for, right?), up to 19th August 2012. Or, if you are nearer up north, you can catch them at PenangPAC, starting on 25th August. For further details and purchase of tickets, do head over to http://www.klpac.org/?p=7017 and http://www.ilassotickets.com/event/view/225 respectively.

Do enjoy the musical and have a great time! Hau wooi yau kei!! (PS. To be pronounced in Cantonese) 

Tra-la-la-la-la-la sessions!!

I meant it as karaoke sessions despite the Christmas-sounding title. And not really alot, just two days in a row. XD First round was waaaaaaaaaay after working hours with colleagues on a Friday evening. Second round was more of an impromptu plan with secondary classmates out of sheer boredom. XD

First round, it was in Wow! Karaoke, located at the 6th floor of Sg. Wang. Now, I am not very experienced in karaoke sessions since I am not usually very partcipative. But during this session, which was meant to be a colleague's farewell and held after work, I think everyone was pretty much tired, so I sort of get to hog the microphone every once in a while. I kinda irked by the disconnection between the microphone and the speakers, or suddenly the speakers would blast out drilling sounds, as if we put the microphone beside a construction site. Food too, another aspect which requires a lot of attention. The foodstuffs must be pretty tasty and delicious, since it seems to be wiped out clean quite quickly. Though, the price and package is really commendable since it is a buffet dinner and the singing session is for 5 hours long.

Second round, is MusicZone which is strategically in Sri Petaling, among a lot of food shops and eateries. Hm.. I am not really sure how other karaoke establishments work, but this has got to be one of the strictest and most organised. Which in my personal opinion, is a good move by the management. Cause for each misdemeanour, a RM 20 fine will be imposed. So, really do becareful about bringing foods and drinks in. Accidentally. Compared to Wow! Karaoke, the rooms are really small, of course, ignoring the fact that we booked a room for 4 while we actually had six people, it is actually pretty cosy since everyone get to sit together. But same microphone issue as above, only that this is more of the fact that it seems that the microphone doesn't work at times. Nevertheless, good times are good times and this is 3 hours long. XD

Well, two days in a row for karaoke sessions are really overkill but definitely fun. But for both days, I noticed a follow-up syndrome which occurs in the car. There is always someone who would be singing along the radio after that, and this syndrome technically lasts for a good 10-15 minutes. Or when the kick arrives.

In short, enjoy the karaoke session and keep on singing, keep, keep on singing, singing till your guts come out! XD