Saturday, January 31, 2004

Dejavu - Malam terakhir



D E J A V U

Karya: Ismail Kassan
Pengarah: Siti Rohayah Attan
Pelakon: Ogy Ahmad Daud, Shukor Yon, Juhara Ayub, Norzizi Zulkifli, Melissa Saila, Mubarak Majid dan ramai lagi

Tajaan: Kementerian Perpaduan Negara & Pembangunan Masyarakat dan Persatuan Penulis Wanita Malaysia
Tarikh: 24-29 Januari 2004
Tempat: Auditorium Besar Pusat Pelancongan Malaysia (MTC), Jalan Ampang

Sinopsis:
Dejavu mengisahkan sebuah daerah tempat pesalah dibuang daerah. Lokasi tempat kejadian adalah penghujung rumah murah berhampiran rumah kongsi yang sudah tidak digunakan lagi.

Rumah kongsi itu dihuni sepasang suami isteri pendatang Indonesia yang cerdik pemikirannya kerana mereka bekas lulusan universiti iaitu Narti dan Yanto. Pasangan ini sebenarnya rindukan kampung halaman mereka dan berasa amat rendah diri sebagai pendatang. Jiran mereka pula adalah tiga wanita pelbagai status sosial iaitu Nora (GRO), Salmi (ustazah) dan Rohana (pelajar universiti).

Rohana sering dihantui mimpi yang menjadi dejavu kepada dirinya. Dia mendapat isyarat yang agak buruk mengenai tempat itu tetapi tidak dapat mentafsirkannya. Kesan isyarat yang tidak dapat ditafsirkan itu Rohana menjadi emosional dan tidak ketentuan.

Rohana juga sering memandang rendah ke atas Nora dan menghinanya. Bagaimanapun penghinaan itu tidak dipedulikan Nora dan hubungan mereka masih normal hinggalah mereka didatangi perompak dan cuba memperkosa mereka.


Aku tonton teater Dejavu pada malam terakhir pementasannya. Pergi bersama-sama makcik aku, kami duduk sekali dengan rakan yang aku kenal dari Book Review Blog, Aliya dan temannya. Geng team PFS pun ramai yang turut menonton malam tu, tapi mereka duduk di baris tengah-tengah sebelah kiri, kami pulak duduk baris kedua dari depan sebelah kanan. Saja suka duduk depan, nampak secara lebih dekat pelakon-pelakon beraksi.

Ulasan-ulasan yang aku baca (secara sikit-sikit, tak baca keseluruhan artikel, konon cuba elak supaya aku menonton dengan 'open mind' tapi willpower' tak cukup kuat, nak jenguk jugak!) serta respon rakan-rakan yang dah menonton semuanya menyatakan best! Aku masuk dewan malam tu dengan penuh 'anticipation' untuk menyaksikan sesuatu yang sangat bagus, sangat baik dan pendek kata segala-galanya yang sangat , secara positif. Teruja (perkataan BM yang selalu digunakan bagi terjemahan 'excited' di kaca TV) sungguh rasanya.

Dan apabila aku melangkah keluar dewan jam 11.25 malam, memang aku puas hati. Sangat.

Aku nampak kekuatan pementasan Dejavu terletak paling ketara pada dua perkara (yang memang tunjang apa-apa pementasan sekalipun) iaitu naskhah pementasan yang baik dan lakonan yang sangat mantap, melengkapi antara satu sama lain.

Karya Dejavu diolah menampilkan isu-isu yang boleh dikatakan 'timeless' seperti perihal pendatang dari negara lain, kerinduan terhadap kampung halaman, konflik penyesuaian diri di tempat asing, imej perempuan GRO, serta perompak, perogol dan orang gila. Isu-isu yang aku jangka akan tetap relevan di khalayak kita, melainkan tiba pada satu masa akan datang apabila profesion buruh kasar diambil alih secara total oleh rakyat tempatan atau robot (lantas tiada lagi pendatang seperti Yanto dan rakan-rakannya), perempuan GRO dah tak wujud lagi di pusat-pusat hiburan (digantikan dengan hologram? atau robot jugak?), serta rompak dan rogol terhapus dari statistik jenayah tahunan – mungkin ke?

