Cell Block Tango

I found the Cell Block Tango from Chicago The Movie on Youtube!

Warning: Not suitable for kids under 18.



～みはる～

Arts Festival - Movie and Theatre

I'm on a little Arts Festival of my own. This is a brief account of my movie and theatre festival so far.

Animal Farm

I watched this play under the recommendation of my colleague, who is quite a fan of theatre and plays. Though initially hesitant (tickets were not cheap!), I am so glad I went for this play because it is fantastic for a local production. I was delightfully surprised and entertained by all the 'animals'. The actors were truly fantastic and world class.

Based on the novella of the same name by George Orwell, the play was hilarious yet thought-provoking. (find out more about Animal Farm here.) Props and sound were minimal but the actors shone in their act. I was thoroughly entertained.

Two thumbs up from me!


Chicago

It was my delight to be able to watch one of the greatest musical productions of all time. Chicago, one of the longest running broadway ever, was here and I had the luck to watch it, from a very good seat!!

I'm doing injustice to merely describe this musical as brilliant, sexy, exhilarating or impressive. It was just... awesome. The songs were brilliant, the actors were brilliant, the music was brilliant, the story was brilliant, it was just... awesome.

Chicago tells about the trials of two murderesses, Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly, who were represented by the smooth-talking lawyer Billy Flynn, to a background of the Prohibition-era Chicago. (learn more about Chicago here) It is a dark story of murder, adultery, deception, violence, and corruption fantastically played out to a medley of jazz, swing and tango. I must say the actors were just astoundingly brilliant. Sharon Millerchip as Roxie Hart and Deone Zanotto as Velma Kelly were simply awesome. The remaining cast members were just as brilliant in their supporting roles. And oh, the costumes! Skimpy, tight, black and sexy, it set the tone of the story perfectly right.

My favorite scene from the show had to be the 'Cell Block Tango'. About 6-7 ladies imprisoned for their crimes wailed and lashed in anger and indignation of how they were 'wrongfully punished' for their crime (i.e. murder). It was dark yet funny at the same time. Fantastic!

Chicago is a highly recommended musical for anyone interested in theatre and play.
Two thumbs up from me!


Ice Kacang Puppy Love (初恋红豆冰)

I'm very glad I caught this on cinema. Ice Kacang Puppy Love is Malaysian singer Aniu's directorial debut and it is the embodiment of how every Malaysian movie should be. Perhaps it is that I come from the same generation as Aniu and thus I share his sentiments, but I could understand everything that he wanted to convey in his movie - the quaintness of kampung life, the bittersweet memory of your first crush, the struggles of vivacious young people trying to make a mark for themselves,.. everything. Somehow it makes me feel connected: the guli games we played, the sweltering kopitiam our grandparents dragged us to, the I-don't-friend-you-anymore childishness each and every one of us went through in our school days, the blue school pinafores,... the lost of our innocence as we leave the idyllic cocoon of our childhood in kampung for the bustling city and modern adulthood.

What I love most about the movie is the cinematography and the music. The angle of capturing coupled with the right music at the right time itself created the nostalgy that Aniu wants to bring across. So powerful was it that some scenes evoked feelings and brought tears to my eyes.

Of course it goes without saying the star-studded all-Malaysian cast was brilliant, as was the choice of filming location. My hometown went on silverscreen! I must also say, that the story, while not entirely awesome, is very nicely written with all relationships delicately interwoven and perfectly balanced in melodrama and humor. I also liked that Aniu gave his film a very Malaysian flavor, with the potpourri of different cultures and dialects spoken. It is, in short, a fantastic local film qualified for international film festival!

To top it off, the theme song, performed by Aniu, is a cover of an old song written and produced by a former local artiste. I preferred Aniu's version because his voice quality and music arrangement alone could blanket me in melancholy.

Totally recommended for all Malaysians. Two thumbs up!

纯文艺恋爱
(初恋红豆冰電影主題曲)

你是汹涌的海浪 我是疲惫的沙滩
暖暖的斜阳 吊在我们的肩膀
你 用醉人的眼波 拴住恋爱的绳索
那么痴迷 那么绮丽

你轻轻柔柔的细述着槟城下的雨
淋湿你的长发几十年来抹也抹不去
啊 我会慢慢的想起 几十年都不会忘记

轻轻的为你唱首歌 几十年的歌
靠在你的背后
紧紧握着你的右手 慢慢的教你写首诗
要 你记着我的事
当你孤孤单单的时候我要继续为你唱出这首歌

～みはる～

In a banal setting at an inconvenient time, would beauty transcend?

I came across this article, which I felt is a great food for thought.

(disclaimer: I do not own this writing, it is reproduced from this site.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousands of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.

Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule. A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk. A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.

The one who paid the most attention was a 3-year-old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.

In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.

Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out a theater in Boston and the seats averaged $100.

This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing in cognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people. The outlines were: in a common place environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?

One of the possible conclusions from this experiment could be: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?

In 2007, Washington Post writer Gene Weingarten enlisted renowned violinist Joshua Bell, a winner of the Avery Fisher Prize for outstanding achievement in classical music who regularly undertakes over 200 international engagements a year, to spend part of a morning playing in cognito at the entrance of a Washington Metro station during a morning rush hour. Weingarten set up the event "as an experiment in context, perception and priorities - as well as an unblinking assessment of public taste: In a banal setting at an inconvenient time, would beauty transcend?"

So, on 12 January 2007, morning commuters passing through the L'Enfant Plaza Station of the subway line in Washington DC were, without publicity, treated to a free mini-concert performed by violin virtuoso Joshua Bell, who played for approximately 45 minutes, performing six classical pieces during that span on his handcrafted 1713 Stradivarius violin (for which Bell reportedly paid $3.5 million). As Weingarten described the crux of the experiment:

"Each passerby had a quick choice to make, one familiar to commuters in any urban area where the occasional street performer is part of the cityscape: Do you stop and listen? Do you hurry past with a blend of guilt and irritation, aware of your cupidity but annoyed by the unbidden demand on your time and your wallet? Do you throw in a buck, just to be polite? Does your decision change if he's really bad? What if he's really good? Do you have time for beauty? Shouldn't you? What's the moral mathematics of the moment?"

～みはる～