Theatre Review: SING Dollar!

Amidst a heavyweighted cast of theatre veterans, kudos to Najip Ali for turning in a brilliant performance at the show. He stole the show in the first half when he played hotel chambermaid Sa'adiah. With mop and pail in hand and decked in a baju kebaya and donning a tudung, Najip came alive like a butterfly out of the pupa stage in his song and dance routine, 'Keeping It Clean'. It wasn't the same Najip who hosted Asia Bagus on Channel 5 years ago. In recent times, Najip had retreated behind the screen and stage to take on director-producer roles. Not that he wasn't good back there, but what was he thinking?! Audiences were thrilled by his performance and showed it in their thunderous applause after his act.

Don't get me wrong. I've always loved the Dim Sum Dollies (also known as Selena Tan, Pam Oei and Emma Yong) but this time, they weren't as savoury. Completely whitewashed by their male counterparts, they'd have held their own better had they done their own show than be part of a bigger cast like they were in SING Dollar produced by Dream Academy. For some reason, Pam was a disappointment with the inconsistency of her Filipina accent. She'd done better in other productions and I'd set high standards for her. An immersion trip to the Philippines might have been useful for her to regain her tongue. Emma was better off, endowed with wittier lines for her character Lan Lan, a Chinese prostitute who was literally red hot in that figure hugging dress becoming of Geylang girls in the alley. The Tiger beer auntie played by Selena was largely unbelievable. From what I know, they don't quite speak the way she did in the coffeeshops. Way too polished to have been an accurate portrayal.

The first half seemed forever. A chat with a friend at intermission confirmed it. The plot was shallow and the scenes were very 'Malaysian gantry', i.e. Touch-n-Go. Character development didn't seem necessary; it's like having 8 starter dishes in the first half without ever being served the main course.

Thankfully, things picked up a little in the second half. You could call Hossan the hero. I'm not just saying that because he's my brother, but I've never ever seen such nimble footwork from him until his performance in SING Dollar. The way he moved, Michael Jackson would have cause to arise, pass on the baton, and go back to sleep. Hossan was also quite a sight in a tiny yellow dress (Sebastian was also very convincing as a Thai prostitute), but speaking as a brother rather than a regular member of the audience, it was scary.

The opening sequence was well presented, with the cast impersonating the political figures whose faces graced four separate currencies - the US dollar, the British pound, the Indian rupee and the Singapore dollar. The ending? Weak. Just like the songs.

One saving grace is the currency (no pun intended) of the characters that were spoofed, from Temasek's Ho Ching to vulnerable venerable Ming Yi. You bet the creative team led by Selena Tan are news junkies. I suspect she tunes in to 938LIVE to to stay on top of the news while it breaks.

SING DOLLAR is now on till 8th Aug at the Esplanade Theatre.
Tickets selling at SISTIC.

Recession Laughter Package

We had a minor heart attack today. It was 10am. Emma Yong, Hossan Leong & Najib Ali were nowhere in sight. Where are they??? *panic*

It turns out the PR folk and us had a miscommunication. I thought I had told them 10am and they thought it was 11am. Yes, one of those unfortunate boo-boos from too much rescheduling (due to H1N1 fears).

But thank God these wonderful actors were early (i.e. based on their 11am understanding) and so we managed to go ahead with our interview! *collapses in relief*

But in the meantime, Stan had to give an 8 min soliloquy on air - for which I will now give him a standing ovation! *applause*

Comedians on the Couch: SING! Dollar cast members Najib Ali, Hossan Leong, Emma Yong.

Emma, Hossan & Najib came down today to tell us more about Dream Academy's upcoming musical, that's all about money & the current recession, called SING! Dollar. The way I see it, there's no better time to laugh at ourselves than now, in the midst of this economic crisis!

And who better to make us laugh than this brilliant ensemble? Selena Tan (who's also scriptwriter), Pam Oei, Emma Yong, Hossan Leong, Lim Kay Siu, Sebastian Tan, Najib Ali & Kumar! Tell me, can you bring together a more power-packed bunch of local comedians than this?! The synergistic possibilities are astounding, and I already feel it in my bones that it's gonna to be a winner.

What happens when a cruise ship gambler, Tiger Beer aunty, retrenched banker, beef hor fun hawker, moonlighting maid, Chinese prostitute, Bangladeshi dishwasher & cleaning makcik find a bag of money in the midst of the recession?

Well, find out when SING! Dollar hits town, 23 July - 8 Aug @ Esplanade Theatre. Tickets available from Sistic. This is one 'stimulus package' that won't cost much, but will definitely lift your spirits (if not the economy)!

We had such a hilarious time guessing who plays which characters. The thing is, with this bunch of veterans, any one of them can play any one of the characters! And these loonies were confusing us with their repertoire of accents. Alamak, we give up lah!

It was a load of campy fun & boisterous banter all round on a Friday morning. It seriously made our earlier panic attack vanish! *poof* I can't wait to catch this musical!!!