Friday May 25, 2007
Spoofing musicals
Broadway Parodies Lah! is a string of musical spoofs, strung the Malaysian way.
By SHEELA CHANDRAN
sheelac@thestar.com.my
WHAT happens when you set American playwright Gerard Alessandrini’s Forbidden Broadway in Malaysia? Well, you’d get Broadway Parodies Lah! (BPL), a localised version of the popular musical parody revue from Broadway.
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Broadway Parodies Lah! director Brian McIntyre insists that he didn’t have any agenda when rewording the lyrics of popular musicals, other than to entertain. |
The two-and-a-half hour musical is written and directed by Englishman Brian McIntyre. The songs are based on his observations of Malaysia, its people and their lifestyles. Songs featured on BPL are from popular musicals like My Fair Lady, Oliver!, Surrey with the Fringe on Top and The Sound of Music. To make it really hilarious, McIntyre has cleverly tweaked the songs and set them in a Malaysian context.
“I’ve been living in Malaysia for 18 years and have come to realise that this beautiful country has so much to offer. It is a country with warm people, delicious food, diverse cultures and wondrous sights to offer. We have taken fantastic tunes and played around with the lyrics.
“I don’t have any agenda in rewording these songs. They are meant to entertain – it’s my wish to see the audience in stitches,” said McIntyre.
Food Glorious Food (from Oliver!) is all about delicious Malaysian dishes like laksa, kuay teow and spicy curries. Hello Datin (localised version of Hello Dolly) is about women who undergo plastic surgery to improve their appearance.
I’m Off to Genting in the Morning (tweaked from My Fair Lady) is about Malaysians who love to spend their weekends at Genting Highlands, a popular entertainment locale in Pahang.
Meanwhile, We Must Play Golf All Night (remastered from My Fair Lady) is about businessmen who head off to the golf course to enlarge their contact lists, with hopes of clinching business deals. For My Favourite Things (from The Sound of Music), McIntyre touches on his affinity for Malaysia – blue skies, rich traditions and humorous people.
“What I’ve done is an attempt to create a lyrical form in the spirit of works by cartoonist C.W. Kee’s It's a Durian Life and Reggie Lee’s Made in Malaysia,” said McIntyre, a co-founding member of Kuala Lumpur-based a cappella group Six2Eight.
He has acted in productions such as A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, The Fantasticks, Storyteller, The Mikado and Stand Up and Deliver.
BPL is McIntyre’s first stab at writing and directing a musical. The show’s cast includes Joanne Kam, Doreen Tang, Kyra Dani, Sabrina Hassan, Cheryl Tan, Douglas Lim, Glamorique Arshad and Ivan Choong. Computer-sequenced music, as well as live piano accompaniment, will back the singers, who will sport costumes created by Dominique Devorsine.
McIntyre said: “It’s a strong production, given the talent and producers’ experience. There’s also great strength in the choreography. The ticket pricing has been reduced to help encourage a wider audience to come and appreciate this style of entertainment.”
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