{"id":757,"date":"2018-07-05T09:26:31","date_gmt":"2018-07-05T01:26:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wr\/wr\/?p=757"},"modified":"2019-12-09T17:38:27","modified_gmt":"2019-12-09T09:38:27","slug":"maid-in-singapore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/maid-in-singapore\/","title":{"rendered":"Maid in Singapore"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Joining the cast of Supervision <\/em>has been an eye-opening experience for Umi Kalthum Ismail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Thomas Lim\u2019s new play, she takes on the role of Yanti \u2013 an Indonesian domestic helper employed by Jenny (Janice Koh) to take care of the latter\u2019s father, Teck (Patrick Teoh), who has recently suffered a stroke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is Yanti\u2019s first time away from her home. It\u2019s also her first job, and she\u2019s never had to speak in English until now,\u201d explains Umi. \u201cSo it\u2019s a brand-new environment and very overwhelming for her. She\u2019s stressed, as she struggles to cope with the demands of her job. But she\u2019s also homesick.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are all problems you might associate with working overseas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But there are other unsettling challenges to being a domestic helper, as Umi has discovered during the course of rehearsals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not only is she a stranger in a new land, Yanti is a stranger in someone else\u2019s home. And yet, she has to cook and clean for Teck, and even bathe him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYanti is always out of place,\u201d Umi says. \u201cShe doesn\u2019t belong in Jenny and Teck\u2019s home, yet she has to work \u2013 to do her best, to take care of someone who\u2019s ill. So even if she feels uncomfortable, she has to put that aside.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn a way, she\u2019s not allowed to have feelings about her situation. She cannot be sad, or angry \u2013 she has to do her job.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tensions within the household escalate when Yanti discovers that she\u2019s being watched. There are cameras everywhere \u2013 even in the toilet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYanti is stripped of a lot of things \u2013 she has no power, no say, within the household,\u201d Umi observes. \u201cAnd she\u2019s not even allowed privacy in the bathroom. Imagine having to change your clothes and shower when you know that there\u2019s a camera watching you!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s actually illegal!\u201d she adds, shaking her head in bewilderment. \u201cOur stage manager checked, and she discovered that you can legally place cameras in your home\u2026 but not in your toilet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Home Truths<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Umi shares a lighter moment with Patrick Teoh during rehearsals<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Working on Supervision <\/em>has hit unexpectedly close to home for Umi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve never had a helper, so that<\/em> aspect of Supervision <\/em>is a new and interesting experience for me,\u201d she shares.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut my father did have a stroke two years ago, and I\u2019m one of his primary caretakers. I cook for him every day, I clean the house. My main priority over the past couple of years has been taking care of a sick person.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s why she understands the decisions made by Jenny in the play \u2013 even if she would not make the same ones herself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI completely get what Jenny is going through as Teck\u2019s daughter,\u201d says Umi. \u201cShe\u2019s very busy and has to work, just like I do. So she brings Yanti in, which solves some immediate problems\u2026 but creates others that are just as difficult to handle.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond looking at issues like the rights of domestic helpers, Supervision<\/em> also examines a growing phenomenon in Singapore: the ways in which we take care of our elderly relatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve come to realise that what any sick person needs is just a lot of love and a listening ear,\u201d Umi elaborates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou can get so focused on taking care of their basic needs \u2013 eat this, take your medicine \u2013 which is actually the easy part. The most difficult and important thing to do is to be there for them: to really<\/em> talk to your parents, heart to heart, and to make them feel loved.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0An Accident Waiting to Happen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Umi performs a scene with Janice Koh as director Glen Goei looks on<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On a more lighthearted note, Supervision<\/em> is what Umi calls a \u201chappy accident\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She landed the role of Yanti after the actress originally cast in the part had to pull out of the production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just like the character she plays, Umi admits to feeling rather out of place as the newest member of the Supervision <\/em>company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is definitely outside of my comfort zone!\u201d laughs Umi. \u201cThis is a completely different environment from what I\u2019m used to \u2013 my previous credits are mostly in Malay theatre.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, this is her first \u201cbig gig\u201d \u2013 12 years after graduating with an Acting degree from LASALLE College of the Arts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Umi spent most of the ensuing decade as a full-time drama coach for secondary school and junior college students. \u201cI had to be practical at that point and work to support my family,\u201d she confides.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, she\u2019s back in action, and she\u2019s thrilled to have the opportunity to work with and learn from veteran theatre-makers, like director Glen Goei and her co-stars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t happen often, because I\u2019m on stage all the time. But I love it when I get to sit back and watch Janice and Patrick act,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey\u2019ve been very, very kind to me, and so inspiring as well. It\u2019s a learning process for me, every day!\u201d
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Umi Kalthum Ismail makes her Singapore Theatre Festival debut as Yanti \u2013 a domestic helper in Supervision. She chats with us about putting herself in her character\u2019s shoes and how this play hits close to home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":762,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"Umi Kalthum Ismail makes her Singapore Theatre Festival debut as Yanti \u2013 a domestic helper in Supervision.","_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":[9],"tags":[29,61],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/757"}],"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=757"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/757\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/762"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=757"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=757"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glutenfreepleasure.com\/__proxy_domain\/www.wildrice.com.sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=757"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}