Lakonan yang dipersembahkan sangat mantap dan berkesan baik watak-watak utama mahupun watak-watak kecil, yang membawa penonton ke daerah buangan mereka. Semasa menonton Dejavu, aku nampak dengan jelas Narti (superb!) dan Yanto si pendatang, Nora si perempuan GRO, Pak Jamal penjual sayur / bekas banduan, perompak-perompak, polis, orang gila serta mat-mat Indon yang berkeliaran di atas pentas. Cuma pada Ustazah Salmi dan Rohana aku masih terlihat ada sedikit samar-samar Melissa Saila dan Norzizi Zulkifli - bukanlah lakonan mereka kurang bagus, cuma ini dari pendapat aku sendiri yang merasakan pembawaan Ustazah Salmi masih belum total 'Ustazah Salmi', dan Rohana masih belum cukup 'Rohana'. Bagaimanapun aku akur cara dan gerak pembawaan watak-watak ni tentunya diinterpretasikan mengikut acuan minda pengarah dan pelakon berkenaan, sedangkan aku menonton dengan acuan minda aku sendiri.

Aku harus salute Ogy sebagai Narti yang nampak sungguh 'real', dari cara dia bercakap hinggalah gerakan tangannya membetulkan kain, sampaikan mata aku terpana di minit-minit awal pementasan untuk meyakinkan diriku sendiri, itu Ogy.

Aku paling suka babak-babak monolog para pelakon, yang antara lain berfungsi sebagai sesi flashback mengapa mereka di situ (bagi Pak Jamal dan Nora). Monolog Ogy membuatkan aku terfikir, seburuk itukah layanan kita kepada para pendatang negara asing? ("Pulanglah kalian, nyah dari sini, jangan kalian pijak tanah ini, di sini maruah kalian akan dipijak, keringat kalian akan diperah, yang perempuan diperkosa. Kerana di bumi ini, kita sampai bila-bila dianggap pendatang, sedangkan ini bumi Allah!"). Shukor Yon pula transit secara total sebagai Yanto semasa scene beliau cuba mengingati baris lagu 'Begawan Solo' yang hampir dilupainya setelah sekian lama meninggalkan tanahair sendiri.

Pada watak Nora, aku nampak sikap masyarakat kita yang secara umum memandang hina kepada golongan yang dianggap berstatus lebih rendah dari mereka. Mimik muka dan nada suara yang ditampilkan Norzizi sewaktu Rohana berbicara (berdebat!)dengan Narti dan Yanto, sewaktu diusik oleh rakan-rakan Yanto, dan sewaktu dia dihadapkan dengan realiti pekerjaan Nora (pe-la-yan!), cemerlang sekali. Jelas menampakkan tanggapan bahawa beliau lebih bagus dari mereka, that she's too good for the place and is certainly on a higher level in every capacity.

Di sinilah Dejavu menggoncang tanggapan itu apabila kisah insan-insan yang dipandang hina dan tidak bertempat di sisi masyarakat ini dikupas, bagaimana keadaan memaksa tindakan dan mengubah kehidupan manusia. Betapa penilaian awal kita terhadap manusia selalu tidak tepat, selagi kita belum mengenali seseorang itu dengan lebih dalam.

Aku juga cukup tertarik dengan watak perompak (Shoffi Jikan) dan orang gila (maaf aku tak perasan namanya) dalam Dejavu. Dalam jahat-jahat si perompak, tetap mengingatkan rakannya (juga perompak) untuk membaca Bismilah sebelum makan. Dan dalam gila-gila si orang gila, tetap duduk untuk makan dengan penuh adab sopan dan menggunakan sudu untuk mencedok kuah ke nasi. Begitulah antara kelucuan yang diselitkan dalam Dejavu. Lucu, tapi penuh makna. Bukan acuan slapstik orang gemuk jatuh atau orang berkulit hitam disamakan dengan kuali.

Ia mengembalikan kenangan (macam deja vu la jugak) kepada peristiwa yang berlaku sewaktu rumahku dirompak dulu: Seorang dari perompak itu mengejutkan ayahku dengan elok dari tidur (sebelum mengikatnya), begini katanya, "Pakcik, bangun ya, pakcik, bangun...." (sambil mencuit bahu ayahku lembut); serta seorang lagi yang pantas menghulurkan kain pelikat untuk dipakai kepada seorang ahli keluargaku yang pada waktu itu berbaju tidur singkat, katanya, "Nah, pakai kain, tutup, kami cuma mau mengambil barang, jangan kata kami mau buat jahat lain". Serius! Bukanlah aku nak kata semua perompak sebenarnya baik, merompak tetap perbuatan jahat, tapi yang terselit di sebalik itu.... Mungkin keadaan memaksa dia bertindak demikian, sedangkan kalau boleh dia tak mau buat begitu!

