happy endings: asian boys vol 3 - a review

one of the (very few) perks of working here is the occasional dramatic treat. this year, i've had a chance to catch a couple of plays by local companies - titoudao by toy factory and blithe spirit by w!ld rice. yesterday, i had the good fortune to catch the latest offering by w!ld rice, happy endings: asian boys vol 3.

this show was not on my radar of "shows-to-watch". in fact, i ignored every advertisement on it (despite being a friend of w!ld rice and having access to early bird discounts). not that i'm homophobic...i just wasn't interested in a play where (i thought) the selling point was the fact that it is based on a topic considered "taboo". but when my colleague procured a couple of tickets to the show and invited me to go, i thought it was too good a chance to miss and agreed to watch it with her.

i'm glad i did. the story was moving, captivating, and made me think. it wasn't just about homosexuality, it was about a lot more: growing up, finding yourself, seeking love, understanding people-to-people relationship...so many things that i can identify with. as ivan heng, director, said in the promotional video, "you'll see yourself on stage."



(note: i know a lot of other bloggers have linked this clip, but this is probably the only link that would still remain because both w!ld rice and sistic will remove their webpages once the show is over.)

i did...and my heart ached as i saw myself in chris' happiness when ken first held his hand, in sylvia's pain as she tried to keep her dignity when chris asked for a breakup, in the longing in ken and chris' voices in their last phone conversation.

but that wasn't all that made me love the play. there were a lot of funny bits in the play (302B? 302A?) that made me giggle with delight. alfian sa'at is an excellent playwright...his gems of humor amused me to no end, and the cast was wonderful in their portrayals of their characters.

ben xiao was excellent as both joe, the author and chris, the protagonist of the novel joe was writing. i could be a bit biased because of his looks *grinz* but he had the fresh-faced, innocent look that was perfect as the uncertain, confused chris. pierre goh as attractive, charismatic kenneth widjaya was a (eye-candyish)pleasure to watch, and genevieve lim as schoolgirl leader/debate team captain sylvia reminded me exactly of the overachieving rafflesian i knew from my secondary school days.

honestly, i will never be able to put in words my feelings for the play. i can only hope that i will never forget the joy i felt, watching it for the first time and the acute pleasure at seeing the story unfold in front of my eyes. go watch it...it is a brilliant play. (oh, and i want to read peculiar chris!)

(final note: i was reminded of the only other local play i know that i had the privilege to be involved in. and clips of my jc days, of staying late for rehearsals, of memorizing lines, of wardrobe hunting, of playing gin rummy backstage and praying for a good show at curtain call etc...flashed by. ah...those were the days...)