Past Caring (2009)

Title: Past Caring

Dates: 25th February 2009 – 5th March 2009
Venue: The Necessary Stage Black Box
Type of Production: Multidisciplinary Theatre Production
Country of Production: Singapore / Australia
Year of Production: 2009

Presented by The Necessary Stage (Singapore) and Tony Yap Company (Melbourne, Australia)

 

Production Credits:

Director – Alvin Tan
Playwright – Haresh Sharma
Choreographer – Tony Yap

Set Designer – Vincent Lim
Lighting Designer – Mac Chan
Multimedia Designers – Loo Zihan, Kim Lawier
Musical Materials – Madeleine Flynn, Tim Humphrey

Cast – Sukania Venugopal, Siti Khalijah, LeRoy Parsons, Glynis Angell, Tony Yap

Production Stage Manager – Joanna Goh
Assistant Production Stage Manager – Jean Zhang
Rehearsal Assistant, Sound Operator – Caleb Lee
Lighting Operator – Jonathan Sin
Video Operator – Azyati Binte Alias
Wardrobe Coordinator – Molizah Mohd Mohter
Stage Crew – Magdalene Teo
Instrumentation and Voiceovers – The Suitcase Royale

 

Synopsis:

Inspired by the title of a poem by Australian writer Henry Lawson, Past Caring is an inter-disciplinary theatrical collaboration involving artists from Singapore and Australia.

Urgent issues of adoption, displacement, family, land and journey will be weaved together into a complex and contemporary presentation of text, music, multimedia and movement.

In a year-long process, the project involved artists making field trips, conducting interviews and creating and presenting nascent works in Singapore and Melbourne.

 

Reviews:

“Past Caring manages to say very much with the barest of words. It skims through huge canvases of material, leaping lightly across themes such as race, migration policies, indigenous people and tourism…… Past Caring is a melodic, intelligent piece of work which fed this reviewer’s head and heart.”

- Tara Tan, The Straits Times, Life!

“Past Caring’s admirable political sentiments are told with quite a capable cast. Certain points of the play where a powerful performance is accompanied by an interesting visual dynamic – whether through lighting, multimedia or the constantly changing set design – are visually striking”

- Amansa De Guzman, The Business Times

“Despite the complexity of material and number of interesting characters, nothing feels forced in this multi-media production and everything is in its right place…… In exploring the ties that bind two countries, Past Caring succeeds in its quiet, gentle ways.”

- Mayo Martin, Today

“Tan and Sharma have honed their skill to such a degree that one knows that anything they make will be of a certain standard, and the TNS ethos is such that one can be certain the issues they address are important and relevant. Flaws aside, this is a play that examines the relationship between Singapore and Australia in a more intimate and insightful manner than any other play by another theatre company here could.”

– Ng Yi Sheng, The Flying Inkpot Theatre Reviews

Production Photos: (provided by TNS)