Dejavu - dalam serius, ada komedinya, dan dalam komedinya, ada serius. Aku kategorikan sebagai pementasan teater Melayu yang cemerlang, kalau ada kesempatan rasanya mau aku tonton lebih dari sekali (macam SM dan oraet). Tahniah buat semua yang terlibat. Komen makcik aku (yang baru diperkenalkan kepada teater Melayu), "Best lagi yang ni dari Anak Kerbau Mati Emak walaupun buat kat tempat besar". Tak ralat kami bersesak-sesak sebelum masuk dewan serta terubat kecewa menghadapi sesat jalan, kepayahan mendapatkan parking dan kehabisan tiket pada malam sebelumnya. Berbaloi!

Cuma lain kali harapnya janganlah ada lagi penonton yang dah beli tiket tak dapat tempat duduk ya...

P.S untuk rakan-rakan PFS: Bukan taknak join korang minum lepas tu, tapi esoknya kerja daa... (which is why I quickly disappeared, bistreo!)
---------------------------------------

Trivia:

1. Karya ini pernah dipentaskan pada 1999 dengan tajuk Dejavu Seorang Perempuan serta mendapat sambutan menggalakkan.

2. Watak Narti sepatutnya dilakonkan oleh Erma Fatima (pemegang watak yang sama dalam Dejavu Seorang Perempuan), tetapi beliau menarik diri sepuluh hari menjelang malam pertama pementasan.

3. Ogy Ahmad Daud sebelum ini pernah menyatakan beliau tidak mahu berlakon lagi, namun tetap menerima watak Narti bagi menyelamatkan keadaan dan atas dasar membantu kawan.

(Rujukan Trivia: Artikel "Ogy Hadir Kena Masa", Harian Metro, ruangan Bintang, Khamis 22 Januari 2004)

Thursday, January 29, 2004

Dejavu: The 'Tiket Habis' Saga Continues


[My prized Dejavu tix for tonight]


Did I learn from last time? Well, I did spell out the lessons (that should've been) learnt, but did I act accordingly this time? Nooooooo.. no reservation took place, no call was made to ensure tickets were still available and the assumption that "The tickets sure ada one, don't worry, let's just buy them at the counter right before the show, still enough time" was still there.

Arrived at the Malaysia Tourism Centre vicinity (Jalan Ampang) at 8.08 p.m. yesterday to catch the 8.30 p.m. show of the theatre show Dejavu (starring Fauziah Ahmad Daud, Melissa Saila, Juhara Ayob, Norzizi Zulkifli, Syukor Yon, Mubarak Majid and others). Everything seemed fine up to that time, despite a 10-minute detour due to a couple of wrong turns along the way and the pouring rain that was starting to get heavier and heavier by the minute.

Then it began to get really 'exciting'. First we found our car being in a line of traffic that did not seem to budge except for the occasional centimetre or so, just about 20 metres from the entrance to the parking lot (Aunt: "We should've just told the parking guy at Saloma Bistro we're going for dinner, and park at their parking lot!"). The glowing digits on the dashboard crept on... 8.11, 8.12, 8.13, 8.14. A stretch of the neck was presented with the sight of a car with hazard lights on at the entrance gate. Kereta rosak? Couldn't he at least move a little bit, instead of obstructing the only available entrance to the MTC parking lot?

8.15, 8.16. 8.17. By this time the line of cars (all obviously going for the same show) had tripled. Honking became haywire. That particular vehicle still at the same location, hazard lights still blinking.

8.18. Said vehicle suddenly switched off its hazard lights and left the scene (Ma, it's alive!!!). Ahh... now time for everything to go smoothly, no? A security guard was seen closing the gate. Huhh?? What the..??? Honking fest again. A couple of people got out and went to the (closed) gate, discussing the weather with the guard maybe. Decided against joining the party.

