Weekend for the arts: 'Persiapan Seorang Aktor' theatre, Jemimah Wei KL tour

The Star

3 days ago

THEATRE: 'PERSIAPAN SEORANG AKTOR'
Venue: Nero Event Space, PJPAC, 1 Utama Shopping Mall
Date: ends July 20
Fresh off winning two Boh Cameronian Arts Awards earlier this year - including Best Original Script (for Saat Omar) - Persiapan Seorang Aktor returns this weekend in a new staging by Mask Team and director Syahrul Musa. The Bahasa Malaysia production takes the stage at Nero, PJPac.
The 90-minute production features Aloy Paradoks and Fazleena Hishamuddin, joined by acclaimed actor-director Nam Ron for this new run.
The play tells the story of a gifted actor whose obsession with greatness slowly eats him alive. Determined to become not just Malaysia's best but the greatest the world has ever seen, he dives into acting with almost religious fervour - quoting theory, living the method, and eventually slipping into isolation, burnout, and depression.
At the heart of this unraveling is Nina, his wife, whose quiet devotion brings brief moments of warmth and clarity. Persiapan is both a love letter to the art of acting and a cautionary tale about ego, ambition, and the hidden cost of chasing perfection.
Threaded with nods to Hamlet and moving between tragedy and dry humour, the play offers a raw, compelling look at an artist on the edge - and a reminder that even noble dreams can take their toll.
Audiences have responded warmly, but if you're hoping to see it, better act fast - only a few nights remain.
More info here.
THEATRE: 'US A JOURNEY OF LOVE, LOSS & BELONGING'
Venue: Pentas 2, KLPac
Date: ends July 20
When the lights dim in Us: A Journey Of Love, Loss & Belonging, two characters step onto a bare stage. There's no physical intimacy, no grand gestures, no swelling music – just raw, deliberate dialogue as they try to understand each other and themselves.
Written and directed by Fa Abdul, Us is playing at Pentas 2, KLPac in Kuala Lumpur this weekend (July 19 and 20). The play, which made its debut in Penang last month, doesn't promise fairytale endings. Instead, it offers something far more rare: honesty.
Starring actors Karam Tabba (a Syrian-born performer) and Lauren Tan (a lawyer, writer, tutor), the play follows Mark and Anna – two emotionally guarded souls bound by deep connection and deeper fear. Ivan Gabriel, a Penang-based artist, actor, and curator, makes a special appearance.
As Mark and Anna navigate the tension between closeness and self-preservation, they must confront the emotional walls they've built - can love bridge the gap, or will fear pull them apart?
Us is presented by Big Nose Productions and KLPac.
More info here.
JEMIMAH WEI KL BOOK TOUR
Venue: various KL bookstores
Date: July 19 and 20
Don't miss out on the chance to meet US-based Singaporean author Jemimah Wei as she visits several bookstores across Kuala Lumpur this weekend: Books Kinokuniya KLCC (July 19), Tsutaya Books Pavilion Bukit Jalil (July 19) and MPH Bookstores The Exchange TRX (July 20).
After book tours in the US, Britain and Singapore, Wei is now bringing her newly released debut novel The Original Daughter to Malaysian readers. The book - a project that took the 33-year-old writer over a decade to complete and publish - traces the making and unravelling of family ties against the backdrop of turn-of-the-millennium Singapore.
From hiding childhood secrets in biscuit tins to grappling with millennial coming-of-age anxieties, join Wei as she dives into her debut novel and answers questions from readers.
More info here.
Traditional stage costumes on display at the Chinese Opera exhibition at Muzium Negara, Kuala Lumpur. Photo: The Star/Art Chen
CHINESE OPERA EXHIBITION: AN INTRODUCTION AND A REMEMBRANCE
Venue: Galeri 1, Muzium Negara, Kuala Lumpur
Date: ends Sept 8
The newly opened Chinese Opera Exhibition: An Introduction And A Remembrance at Muzium Negara in Kuala Lumpur takes visitors into the vivid world of traditional Chinese opera – with its legendary tales, striking costumes, delicate props, and timeless music.
This showcase is a collaboration between Muzium Negara and the Pat Woh Association Malaysia, a KL-based group known for preserving and promoting Cantonese opera.
It also how Malaysian Chinese opera draws from the Xiqu tradition, blending stylised acting, singing, graceful movement, and symbolic props.
Visitors can also learn about Malaysia's own opera legends – Siew Chan Wan (1919–2022) and Choo Sau Ying (1927–2003) – whose dedication kept the art form alive for future generations. Choy Him Heong, now 92, continues to be a living link to this enduring tradition.
From ornate headgear to hand-painted backdrops, intricate musical instruments to archival photographs, each display – there are more than 90 exhibits – reminds us how Chinese opera has long served as both entertainment and living heritage for generations of local communities.
More info here.
Visitors view Pangrok Sulap's 'Cahaya Adalah Kehidupan' (2022), a woodcut on blackout fabric, at the Sabahan collective's 'The Sound Of Salience' exhibition at Tali Art Gallery, Petaling Jaya. Photo: The Star/Chan Tak Kong
EXHIBITION: PANGROK SULAP's 'THE SOUND OF SALIENCE'
Venue: Tali Art Gallery, Petaling Jaya
Date: ends July 20
It's the last weekend to catch the exhibition at Tali Art Gallery, showcasing Sabahan collective Pangrok Sulap's bold woodcut works - from pieces dating back to 2017 to a newer series developed in Hong Kong.
Titled The Sound Of Salience , the exhibition presents eight main works and assorted prints that showcase Pangrok Sulap's signature fusion of social commentary and participatory printmaking.
Renowned for using art as a vehicle for social commentary, the collective's works serve as a bridge between communities and pressing issues like climate change, land rights, cultural identity, and sovereignty.
It's been increasingly difficult to catch the group's work in the Klang Valley, as Pangrok Sulap has been actively involved in residencies and exhibitions abroad - most recently with a strong showing at the University of Tennessee in the United States in March, and a community art festival in Patani, southern Thailand last month.
Formed in 2010, Pangrok Sulap is made up of artists, musicians, printmakers, and activists.
Free admission exhibition.
More info here.
Lyne Ismail at her painterly debut exhibition 'Cat Town: Energy, Matter, And The Art Of Becoming' at Temu House, Petaling Jaya. Photo: The Star/Azman Ghani
EXHIBITION: LYNE ISMAIL'S 'CAT TOWN: ENERGY, MATTER, AND THE ART OF BECOMING'
Venue: Temu House, Petaling Jaya
Date: ends July 27
Cat Town: Energy, Matter And The Art Of Becoming brings science and art into thoughtful, immersive dialogue. Visual artist, material scientist, and academic Lyne Ismail invites viewers to explore abstraction, sensory perception, and expansive ideas through the lens of resonance and transformation.
On view is a new series of large abstract paintings alongside a live cymatic installation, where water responds to sound and vibration by forming intricate, mandala-like patterns. By making resonance visible, Lyne encourages viewers to feel their way into meaning, rather than decode it intellectually.
The exhibition also expands on her book Musings Of The Spring Water, launching in tandem with the show. Together, they offer a sensory and reflective journey into energy, intuition, and the act of becoming.
More info here.