Monday, May 25, 2015

'Singapura the Musical' in Review


By now, Singapura the Musical has been just about trashed by every publication that was invited to cover it, but Hawk loved it so much that he watched it not just once but twice on his own dime! Here he tells you why you too should give it a chance:



Singapura the Musical
Presented by The 4th Wall Theatre Co.
Capitol Theatre, Singapore
24th May 2015

A Review by Hawk Liu

Friday, May 22, 2015

The Stage Club Presents '70 Shades of Play' 27 to 30 May 2015

Singapore's oldest theatre company The Stage Club celebrates their 70th anniversary with a theatrical revue entitled 70 Shades of Play, running from 27 to 30 May 2015. Its a greatest hits evening presenting scenes from 4 different plays that they have previously produced, with musical interludes between scenes. One of the musical acts is Filipino Erick Guansing, whose exciting vocals can be seen in this live performance video:



Here's more information from the company's press release:

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

New Opera Singapore's 'The Turn of the Screw'


New Opera Singapore presents their annual production, this time of Benjamin Britten's The Turning of the Screw. . Interestingly the lead role of Peter Quint will be played by twins Jonathan Charles Tay and David Charles Tay on alternate days. Here's the full cast list:

Artistic Director - Jeong Ae-Ree
Director - Stefanos Rassios
Music Director - Chan Wei-Shing
Governess - Teng Xiang-Ting
Peter Quint - Jonathan Charles Tay/David Charles Tay
Mrs. Grose - Rebecca Li
Ms Jessel - Kim Yu-Jin
Flora - Moira Loh
Miles - Ashley Chua/Corey Koh
Prologue - Shaun Lee / Leslie Tay

More information available on our Events Page!

AADO Chamber Orchestra's 'Master Works'


The ADDO Chamber Orchestra will perform the aforementioned concert on 30 May 2015, Saturday, 7.30pm, SOTA Concert Hall. Tickets available for sale at $25 each and $40 for a pair. Call Bernard at 9155 3512 or write to ADDOchamberorchestra@gmail.com for more information.


Soprano Fleur Mino's Recital 'Classical Broadway'


Soprano Fleur Mino will present a programme of popular Broadway classics with pianist Kevin Amos. Mino has sung in many prestigious venues in Paris including Olympia at the Théatre Comédia, Palais des Congrès. Amos too is no slouch, having been music director of productions of Phantom of the Opera, 42nd street, Grand Hotel, Cats and West Side story, Evita and Chess.

Here's more info about the soprano, taken from her website:


Music and singing have always been a driving force in her life.  She started with baroque opera, studied music at the Conservatory of Lyon, gained a Masters at Lyon II’s Lumière University, studied under Anne-Marie Blanzat at the Conservatory of Paris.  She trained in drama and dance at the International Academy of Musical Theatre and took part in Masterclasses with Brent Barrett and Christopher Denny.

 Vocal work is never ending and Fleur is passionately dedicated to it.  Her range of performances spans ethereal characters such as the blue fairy in Pinocchio at the Palais des Congrès and The Little Mermaid, directed by Johan Nus at the Olympia in Paris to the tragic Pamina in The Enchanted Flute at the Théâtrecomédia, Cunégonde in Candide at the Châtelet theatre in Paris, the romantic Maria in The Sound of Music at the Cirque Royal in Brussels, to the strange, when she performed the Nymph in The Suicide Shop at the Folies Bergères.



Check out the video below for a sample of her singing chops:



Tickets for Broadway's Greatest Song available at http://ttf.sg/fleur-mino-english or at the door.

Thursday, May 14, 2015

Bellepoque's 'George and the Magic Box' in Review


Bellepoque's latest production pays tribute to the music of Offenbach and the stories of French poet Jean de La Fontaine, with most of the music taken from the composer's collection of song settings The Fables of Fontaine in addition to two operetta excerpts. The result, as directed by Sharon Joy Frese and assistant director Wang Liansheng and accompanied by music director Dr. Robert Casteels, resulted in a colourful, energetic production, full of child-like humour.

Little boy George (played by a suitably boyish Jeremy Koh) refuses to go to bed, begging his Mom (Sabrina Zuber who for some reason moves half-pointe while flapping her arms like a swan) for one bedtime story after another, and playing with his toys: a doll (Angela Cortez), a soldier (Leslie Tay) and a teddy bear (Daniel Ho). Bored at first by his Mom's insistence on reading the classic children's stories of his ancestor Jean de La Fontaine, he soon becomes absorbed into them, reenacting them with his toys once mom has left the room.

Monday, May 11, 2015

Bellepoque - 'George and the Music Box" Opening This Thursday to Saturday!


