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The Pink Nanyang: A Casual Review of ‘Drumhouse’
I decided to go to this show because I wanted to see the pink drum.
After settled the ticketing issues, I finally walked into this new, comfortable theatre PJPAC. Soon, the much-anticipated “Drumhouse” started with sequence of texts on the LED screen, and made a virtual but warm greeting to the post-epidemic audience. The audience, regardless of gender, race or age, was instantly well-acquainted, the stage thus was nicely warmed up for the first batch of drummers who came on stage in unordinary black Tang suits and trendy sunglasses. Every subsequent performance is magnificent, because every hidden details are like a cultural treasure, allowing people to freely pick out many historical memories of Nanyang (Southern Sea), from generation to generation. Throughout the performance, the drumbeat presented is sometimes like a dialogue and sometimes like a chant, sometimes like a rap and sometimes like a symphony, and every beat is making people excited. I remember that when the last drumbeat stopped abruptly, I could feel the blood all over my body was rushing up and gathered on my cheeks. The contagiousness of ‘a live show’ is not a fictional concept, and my body verified it again.
As a music layman, I can’t really comment on this large-scale creation, but the creative team showed the greatest sincerity and courage in deconstructing and rebuilding the ‘tradition’, and I was once again impressed by their professionalism. What they play is not just music. What catches my eyes include seasonal drums, Chinese orchestra, gamelan, gordang sambilan, cello, electric guitar, erhu bow, sunglasses, masks, opera headgear, dance, fashion show, LED backdrop, giant human hydrangea, Teowchew repertoire Peach Blossom, Solo, Beijing/Teochew Opera, MakYong, Tangshan costumes, tanjak, chinese quilts… all in Malaysian flavor of course, and also an invisible lion dance and big head Buddha kept flashing in my mind. I seem to see the entanglement of the “past” and the “future” here, and I also see a outlook that Malaysian performing arts should have: openness/letting go. In the eyes of some people, to professionalize an art form, it is necessary to maintain its “pure/orthodox” nature. “Drumhouse” aptly extends this point of view with this idea – mixing. Mix in a way that includes everybody, in a way that everyone can recognise, mix with the Malaysian style. Does a good performance have to have so many elements? No, I think its classic lies in its meticulous capture of the uniqueness, diversity, and inclusiveness of contemporary Malaysian (Chinese) cultural heritage, and perfectly kneading them into the body rhythm, pulses and senses of the performers, onto their tacit understanding and smile… One word: Harmony!
The percussion of the drummers on the stage is undoubtedly professional, and the sound beaten by (dozen of) them was also together and ‘clean’ as if only one person is beating. I suddenly recalled that I once watched a foreign contemporary dance performance and marvelled at their uniform body movements, my dance professor commented that “this is dance communism”, which means that (movement) norms to a certain extent will limit artists’ freedom of consciousness. The performance today by Hands provided me with another interpretation “that may not be”. Working together and living in harmony can be the common survival mentality of Chinese in Nanyang. In fact, it can also include the ideal of paying attention to interests of the whole and serving the nation with tolerance and respect, the required qualities when multiculturalism interacts. The sound of festival drum can sometimes be the main axis and sometimes a supporting role in the show, blending and balancing with other sounds, and forming a unique Nanyang flavor. Perhaps no one can tell what kind of rojak this is like, but it is certain that this is a plate of authentic Malaysian cultural ‘food’ that can be shared to the world, which exquisitely shows the Chineseness/Malaysian-ness, interpreted from Chinese perspective.
In general, the local percussion performances are often presented with the combination of sound (from instruments, vocals/songs/words), visual (body movements, dance, mime, props, sets) and cultural issues (such as identity, customs, environment, etc.) I think this (maybe) is also a form of performing arts that can best depict the culture of Malaysian Chinese. Because of the multiplicity of Malaysian Chinese culture and also because of the breadth and plasticity of Malaysian multiculturalism. “Drumhouse” not only pays tribute to the classics, but also pushes the traditional aesthetics to a new climax on stage. With the advanced lighting equipment of PJPAC, every scene in the Nanyang story seems to be a high-definition mobile photo, which will be framed in the memory of the audience for a long time. Every professional performer on the stage gave their best performance full of rhythm, their playing is powerful and the singing can penetrate. They show us a model of ideal art and moderated my personal concern and hesitation on diluting the red culture.
I think I decided to go to this show because I wanted to see what is made of the new cultural symbol of pink drum. It’s just in time.
