Latest news with #ChristopherLing
New Straits Times
07-08-2025
- Entertainment
- New Straits Times
#SHOWBIZ: Yayasan Sime Darby Arts Festival wraps up this Saturday at Elmina Lakeside
KUALA LUMPUR: The Yayasan Sime Darby Arts Festival (YSDAF) 2025 is set to conclude its six-month-long celebration of the arts with a grand finale this Saturday (Aug 9) at Elmina Lakeside Mall in Shah Alam. This will be the only evening edition of the festival, running from 4pm to 11pm. Held to mark the festival's 10th anniversary, YSDAF 2025 has already brought vibrant performances to communities across five states and seven cities earlier this year. The event returned to the Klang Valley in June for a three-stop urban tour, visiting KL East Mall and PARC Subang Jaya before its final stop at Elmina Lakeside Mall. Festival-goers can enjoy a fantastic lineup of over 80 free activities and performances, featuring more than 300 artistes. The day will include concerts, workshops, and installations, all open to the public free of charge. Highlights include the Young KL Singers (YKLS) performing 'Spice, Magic and Mystique', a musical journey through Southeast Asian folk songs. They will also offer a sneak peek of their upcoming Coldplay tribute concert, complete with a sing-along session. MyDance Alliance will premiere new site-specific works in their outdoor series, 'Dancing in Place', while Orang Orang Drum Theatre will put a rhythmic spin on a classic fable with 'Berlumba Seperti Arnab'. Two crowd favourites from the Kampung Tour, 'Dollah', a coming-of-age theatre piece, and 'Ceritaku', a poignant monologue series based on real-life stories, will also return. Both are directed by Christopher Ling. On the main stage, singer-songwriter Zee Avi will perform alongside her band, The Good Things, with a night of soulful folk, jazz, and pop. They will be joined by powerhouse live acts Kyoto Protocol and FUGO. A new production, 'DETOUR the Musical', will debut, featuring both deaf and hearing performers on stage together. This pioneering work seamlessly blends spoken word, Malaysian Sign Language, and music.
New Straits Times
17-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New Straits Times
#SHOWBIZ: KLPAC to stage 'Anak-Anak Malik' a local adaptation of 'Bernarda Alba'
KUALA LUMPUR: The classic Spanish play 'The House of Bernarda Alba' is set for an all-Malaysian adaptation, 'Anak-Anak Malik', hitting the stage at the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPAC) from July 24 to 27. Directed by Christopher Ling and adapted by Yusof Bakar, this production features a clever twist: an all-male cast of 10 that Malaysianises Federico García Lorca's original, all-female play. In a statement released yesterday, Ling explained that 'Bernarda Alba', which has previously been staged at KLPAC, is a gripping narrative about the oppressive social norms a matriarch imposes on her five daughters. The original play, written in 1936, depicts a widowed Bernarda Alba exercising absolute control over her five daughters, exploring themes of repression, passion, and conformity. Ling elaborated on the adaptation: "This time, we have a patriarch named Malik who orders his five sons to mourn for 100 days and forbids them from leaving home." "And, as expected, tension slowly builds, resistance ensues, and tragedy strikes," he added. The play will be performed in Malay with English subtitles, featuring a cast including Aidil Rosli, Ammar Aqsya, Aniq Syahmi, Asraf Zulk, Danish Zakwan, Mark Beau De Silva, SaifulWazien, Sudhan Nair, Sunio Rushairi, and Ubai Talib. Performances are at 8pm and 3pm. For further enquiries, please call 018-227 7212.
New Straits Times
25-06-2025
- Entertainment
- New Straits Times
#SHOWBIZ: 'Let Me Go' explores Malaysian youth's dream of making it in Hollywood
KUALA LUMPUR: A new play that tells the story of a young Malaysian's dream of making it big in Hollywood is set to debut in the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPAC), here soon. Directed by Christopher Ling and co-written by Mark Beau de Silva and Dhakshayni Jegatheeswaran, it is Let Me Go, the story of Nira, who has always dreamed of going to Hollywood someday. However, as she prepares to leave Malaysia, family drama erupts between her panicked mother, diplomatic father, and nosy aunt. As Nira reflects on the hurdles of local fame and global ambition, she is torn between the life she knows and the future she craves. This heartwarming, hilarious, and at times hauntingly real tale about identity, ambition, and the price of chasing stardom asks audiences the question, can a young Malaysian woman truly chase her dream in a world that often tells her not to? Starring Dhakshayni, Lakshmi Ahrunagiry, Perassath, and Tania Ashwini, it is the eighth production practicum under the TUTAS Bachelor of Performing Arts conservatory degree programme. This programme is a three-year conservatory degree programme by The Actors Studio and Taylor's University. An entry by audition only programme, it enables students from Malaysia to learn from award-winning lecturers with hands-on industry experience and full access to KLPAC's facilities. The play will be staged at 8pm and 3pm on July 12 and 13.