8.22. A fellow in white-collared shirt came half-running from MTC towards the scene. Looks important. Seen departing a few words to security guard. Rolled the gate open himself (the important-looking fellow, not the guard). Cars could finally enter parking lot again, and the quick-quick-spot-an-empty-space game began.

8.23. Found empty space behind a Tourist Bus, along the sidewalk. Didn't reckon it was a 'valid' parking spot, but what the heck. It was an emergency.

8.25. Got to the Dewan Tunku Abdul Rahman (show venue). Witnessed a crowd at least 30-strong lining up (sort of, in a 'crowdly' way) in front of the ticketing desk. Whoa. Joined the merriment. Saw a few tickets being sold before ticket-lady snapped shut her ticket-book and declared "Tiket malam ni dah habis... full house" ("Tonight's tickets sold out, it's a full house"). Crowd went berserk. Chanting started - "Tomorrow's tix, tomorrow's tix, sell us then tomorrow's tix!". Ticket-book remained determinedly shut. Ticket-lady was seen rummaging through a handwritten list and heard exclaiming to fellow organizer something like"Yang booking esok pun dah banyak ni… " ("Tomorrow’s bookings alone are a lot as it is..").

8.33. Crowd remained rooted at the area. More people arrived. A group of children was seen lining up into the hall. Must be special guests - lucky them. At least three people emerged from the hall with tickets in hand, demanding for their money back - they couldn’t find available seats inside.

8.40. Ticket-lady finally re-open the ticket-book and started allowing the crowd to buy tomorrow night’s tickets. Crowd got on their knees thankfully. A few cried openly.

9.00. Parking area again. Other cars were also parked like ours along the sidewalk. Monkey see, monkey do, hehe. Did the customary driving-around-a-little-bit-lost before finally spotting the right way back home.

Did they oversell their tickets? I think they did.
Did they underestimate the response for the show? I think they did.

Theatre slowly seeping into the pop culture these days? Or pop culture seeping into the theatre scene? A little bit of both, probably. A boost for the performing arts community, in my opinion, for I remember the days when a packed house is not very common especially for Malay theatre. I’m wondering a bit, though, since when do the public come in throngs for these shows ah? Is it always like this nowadays? Or only for this particular show?

Note to self: Must arrive early for the show tonight.

Wednesday, January 28, 2004

Who, me?

Aliya sent this to me.

Born in MARCH: Attractive personality. Affectionate. Shy and reserved. Secretive. Naturally honest, generous and sympathetic. Loves peace and serenity. Sensitive to others. Loves to serve others. Easily angered. Trustworthy. Appreciative and returns kindness. Observant and assesses others. Revengeful. Loves to dream and fantasize. Loves traveling. Loves attention. Hasty decisions in choosing partners. Loves home decor's. Musically talented. Loves special things. Moody.
------------

A major part of it is true, actually. Ain't telling you which ones aren't.

Hahahaha... beware of this revengeful, easily-angered being who loves peace and serenity!

Monday, January 26, 2004

The Stills Project: Parks of Putrajaya

300+ snaps, four whole mornings, three whole afternoons, a sleepless night and two shades darker later….


Taman Botani



Taman Warisan Pertanian



Taman Wetland



Taman Putra Perdana


While most people were making the most of their CNY holidays with balik kampung, catching up with friends and relatives or perhaps simply staying at home enjoying the respite from work, I found myself with a photo assignment due for submission on Monday the 26th, i.e. today at 10 a.m.

The assignment: Stills of the four Putrajaya parks.

Requirements:
1) Able to convey the essence of the parks’ attractions
2) Depict a sense of charm and appeal to the public. Must portray visitors.
3) Submission in form of soft copy (minimum 10 stills per park) and printed copy (the best 5 stills of each park)

Nope, I definitely did not plan to spend the four-days holiday roaming around the parks in Putrajaya trying to get that perfect snap. In fact I already had a couple of places to go to and a list of things to do as well as the delicious thoughts of sleeping in every morning, four days in a row! But as the saying goes, we could always plan, but….

The client’s deadline is on the 26th, and a photographer had already been engaged for the project whose work was to be submitted on the 21st. Turned out that the photographs did not fulfil their requirements (for submission to another party), thus there they were with a printing deadline in five days and tomorrow being the start of a four-days public holiday. Where to find someone to do it in such short notice, during a major public holiday as well?

