{"id":4610,"date":"2018-04-26T02:34:03","date_gmt":"2018-04-25T18:34:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wr\/getting-directly-to-the-point\/"},"modified":"2019-12-09T16:10:43","modified_gmt":"2019-12-09T08:10:43","slug":"getting-directly-to-the-point","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/getting-directly-to-the-point\/","title":{"rendered":"Getting Directly To The Point"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

You\u2019ve compared directing Mama White Snake<\/em> to running a circus. Why do you say that?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

On top of the usual elements of a musical \u2013 acting, singing and dancing \u2013 Mama White Snake<\/em> features wushu<\/em> and the very unfamiliar territory of Chinese opera. So it was quite crazy putting it all together. There were so many elements to consider. We were also working out set design, lighting, multimedia, the hundreds of costumes in the show… I had honestly thought, when I directed The Emperor\u2019s New Clothes<\/em> in 2015, that it was the most technically difficult thing I would ever do as a director. After all, the cast in that show played instruments live, while on stage! But I take it all back \u2013 that was chicken feet compared to this!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What was it like for you to incorporate elements of Chinese martial arts and opera into the show?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a lot<\/em> of hard work. No one in the adult cast \u2013 except our fight choreographer, Gordon Choy \u2013 had learned wushu<\/em> or Chinese opera to the extent that they’ve been performing it on stage. For them to be up there kicking spears and waving giant flags, just a couple of months after learning how to do it in the first place\u2026 it\u2019s amazing!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One thing we\u2019ve learnt in the days since the show has opened is that our audience is very forgiving. They know that these actors aren\u2019t professional wushu <\/em>experts or Chinese opera performers. So, even if a spear falls, as it has, they don\u2019t hold a grudge for even a second. And if the cast do<\/em> pull off their stunts, the applause is so warm and genuine!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mama White Snake<\/em> is set in ancient China, with some local influences. What should audiences watch out for on that count? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our amazing costume designers \u2013 Saksit Pisalasupongs and Phisit Jongnarangsin from the award-winning Tube Gallery \u2013 gave us the initial idea of infusing a little Peranakan influence into the show. They felt that there was no way we could replicate original Chinese opera costumes; we just didn\u2019t have that level of expertise to do so. Instead, we borrowed motifs from Peranakan culture and design. Look out for that! There\u2019s some nice synergy there, actually, as both Glen Goei and Ivan Heng \u2013 our two snakes \u2013 are Peranakan, as is our lead actor, Andrew Marko!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Pam<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The kids in the cast are one of the highlights of Mama White Snake<\/em>. Do you always make it a point to give them more to do?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Yes \u2013 I was really keen on giving the kids lots of roles in Hansel & Gretel<\/em>, the first pantomime I directed for W!LD RICE in 2012. There\u2019s the crowd-pleasing element, of course: the audiences love<\/em> our kids, who can do no wrong in their eyes. But I also wanted to showcase the children and their talents a lot more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The trade-off in giving the kids more to do is that we need to really drill them until they\u2019re as close to perfect as possible. That was especially challenging for Hansel & Gretel<\/em>, since we had two rotating casts of kids for that show, and it meant that we had to rehearse everything twice. Since then, I\u2019ve insisted on having one set of kids, with the compromise being that there be more kids in the cast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s why we have 22 children in Mama White Snake<\/em>. And they\u2019re all amazing! They’re doing spectacular things that are wowing the audiences non-stop. From backflips and puppeteering, to hip-hop dancing and Chinese opera fighting! One of the recurring compliments we are receiving is how wonderful the FIRST STAGE! Kids have been.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Pam2<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

This is the first time anyone <\/em>is directing Glen and Ivan in a show. What\u2019s that been like? <\/h4>\n\n\n\n

In the last couple of weeks of rehearsals, it dawned on me that I\u2019m the only person who can direct this show, with the two of them as the leads. [laughs] I think any other director might have found it intimidating to work with them, since they\u2019re both such veteran directors themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But I\u2019m well-acquainted with their working style, having acted under their direction many, many times. So I understood that the suggestions and feedback they offered were always about improving the show and the story. In fact, there were many occasions in which they actually served as another pair of eyes for me, since so many things were going on in the rehearsal room at any given moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, it helps, too, that our friendship of two decades is rock-solid. Any disagreements I\u2019ve had with them in the rehearsal room \u2013 whether I was the director and they the actors or vice versa \u2013 never carry over into our personal lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ultimately, I\u2019ve come away from this experience with even more respect for them both. They worked bloody hard to prepare for this show \u2013 I\u2019m younger than they are, and I\u2019m not sure I<\/em> could have mastered the wushu<\/em> stunts they have!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How has it been working with the rest of your cast?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

I was deciding between a more conventional male lead, and someone more unusual, like Andrew. I\u2019m glad I went with Andrew, because not only is he likeable, he\u2019s just incredibly talented, with such a good attitude. Cheryl Tan is an immense talent \u2013 her singing voice is spectacular, and she\u2019s been very good at taking direction. We wanted Zelda Tatiana Ng, who has been working primarily in Chinese theatre, to join the cast so we could play on her strengths \u2013 like her facility with dialects \u2013 in the show. And Siti Khalijah Zainal can do anything<\/em>! She\u2019s playing an old Chinese man in Mama White Snake<\/em>, with her trademark comic timing that is impeccable and impossible to teach. It\u2019s been a real joy working with this entire cast!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Putting on a brand-new musical \u2013 especially one on the scale of Mama White Snake \u2013 is a massive undertaking. Director Pam Oei tells us why it\u2019s one of the most challenging things she\u2019s ever done.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4607,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,9],"tags":[125,59],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4610"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4610"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4610\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4607"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4610"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4610"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4610"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}