Cheng Lock the musical is currently being staged at Istana Budaya, in conjunction with Malaysia's 50th independence anniversary.
Date : May 25 - June 3, 2007
Time : 8.30 pm
Tickets (very reasonable) : Rm 20, Rm 30, Rm 50
20% discount for senior citizens and students.
The musical will be in 3 languages - BM, English and Mandarin, (the muhibbah spirit?). I guess this musical is an attempt to impart history to the younger generation, through the medium of music.
Tun Tan Cheng Lock is a Chinese born in Malacca to a Baba family, who himself can't speak Mandarin fluently, so I guess the musical in the 3 languages is in line with the times.
Tan Cheng Lock is the founder of the MCA, the largest Chinese political party in Malaysia. Tan Cheng Lock together with Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra and Tun VT Sambanthan were instrumental in fighting for Malaysia's independence on 31 August 1957.
Read reviews of the musical, Captivating Insight
Will I go for the musical? I'm not too fond of history, but I would love to judge for myself how effective the musical is in bringing the message across. We shall see
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Cheng Lock - the Musical
Sunday, May 20, 2007
MY fair lady - Review
My fair Lady
Entertaining. That's how I would describe the musical My fair Lady. The casts sang with enthusiasm and sang their hearts out. And the sound system is superb. I sat at the last row of the plenary and though I couldn't see the facial expression of the casts, I could hear every word and every song lyrics.
The casts have been performing to the live audience in Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC) Plenary hall since May 15, 2007. And to date they have performed at least 6 shows in KL before the one that I attended last night. Yet there was no slow down in their performance.
The only problem I had was understanding the dialogue in the beginning (the strong accent) but after getting used to the British spoke English, I was able to follow the dialogue. I felt the dialogue portion a bit too draggy for certain scenes, and I almost fell asleep several times, being awoken when the cast started to sing.
The audience were dressed to the nines. Unfortunately I went in jeans and T-shirt, and felt a bit out of place, dressing-wise!
Rave Reviews
- from the star reporter : Enduring Charm
from the NST reporter : The Lady is a winner
What the casts said in interviews with the local press
1. "Eliza Doolittle" Poppy Tierney
2. "Colonel Pickering" Gerard Murphy finds it too warm in Malaysia
Saturday, May 5, 2007
Wesak Day in Melaka
May 1, 2007 is Wesak Day. This is the last of the 20-odd) float that passed through Melaka town on the eve of Wesak. This float carried the Buddha statue from the Seck Kia Eenh temple in Gajah Berang. Many devotees chose to walk behind this float.
Walking in a procession helps to develop your mindfulness and encourages good thoughts which eventually radiate from you to others around you. People are comfortable with gatherings in the midst of a colourful setting nowadays. But Wesak is much more than that. It’s about inner spiritual development.... chief monk of the Sri Lanka Buddhist Temple in Sentul, Kuala Lumpur.
The Buddhist community in Malacca have always ushered in Wesak on the eve. After the float returns to the temple premises, it is almost always close to midnight, where a special Wesak service will be conducted.
Other activities to celebrate Wesak this year:
concert of light and wisdom,featuring modern pop songs, with some specially written and composed for the celebration, and dances.
to be held at the Malaysia International Exhibition & Convention Center, Mines City Resort, Kuala Lumpur. There will be drama and performances, chanting, movie screenings and an exhibition on Buddhism at the exhibition.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
My Fair Lady the musical
My Fair Lady musical , Visit Malaysia year 2007
Catch the musical, My fair Lady, which will be performed in Malaysia in May 2007.
Date : May 15- 20, 2007. (Tuesday - Sunday)
Venue : KL Convention centre (KLCC)
Show Time :
Tuesday - Sunday Evenings 8 pm
Extra Matinee Shows : Sat and Sun : 3 pm
Tickets range from Rm100.00 to Rm350.00. To book your tickets online, visit www.yvents.com. You may also call 603-2241 9999
RHB bank customers get to enjoy discounts of between 15% to 30%. (Hint, Hint. Either open an account with RHB, or get to know a friend who banks with RHB).
Get transported to the 60's era with classic songs like 'The Rain in Spain' and "I could have danced all night'. This is a story about the challenge made by Professor Higgins that he can train any woman to speak English so properly. Thus he sets about transforming Eliza Doolittle from a flower girl with a strong Cockney accent, into a polished lady with impeccable upper class English accent and manners.
This new production comes to Malaysia with a leading cast from the London musical stage in a glamorous new staging, and will be accompanied by live orchestral arrangements. I will be there!
Read more about the musical:
My fair Lady, (source Wikipedia)
" A Delight to Behold" (source : organiser of the event in Malaysia)
Review of the 1958 musical of My fair Lady, with Julie Andrews as Eliza Doolittle
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Wesak Day to fall on Worker's day in 2007
Wesak Day
May 1 2007 is a double celebration of sorts : Labour day and Wesak day. In Malaysia, this means that we will have 2 public holidays in a row. (In Malaysia, when two public holidays fell on the same day, the following day would be a public holiday, but this does not apply to states and companies which do not recognised Wesak Day as a public holiday - another story!).
Wesak is a celebration of 3 meaningful events for Buddhists - the birth, enlightenment and passing away of Gautama Buddha many years ago (2500 years ago).
In KL, most Buddhists will congregrate at the Buddhist Maha Vihara temple in Brickfields and bring simple offerings of flowers, candles and joss-sticks to lay at the feet of Lord Buddha. These symbolic offerings are to remind followers that just as the beautiful flowers would wither away after a short while and the candles and joss-sticks would soon burn out, so too is life subject to decay and destruction.
Some devout Buddhists will wear a simple white dress and spend the whole day in temples with renewed determination to observe the observance of the Eight Precepts.
The Eight Precepts are:
Not to kill Not to steal Not to engage in improper sexual activity Not to indulge in wrong speech Not to take intoxicating drinks and drugs To abstain from taking food at unreasonable times To refrain from sensual pleasures such as dancing, singing and self-adornment To refrain from using high and luxurious seats in order to practice humility
In Melaka, Buddhists will congregrate at the Seck Kia Eenh temple in Jalan Gajah Berang. I have been going to the Seck Kia Eenh temple since young and though I am working and staying in KL, I still go back to Melaka for Wesak day celebrations.
Some interesting blogs about buddhists paractices :
