spent my valentine’s day evening this year watching eusoff hall’s dance production, only because i wanted to support my neighbours and there is no other better way i could have spent the night other than being alone yet still in the company of these great girls. my personal understanding is that a lot of effort was put into this production, as it is for every annual production, and i was glad to see their efforts come to fruition. the location (ucc) served to be a good place because the lighting and sound systems were really good.
the plot was mainly about a schizophrenic/bipolar girl in an orphanage trying to come to terms with her situation after the trauma of losing her family. in the orphanage, she meets an eccentric and overly-protective girl called pauline (revealed later on as the schizophrenic/bipolar side of herself) and two male friends. of course there is some form of romance involved between the protagonist and the male protagonist (fred); he shares a unique friendship with glenn. all of them desire to be adopted and they share a fear of being left behind, which was… real. of course it involved the theme of letting go, care, and love. the romance was cliche, and the storyline slightly convoluted.
the actors were good and expressive, although the fact that there were just four main characters made the stage seem a little empty… the sets were pretty decent too. the lighting was actually really impressive and well-utilised during the dance items, especially the shadow-play.
there were 9 items for the dances, and my favourite ones were the funkids (dance1), the free dreamers(dance5), and breathe finally(dance7). on dance1 – the choice of music was really good and upbeat, and, as the name suggests, funky. the choreography matched the music really well and it was executed well too, creating a really chill and jazzy atmosphere. three of my friends choreographed this hiphop item and i was really impressed by it. on dance5 – another hiphop item, choreographed by another one of my friends as well, and executed really well. they made good use of the stage and colours, and involved the actors in their dance too. there was engagement with the audience as well, which was a pleasant surprise and a good way of breaking the third wall, so to speak. on dance7 – first, the costume for this was one that resembled a straitjacket. this obviously left an impression because of the weight of the very concept behind the costume, and my favourite part was the minute of silence when the dancers danced in purposeful silence. it was not a technical error, contrary to what some of the audience unabashedly exclaimed during the silence. the use of silence was so striking and impressed me so greatly that i watched in complete awe.
the crowd was a little too rowdy and did not know how to be silent when they were required to, which was a little disappointing. although it is understandable that their friends were performing, i believe that etiquette should still be observed. this is especially in the aspect of the performing arts.
overall an enjoyable production, because it made me realise how talented my friends are and i am so proud of all of them.
whart i consume 