coming soon.

New Village People and Pineapple Rice

performers (anti clock-wise): Lau Mengq Yek, chi too, Renita Che Wan, David Xavier and Tan Zi Hao (not in photo)

Two of our casts, Tan Zi Hao and Lau Mengq Yek are featured in the Emergency Festival's theatre performance entitled New Village People and Pineapple Rice, directed by Hariati Azizan (Vagina Monologue).

For more info: http://www.kakiseni.com/events/misc/MTEyNTU.html

Emergency Festival is produced by Five Arts Centre

Initiated by the 'gang of 7', which includes Mark Teh, Fahmi Reza, Fahmi Fadzil, Hariati Azizan, Grey Yeoh, Norman Teh and Wong Tay Sy.

Learn thy history from another perspective. Do come and support this event.

Fermented Roti Canai Update 03

The director Ng Chin Ang has finished shooting his short film entitled 'TPC'. Special thanks to 1948 Art Space for providing their rooftop. Here are some sneak peeks of the production:

Who would have known that we have some traditionalists in the group despite all the post-modern concepts?

The actress.

Ng Chin Ang (left) with assistant Sim Chuan Fu (right) working on the frame.

The production crew.

Shooting at the rooftop of 1948 Art Space.

Cool?

Also regarding the theatre side, Ng Chin Ang will be directing a performance written by Tan Zi Hao. Another young art enthusiast, David Xavier will be joining Fermented Roti Canai to direct some sensationalist acts. More udpates soon.

Mark Teh's Workshop - Being Physical *Photos!*

Here are some damn 'late' photos...

To prove that we all, the logamaya'ians really DID some proper training.


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What? You have something to say? Come on man! It's Mark Teh!

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Walau! Still talking ah??

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I shall leave all the captions to your imagination.

Mark Teh's Workshop - Being Physical

12 attended Mark's workshop for the group in Five Arts. A studio with many old dusty framed posters, Kee Thuan Chye's 1984 Here and Now to name one. Jo Kukathas was there in the studio too before we entered, working with some other thespians I suppose.

It started off fun, like a whole chasing game, some of us just enjoy that moment, not knowing why is this considered a 'theatre workshop' until Mark explained. I would say the most exciting part is that we sort of realize the alternatives to making theatre, rather than based solely on 'literature' and 'linguistic aesthetic'.

Prior to this, Logamaya functions as merely a group of people enacting a narration written and structured beforehand. While stage manager and director working on their responsibilities, the understanding of space, of gesture, of movements and of coherence are not to be borne by the thespians. They were to be perceived as a necessary medium to articulate a pre-established idea. It isn't wrong, just conventional.

Now when I started to work with Mark Teh and Hariati, that point of view somehow alter. Rather than seeing theatre as purely an art component or an artistic commodity, it can be an activity or sports, or event conjure by different individuals, and their perspectives construct a shared opinion, and from there the director composes a narration. Seeing theatre as an event or conflict, something that is very usual in life and has been performed daily. Seeing both entities (art and life) as one, is an Eastern perspective. In that way, theatre becomes 'ritualistic' instead of just 're-enactment' of activity. Art becomes functional, sentimental, peripheral, metaphysical as opposed to Western's empricism, intellectual and scientifically specific. (refer Redza Piyadasa & Sulaiman Esa's Towards a Mystical Reality 20-page manifesto)

Knowing that, collaborative involvement means even more to me, theatre has to be participatory in order to submit a story that of mystical to both audience and thespians; not anymore the word-dominated rhetorical theatre, but a 'poetry of space' filled with music, dance painting, chanting and gesture (1) - something sensorial. Theatre of Cruelty eh.

Thanks to Mark again.

Will upload the pictures soon.

1. Graham, Rob, 'Theatre-a Crash Course', Silverdale Books, Leicester, 1999, pg. 110

Workshop announcement

A quick announcement; Mark Teh will be conducting a workshop for Logamaya as mentioned previously. Members interested please contact Tan Zi Hao at 017-2604739 or zihao_tan@hotmail.com or reply this post, simply.

venue: Five Arts Centre

date: 26th July 2008 (Saturday)

time: 5pm - 8pm

Fermented Roti Canai Update 02

...and the epic continues where the director chose an auspicious evening to convene a soiree, feeding on retinal ambrosia...

The updates: Fermented Roti Canai project will be held on September, we try not to delay since the ideas are all out. While idea generating month (June) ended, we step into July and August where we start rehearsing and producing.

Rather quirky, the range of theme we will be tackling is wide and arbitrary, for instance, Tan Zi Hao will produce 3 totally different performances - one about the philosophy of mind, another one which is quite conceptual...and flattering, and also a socio-political commentary cum musical. He will too exhibit some visual works (drawing) related to his performances. Ng Chin Ang will direct a short film based on family values, also at hindsight commenting on the current political situation, somehow insidious.

Here's the confirmed list of artists (a loose term herein, of visuals, film, performance, music etc) involved:

Lau Mengq Yek

Ng Chin Ang

Simone Chong Sze Mun
Suman Moganasingam

Tan Zi Hao

*The confirmed list of works will be shown on the next post.

We were also discussing about Mark Teh's workshop and see when will be the best time for all, and have analyzed our past performances to see our lacks, thereby propose to Mark our idea. After that, as usual, a film screening session! This time we have Amir Muhammad's Apa Khabar Orang Kampung. It was beautifully composed.

Film still from 'Apa Khabar Orang Kampung' directed by Amir Muhammad.