To cut a long story short, someone needed some pictures to meet a printing deadline in five days, and there’s a four-days public holiday starting tomorrow. Who would be willing to do it?

Someone you already know, that’s who. That certain someone knew Bro, and it’s a fact that Bro does photographs for a living. But Bro had to be in his shop during that period, jaga kedai as everybody else is on CNY leave. Blabla di blabla dida dida and finally yours truly and Sis are suddenly toting a tripod and an assortment of three cameras around Putrajaya. All our cuti plans? Kensel la of course. The only plan that I would’ve went on with was going for the ‘Cocktales’ show, but then the tickets were sold out. Bummer.

I learnt that taking such photographs (in which humans and the surrounding are both equally-important as subject matters) could not be a hurried process, especially when you have to rely on a public setting where you have little control of the background and the people around it. People could be walking past by non-stop where you want it to be all clear, or you may found yourself waiting in that perfect setting for a full hour and could not see even one visitor, and yet when you decided to go for another setting and had left not a shout away they suddenly come in droves like it was the fairground or something. The best time to take pictures outside is also the ‘best’ time for you to get exposed to a higher risk of skin cancer.

People can be very accommodating and considerate (maybe because they were on a holiday and of course were on lower stress levels than usual). A lot of them wouldn’t come near once they spot the tripod (lest they be in the way), and we had to assure them it’s okay to walk in front of it, in fact what we wanted was to take pictures of people, not just the scenery. Most did not mind being photographed once we told them it’s for a project, and there were also the friendlier ones who became our ‘voluntary models’ and subject themselves to our ‘directions’, striking a particular pose here and there. Asking nicely, honest smiles and words of encouragement go a long way. Foreign tourists and young people were the most obliging lot.

Children were undeniably the most interesting to take photos of, and I just love the way they go around unassumingly, putting their pudgy fingers here and there satisfying their curiosity and running all over the place without a care. (with care abandon?). Bro commented on the first day that a lot of the stills were focused around children. Me and Sis couldn’t help it! They were harder to ‘direct’ though, and most of the time we just went along with what they were doing. Nevertheless you can always rely on them to present the perfect poses spontaneously, and they were also less self-conscious compared to adults, naturally.

Nightly we uploaded the stills to the laptop and Bro would comment and shortlist the photos, telling us what should or should not be included and instructing us to go for more tomorrow, declaring there’s still not enough of them to be worthy of the final submission. The final selection, editing and printing process went through the whole of last night, and I slept only at 6.30 a.m. Bro did not sleep at all.

The best thing is when Bro called this morning from the client’s office after the presentation, telling me they were happy with our work. Or perhaps they were that desperate and just had to take whatever there was, hmmm?

Did I enjoy myself? Yes, actually, despite the hot sun, the cancellation of prior plans and the fact that our hands were ‘twisted’ into the deal (it was kind of like being drafted into National Service). Would I do anything like it again? Erm…. M a y b e, but not four days straight during the public holidays and in such short notice please!

Saturday, January 24, 2004

Cocktales bummer

C O C K T A L E S


Venue: The Actors Studio, Bangsar
Date: 24 January 2004 @ 9.00pm
Price: RM 40 (Adults) & RM 20 (Students)


Mother once said, "women, alcohol, and cigarettes will eventually kill you!" Well can't really blame her, she's Indian. COCKTALES is about taking that advice seriously. Confessions of a 'trying to make it in the white mans country' malaysian student that will leave you wet in your pants and still wanting more... an hour of mind blowing stand-up comedy based on one Malaysian student's day to day experience about the trials and tribunals faced by an international student. This show is performed, written and directed by Govin Ruben for the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in mid April 2004.Together with Govin are special guests Martin Blum, Terrence Conrad and Kiran Dev.

COCKTALES premiers on Malaysian soil on the 24 of January 2004 for one night only before going Down Under.

Note: Performance restricted to audiences above the age of 18 only and diapers will be provided on request.





[Ya ha, YOU are NOT in time]

Oh no! To think I drove all the way to Bangsar this afternoon specifically for them. Serves me right for not calling in first to check whether the tickets are still available. A couple of weeks ago I wanted to make reservations but was told that they do not accept bookings anymore. In addition, only floor-seating tickets were left, and even those would only be available on the day of the show itself.

