“No Mistakes in the Union of Traditional and Contemporary”

Reviewer: Yong Yoke Kay
Performance: 8 March 2019

Upon entering the theatre, one is immediately drawn to the puppets lined up neatly on both sides of the stage. This closely mimics the format of the traditional puppet stage, where the puppets and puppeteers on standby are visible to the audience. It is the first glimpse of how Paper Monkey Theatre mindfully retains elements of the traditional art form for the proscenium stage.

Marketed as a pantomime, Romance of Mistakes is indeed entertaining. Ninety minutes fly by in this comedy of errors, as villain is mistaken for lover, bride for groom, and victim for assailant. Much of the humour comes from the flustered servants, Chun Lan (puppeteer Shirley Sim), and Servant Cai (puppeteer Xavier Kang), who jump to conclusions in their haste to solve problems.

Despite the absurd plot, the play manages to subtly raise some big questions about love: What is love? How much does it take to fall in and out of love? Can love transcend external appearance and gender?

As the series of unfortunate mix-ups unfolds, the Taiwanese handcrafted puppets come to life, and the ingenuity of director-scriptwriter Benjamin Ho and music composer Liong Kit Yeng become apparent. It is not easy to balance a traditional art form with the contemporary stage and audience, but Romance of Mistakes nailed this tricky unification. The elements of traditional Chinese percussion work well with western instruments, while the script incorporates both Chinese language variations from different eras and Singlish, which makes it more accessible to everyone.

The only gripe is the sometimes muffled voices of the actors during transitions from lines to song. The playback overpowers the actors’ voices, resulting in some lines being inaudible. A better balance of sound would have made the whole show more enjoyable.

It is also a pity the performance was not too well attended, which did not do justice to the heart work put into the production. One hopes that Romance of Mistakes will be restaged some time, as Paper Monkey Theatre has once again proved the company’s ability to keep the traditional art form of Chinese puppetry relevant and accessible to a contemporary audience.

“More doll playing needed.”

Reviewer: Christian W. Huber
Performance: 10 March 2017

“We play with dolls. In other words, we animate in-animated objects,” says Paper Monkey Theatre, whose unique selling point is puppetry. The company is also dedicated to engaging the community at large in an interactive manner, by promoting and nurturing their interest in Asian stories of adventure fantasy and mystery with it. The latest result of this mission is a no frills, formulaic, extended school assembly staging of The Fearful King, which subtly touches on the slippery slope of the death penalty.

The play is simply staged, with five performers that narrate and act out the story of the Fearful King with heart and a lot of zest. Along with some songs (very Disney-inspired) and interactive participation with the audience to make sure no one is snoozing or playing with their smart phones, it is the puppet sequences that truly engage, and make the production less arduous!

The audience – comprising the very young (as a fun activity to watch before their holidays) to the senior citizens (out for an event to while away their time) – witnesses a performance that focuses on themes of overcoming diverse cultural differences, and triumphing over discrimination and prejudice.

With a subtle message that death is not the solution to solve all crimes, the piece is admirably staged.

But while this reviewer was looking forward to something magical, he cannot but feel a little disappointed with the lack of puppet-time on stage. With the simplicity of the puppets’ actions – with narration, music and lights – creating a very magical and lively experience for the audience, the script only allows them to be on the stage for key moments. Aside from those, the audience has to wait patiently to see them in between plodding dialogue from the performers.

The puppets – which vary from life-size ones to the traditional Wayang Kulit – are beautiful, and make a wonderful presence on stage when they do appear. But the 60-minute piece could have been shortened by at least ten to 15 minutes, with less (or no) interaction with the audience.

Paper Monkey Theatre has been around for nine years, and as The Fearful King is the follow up to The Magic Lantern – the company’s nominated children’s production at this year’s Straits Times Life! Theatre Awards – this reviewer expects more. Admittedly, it’s a small budget show with a lack of awareness (e.g. limited to simple social media plugs, no programs, little credit of the performers or creative team, etc.). Still, it is overall a disappointing theatre experience.

When another puppet theatre company (formerly a unit of Kuo Pao Kun’s The Theatre Practice set up in 1996) made an artistic overhaul in 2004 to not only focus puppetry for children but adults as well, its repertoire of works has evolved positively.

Perhaps it is time for Paper Monkey Theatre to relook its artistic objectives, whilst staying true to its values too.