NO MAN’S LAND by Oh! Open House

C42 Admin — Thu, 17 Mar 2016 09:08:10 +0000

“No Man’s Land”

Reviewer: Jorah Yu
Performance: 30 January 2016

First thing’s first, this is not an experience I enjoyed … completely.

After I get to the appointed location, slowly, one by one, we enter and are instructed to snoop around, going through old articles of all sorts, though we’re not allowed to physically touch anything. Fear of breaking belongings from the organisers, I assume, though that does make it feel less personal as my hands hover over relics that were not of this time.

Perhaps this was the intended effect?

We’re walking, walking, walking, and we end up in a truck that’s colder than Snow City.

Confusion; whatever the meaning, the significance of this situation inside a roving refrigerator does not induce any meditative trance where I can find meaning and relevance. All I know is that the temperature is chilly and the sound of a roaring engine right next to my ear is very much painful.

This is something I will not wish on my enemy.

We are eventually led to another shop house and individual characters that are all loosely linked to each other greet us separately. Every unique personality begin regurgitating their own stories and confronting us with questions that we don’t want to think about on a daily basis. Some of these questions find us quiet and unspeaking. These include questions on what it is like to be Singaporean, and to consider what it is like to be a Singaporean living in Old Joo Chiat, and present day Joo Chiat.

Now, I am not a deeply philosophical person, and there are many things that can be added to improve what I have endured for an hour and forty-five minutes. But the questions do bring their points across.

Though not a full success, the questions provoke some form of interrogation within oneself. You do think of Singapore, back then, and of those people who existed in those days, standing on the pivoting point of history and feeling so utterly insecure and terrified for their futures – gone.

No Man’s Land has planted many questions in my head. Regardless of its many experimental shortcomings, it is a commendable effort and I believe, a step forward in its contemporary ways of drawing attention to the history of Singapore.

Do you have an opinion or comment about this post? Email us at info@centre42.sg.

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION

NO MAN’S LAND by Oh! Open House
21 – 24, 29 – 31 January 2016
14, 21, 28 February 2016
6, 13, 20, 27 March
3, 10 April
Joo Chiat

ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Jorah Yu is currently pursuing a Diploma in Technical and Production Management at Lasalle College of The Arts, and is an avid lover of Theatre, Life, Travels and Food.

NO MAN’S LAND by Oh! Open House

Eugene — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 08:17:02 +0000

“Secret struggles and a lost sea”

Reviewer: Teo Dawn
Performance: 24 January 2016

Priding themselves in giving the immersive theatre experience and inspired by last year’s art walk, Oh! Open House presents a show in Joo Chiat as part of the Singapore Art Week.

No Man’s Land is a site-specific performance directed by Alan Oei. This happening brings people into private and personal spaces to uncover the history of the land one stands on.

Crossing time and space, geographical and historical boundaries, the hour and 45 minutes long performance is engaging and a treat to the senses. It is a narrative trail made up of a mix of both fact and fiction – constructing and reconstructing the then and now.

There is a sense of exclusivity and intimacy with the audience from the beginning to the end.

The show begins right from the revealing of the location, which has been completed only a week before the actual date. From then, it establishes a connection between the audience and the performance itself, as well as suspense. The establishment of this relationship fashions the elusive nature of the atmosphere, and makes the audience want to know more.

The start and end points are different as well – expanding the theatre beyond the three confined spaces audiences are expected to travail. From sterile homes to travelling in the back of a truck, the atmospheres of each have subtle differences and characteristics.

All this spark an interest in discovery, and it does not disappoint.

With four characters – real or not, appearing one after another in different rooms, stories are exchanged and questions are asked. The most interesting is the migrant worker. Revealing shocking statistics about a plight that not many Singaporeans may know about, he also poses questions to the audience members – engaging them and essentially, making them part of the on-going conversation.

There are instances where questions provoke uneasiness and awkwardness but I feel it is interesting to listen to how politically correct we are and that we can be as ugly as what the script suggests. The discomfort is astonishing, and the honesty in the air is liberating.

Even though one may leave the show right at the end with no concrete answer, it is an experience that challenges and shows the beauty of the Joo Chiat spirit – in the forms of people, architecture and even desire.

Do you have an opinion or comment about this post? Email us at info@centre42.sg.

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION

NO MAN’S LAND by Oh! Open House
21 – 24, 29 – 31 January 2016
14, 21, 28 February 2016
6, 13, 20, 27 March
3, 10 April
Joo Chiat

ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Teo Dawn is currently a student with the Intercultural Theatre Institute. She has been in theatre since the age of 14, working on theatre productions as an actress and as a stage manager. Dawn is also a writer with Poached Magazine, PopSpoken as well as Scene.SG.

Centre 42 » No Man’s Land

NO MAN’S LAND by Oh! Open House

“No Man’s Land”

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION

ABOUT THE REVIEWER

NO MAN’S LAND by Oh! Open House

“Secret struggles and a lost sea”

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION

ABOUT THE REVIEWER