So there I was at 2 p.m. (six and a half hours till the show), in front of the ticket counter at The Actors Studio in Bangsar Shopping Centre, staring blankly at the event poster with those dreaded words- SOLD OUT- pasted prominently for all to see. I tried asking just in case, alas, it was in vain. Yeah right, like they would put the words ‘Sold Out’ there just for fun and they just wanted to test whether people really, REALLY want to catch the show.

So how now, brown cow? Guess I’ll just have to read the reviews when they come out. And hope that there’ll be a restaging sometime in the (near) future.

Moral of the story
#1 : Once the event is advertised, make your reservations! Even if it's two months away.
#2 : Always call the box office to check whether tickets are still available. Never assume.



[Comfort food to chase the frustration away]

Wednesday, January 21, 2004

Happy Chinese New Year



Kenapa dia di sini?



Ini bukan satu pemandangan yang asing di bandaraya Kuala Lumpur. Kau boleh nampak di kaki lima jalan, di stesen LRT, di hentian-hentian bas dan teksi, di laluan jejantas. Siang tak ada? Malam, banyak. Walaupun, ya, aku pasti kita takkan jumpa dengan paparan imej yang macam ni dalam iklan ‘Malaysia, Truly Asia’ (yang lagunya dinyanyikan dalam 27 bahasa! Wah!) atau risalah-risalah pelancongan, inilah salah satu detik yang ada dalam nadi Kuala Lumpur. Dalam setiap saat yang terlintas.

Setiap kali aku terpandang senario yang serupa, akan terdetik di fikiran:

“Kenapa dia di sini?”
“Apa kisah hidupnya?”
“Kat mana agaknya dia dua puluh lima tahun yang lalu?”


Dia di situ, kemungkinan besar sebab tak ada tempat lain yang boleh dia tuju. Yang mahu dia tuju.
Atau mungkin dia sengaja ke situ, walaupun ada tempat lain untuknya.
Merajukkah dia? Ditinggalkan anak-anak? Dihalau?

Mungkin fikirannya terganggu kerana dugaan hidup yang terlalu hebat? Lantas hilanglah kehirauannya.
Mungkin dia pernah melakukan kesalahan yang besar? Lantas inilah hukuman hidupnya.
Mungkin dia sendiri memilih hidup yang macam ni? Lantas selesalah dia di sini.

Dua puluh lima tahun dulu, di waktu ini mungkin dia sedang:

Enak diulit mimpi indah bersama isteri tercinta, yang telah berjanji akan sehidup semati dengannya walau apa pun terjadi. Mereka berkenalan sebab keluarga mereka berjiran di Ipoh; atau

Mendodoi anak kecilnya yang baru berusia dua bulan, yang tak henti-henti menangis kerana kembung perut. Baru tadi sapukan minyak angin cap kapak; atau

Supper di sebuah hotel mewah di kota Singa, bersama-sama rakan niaga selepas selesai satu perbincangan penting yang banyak untung. Esok nak berjumpa saudara pula di Bukit Timah.

Boleh jadi kan?

Ada sesiapa yang hirau? Kita?

Kita pun hulurlah seringgit (atau dua ringgit barangkali bila kita rasa sangat generous), masuk dalam tadahan tangannya. Dalam mangkuk kertasnya. Dalam bekas plastiknya. Kita rasa kesian. Tapi itulah. Mampu tak kau dan aku nak berbuat sesuatu yang lebih dari itu?

Aku harap aku takkan jadi begini bila aku dah tua nanti. Atau sesiapa pun dalam keluarga kami.

Aku tunjuk gambar ni pada abang aku. Abang aku cakap, pakcik ni sebenarnya polis! Dia mata-mata kat situ, sebab dekat-dekat sana kawasan ‘gelap’ sikit. Dia cakap, berani pulak ambik gambar? Aku cakap aku tak guna flash, lagipun aku ambik dari belakang.

Mak aku kata lain kali cuba perhati tangan orang-orang macam ini. Kalau kuku dia bersih ataupun pendek, boleh jadi betullah polis tu... nampak je macam hobo kat tepi jalan, tapi sebenarnya dia menyamar.

Penat jugak aku fikir tadi, kalau betullah dia memang sebenarnya polis.