Theater in KL

October 29

This year we were in KL for the theater portion of the Short and Sweet Festival. Last year we saw one week of the two week dance portion - 10 10-minute dances each week. We expected 10 10-minute plays this time. Instead we saw 12! With no intermission, we braced ourselves for a possibility of a mind numbing two hours. On the contrary, the evening went by quickly.

I will not try to summarize 12 plays. The audience was asked to check off its favorite play. We found it hard to choose only one; at least five were worthy contenders. Here are two memorable lines:

An actress preparing for an audition - "What if they say I don't look Malaysian enough." Boyfriend -"You have an international face." [Malaysians come in several ethnic groups and multiple complexion's.]

Woman telling boyfriend what lies ahead (he has just proposed) -"You will have to give all your frequently flier miles to my mother who will spend the rest of her life stalking you."

The plays were in English, but some lines were in Bahasa Malaysian. Of course, they got the biggest laughs.

The major challenge was getting to KL Performing Arts Centre (KLPAC). Last year we went to the train station which was within sight of KLPAC. The nearest entrance involves a 20 minute walk through an area that is dark and desolate. No taxi driver would take us to KLPAC, because it was too close. We walked to another area (further away) hailed several cabs,none of the drivers knew where KLPAC was. This year we found a cab, but again the driver had no idea where KLPAC was, but he knew where the nearby KFC was. (Good thing that Doug remembers such details.) The arts have to do a better job of marketing themselves and to make themselves more accessible to public transportation.