I play Auntie Fanny, who is Ah Tang\u2019s stepmum in real life. I also play Princess Iron Fan, who is the villainess in the fantasy world of Monkey Goes West<\/em>. It’s fun to play the antagonist \u2013 because how do we know what\u2019s good if there\u2019s no evil? It\u2019s yin<\/em> and yang<\/em>!<\/p>\n\n\n\n You gather it from the script, actually, and get a sense of how Alfian intended the character to be. There are character traits in Fanny and Princess Iron Fan, for instance, that mirror each other \u2013 that\u2019s all in the script and the way they talk. You learn a lot from the text, and you try to be as faithful to it as possible. Then you test-drive it during rehearsals and try to find the right groove. There\u2019s deciding how the character will walk too. Sometimes, a clue to that is in the lyrics. In one of my songs, I refer to \u2018bound feet\u2019. Now, I<\/em> don\u2019t have bound feet, but perhaps that suggests something \u2013 you know, the way she walks might be a bit more lady-like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I like that these characters, whether they\u2019re good or evil, can play the humour for the adults and<\/em> for the kids. It can be more slapstick for the kids, but there may also be more sexual connotations for the adults. You can be a bit more saucy, just by the nature of the role and the fact that it involves cross-dressing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Also, it\u2019s the ultimate facade. Most of the time, a guy plays a guy, a girl plays a girl. But this kind of role isn’t limited by any of that. It\u2019s so out there, it\u2019s so far away from reality. It\u2019s so theatrical. That\u2019s quite fun to play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Absolutely. For me, as a guy playing Princess Iron Fan, I can play the duality in her role. Because there’s something almost violent and primal about what she can do: like create a tsunami with a flick of that fan of hers. There\u2019s something manly about that power. You get that with Siti playing Sandy and Frances playing Pigsy as well. Pantos are always about both sides dragging, and this one\u2019s very faithful to that. It\u2019s not just the men dressing up women, there are also women dressing up as men!<\/p>\n\n\n\n It can be really quite scary! And it\u2019s actually written in the script! There are many parts when we do ask the audience questions! It\u2019s almost like saying, \u2018Eh, you one whole row got machine guns, right? Come, let me stand in front of you!\u2019. It\u2019s like asking for it! I mean, if you\u2019re the hero, that\u2019s fine. But I\u2019m not! So it\u2019s worse! You\u2019ll get kids who purposely don\u2019t want to play with me, who\u2019ll be difficult\u2026 [laughs] I\u2019ve got my bullet-proof vest on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There was a moment when I was playing the Prince in Cinderel-LAH!<\/em> eleven years ago. It happened when I was looking for Cindy and I walked into the flat where her stepsisters were trying on the shoes. This kid, who turned out to one of Adrian Pang\u2019s kids, shouted, \u201cUncle Enlai! She\u2019s in the toilet!\u201d Everyone onstage froze. Silence! Because I wasn’t supposed to find that out yet! We hadn\u2019t even tried the shoes on and cut the heels or toes off yet! And it\u2019s \u2018Uncle Enlai\u2019 some more, right? We were all shocked. And so, the kid got frustrated. Why was no one responding to him? You could feel his frustration. \u201cUNCLE ENLAI! SHE\u2019S IN THE TOILET!!!\u201d I think it was Hossan who finally recovered and said, \u201cWho\u2019s Uncle Enlai? I don\u2019t know who!\u201d and then continued with the scene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019ve spent six birthdays with W!LD RICE! Because my birthday is a month before Christmas. And I\u2019m always working on that day! I don\u2019t know why it never falls on a Sunday or bump-in day. It\u2019s either recording or rehearsal\u2026 for this one, the show would have started already. If you think about it, in the past ten years, I\u2019ve spent more than half of my birthdays doing a panto! I think that\u2019s very special.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Put Chua Enlai in your show, and you pretty much have an iron-clad guarantee that he’ll have audiences rolling in the aisles. We chat with Enlai about the unique joys and challenges of playing the Dame in a W!LD RICE pantomime. Tell us about your character. I play Auntie Fanny, who is Ah Tang\u2019s stepmum …<\/p>\nHow do you go about preparing to play a flamboyant role like this one?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
What do you like about playing the Dame in a panto?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
And there’ll be a lot of that in Monkey Goes West<\/em>!<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/newsletter\/NL20\/03B.jpg\")
Photo courtesy of Pavane Studio<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nAudience interaction is a highlight of every pantomime. What’s it like being on the receiving end of it?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Have you had any particularly memorable encounters with audience members during a panto?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Monkey Goes West<\/em> marks your sixth pantomime with W!LD RICE. That’s quite a milestone.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n