Just a timely reminder that the new Bellepoque production will be running at the Esplanade Recital Studio this week! Check out our first post about it for more information!

http://the-mad-scene.blogspot.sg/2015/03/george-and-music-box-by-bellepoque.html

FREE: SLO Outreach - 16 May 2015 (Saturday, 6pm)


The SLO Chorus is presenting an outreach concert of opera scenes this coming Saturday, 16 May 2015 at 6pm. On the programme are scenes from Carmen, Pagliacci, Traviata, Die Fledermaus, Rigoletto and many more. There will be some great voices on display. Come check it out!

The Pajama Game by LASALLE College of the Arts - 7 May 2015

Written by Jeremy Lee, photo credit by LASALLE


It’s not often we see stagings of classic musicals like The Pajama Game here in Singapore, on account of them harking from a bygone era and far too ulu (unheard of) for the masses weaned on modern-day big-budget blockbuster musicals like The Lion King, Wicked and Cats, with their slick production values and worldwide popularity.

Classic musical theatre lovers should be grateful, then, for La Salle College of the Arts and its musical theatre degree programme, for occasionally bringing such old chestnuts like The Boys From Syracuse and The Pajama Game to our shores as part of their student showcases. What’s more, despite being student performances, their shows have always generally been up to professional standards, but with tickets going for a song – a bargain that should appeal to any penny-pinching Singaporean.


The Pajama Game, which loosely tells the story of two lovers amid the setting of a pajama factory, opened on Broadway in 1954, and typical of the musicals of the time, has a flimsy plot and love story that may seem clichéd to those living in our modern age of cynicism. However, also usual of the shows of that golden age, it has many excuses for big song-and-dance numbers and quirky songs that do little to advance the plot but provide much entertainment for the audience.

The many big dance numbers suit the young cast well, as it gives them a chance to show off their effervescence and versatility. This they do well, especially in the raucous picnic number “Once A Year Day” where the entire cast combines for a breathless display of dance, acrobatics and boundless talent.

Friday, May 8, 2015

VA Mahler 8 Soloist Auditions


The Vocal Associates choir is performing Part 1 of Mahler's 8th Symphony at Paragon and are looking for soloists! If you think you've got what it takes, click on the link below to sign up!

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1gJJLLItTLtC1xQ_cLX0SRfQMm4wnJMNwat4w2SE0Go4/viewform

Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Joyce DiDonato in Singapore - 4 May 2015



Joyce DiDonato sang a brilliant set of pieces from her Drama Queens album last night. It was a soft-core voice that nonetheless rang out for its clarity. And while we got our serving of virtuosic coloratura passages, it was the slow movement sung with genuine pathos that had us enraptured. I've heard numerous renditions of Piangero but none as detailed and affecting as her's last night. Girl can also float a trill to wonderful effect. A cheering standing ovation encouraged her and the orchestra to give no less than three encores!


And you know what topped JDD experience for me? When I reminded her of our interview on last month's Time Out Singapore, she replied that 'oh I loved it, I just tweeted about it last night.' AAHHHH!!!!!
 

Thankfully, the print article is finally available online. You can read it here:

http://www.timeout.com/singapore/music/interview-joyce-didonato

 

Monday, May 4, 2015

FREE: Opera in the Park 2015 - 6 June 2015


This year's installment of Opera in the Park features a number of debutants, namely conductor Wong Kah-Chun who has been making debuts with orchestras worldwide and counts Kurt Masur as an important mentor. Singers lined-up are YSTCM students Mary Burke and Yoo Seol-Ah (sopranos) and baritone Daegyun Jeong, mezzo Anna Koor and tenor Jeremy Koh.


Check out the SLO website for more information:
http://singaporeopera.com.sg/currentseason/1516/opera-in-the-park.php?menugroup=0 

'Guys and Dolls' at MBS - from 28 August 2015


Check out what's coming up next at MBS in August!




Guys and Dolls -
The Perfect Musical Comedy Comes to The MasterCard Theatres at Marina Bay Sands for the First Time

Singapore 27 April 2015 - Making its way to Singapore for the first time, Guys and Dolls celebrates Broadway’s golden era with one of the greatest scores ever written for a musical by the legendary Frank Loesser and will perform at The MasterCard Theatres at Marina Bay Sands from 28 August 2015 for a limited season. Tickets are now on sale.

Guys and Dolls originally conquered Broadway in 1951 with over 1200 performances and winning 5 Tony® Awards including Best New Musical In 1992 the show again bagged 4 Tony® Awards including Best Revival of a Musical. The New York Times calls it “The show that defines Broadway dazzle!” Considered by many to be the perfect musical comedy, GUYS AND DOLLS success on Broadway also had Hollywood following in its footsteps with a 1955 film adaptation starring Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra and Vivian Blaine.