Wednesday, August 18, 2010

THE PSO IS COMING TO TOWN


PERAK ACADEMY
presents

PSO.JPG

Thursday, 16 September 2010

Venue: Ballroom, Syuen Hotel, Greentown, Ipoh

Dinner starts at 7.30 pm

Concert starts at 8.30 pm

Programme

The programme for the 80 members orchestra includes classical music by Mozart, Dvorak and Verdi as well as selections from popular musicals such as “Cats” and “Phantom of the Opera”. There will also be Yao tribal music and traditional Malay folksongs with orchestral arrangements. David Ngim (tenor) and Serene Yoon (soprano) will sing favourites from operas by Verdi.

Conductor

The conductor of the orchestra, Mr Woon Wen Kin, is the most experienced symphony orchestra conductor in Malaysia. He founded the Penang Symphony Society in 1981 and serves as the resident conductor and music director.

International Recognition

He has led the orchestra for performances in Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, Australia, Japan and China. Mr Woon has also performed with orchestras in the US and China, where he was a guest conductor with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra.

Seats are available at:-

RM60/= per person - with dinner and numbered seats

RM30/= per person - without dinner and free sitting

RM20/= per person - for students (without dinner and free sitting)

* Premium seats are also available.

To avoid disappointment, please contact PSPA 05-5487814 for Reservations

Friday, August 13, 2010

AUDITIONS “MESSAGE OF LOVE AND INSPIRATION”


Perak Society of Performing Arts (PSPA) will be holding auditions for the PSPA Singers’ concert, “Message of Love and Inspiration”. The performances are scheduled for end of November/beginning December, 2010.

Calling singers for auditions:

Date: Wednesday, 18 & 25 August 2010

Time: 8.15pm

Venue: City Ballet

40B, Persiaran Greentown No.1,

Greentown Business Centre,

30450 Ipoh, Perak Darul Ridzuan

Audition requirements:

New Voices:-

New voices are requested to come for auditions and are required to prepare a song and bring along your music score.

Kindly contact the PSPA office 05-5487814 for the Auditions.

Singers:-

Singers who have participated in past PSPA productions are invited to participate and need not come for auditions.

Please contact Sara at the PSPA office 05-5487814 to Register.

Monday, August 2, 2010

PERAK'S VERY OWN WIND ORCHESTRA

The Kinta Valley Wind Orchestra (KVWO) made its debut in Ipoh on 4 July 2010. Held at the Syuen Hotel before an audience of more than a thousand, the concert delighted both young and old with a wide musical repertoire ranging from pop to jazz to classical, infused in a charming blend of east and west.

The KVWO was made possible by its founder, Datuk K.K. Lim who had a passion for the performing arts and envisioned Perak having a philharmonic orchestra. Bringing in the well-known Eugene Pook as musical director and conductor was a logical step. Included in the orchestra were professional and amateur musicians. The months of putting together an orchestra, preparations and rehearsals paid off when the KVWO took Perak by storm with its outstanding performances.

Eugene Pook with Doreen Kam

The concert also showcased the prowess of individual performers like Joost Flach who fascinated all with his oboe recital, Philip Boey who played a haunting melody on his Gu Zheng while Foo Cheong Lin, a saxophonist, was inspiring with his flawless rendition of The way we were. Also featured were two vocalists, the elegant Estee Pook, singing in Chinese and Malay (Bukan cinta biasa and a Teresa Teng medley) and the suave Alan Low who mesmerised the audience with a Chinese number and a smooth delivery of Can’t take my eyes off you.

Alan Low with Doreen Kam

There was satisfaction all round at the end of the concert. The KVWO concert may be the first of its kind for Perak but it certainly won’t be the last.

REPORT ON THE JUNIOR ASSOCIATE CONFERENCE




“All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players”

These words from Shakespeare’s As You Like It rang true literally for forty young participants who attended a two-day workshop, from 19-20 June 2010, organised by Perak Society of Performing Arts (PSPA) Junior Associate Conference at Taman Budaya, Ipoh. The participants were introduced to the theatre and the world of stage production in a number of workshop sessions with ‘Exploring Stage and Theatre’ as the main theme. These young people whose ages range from 12-18 and were from schools around Ipoh, were given the opportunity to draw on their creativity and inherent talent in order to realise their potential as stage actors and actresses.

On hand to guide them were facilitators with vast experience in the performing arts. Rosalina Ooi, Jeya Jeyaratnam, Chantelle-Shakila Tiagi, Jeffrey Chew, SylviaWong, Jacqueline Thong, Gerald Goh and Xavier Fong, in their respective sessions, took the participants through their paces, demonstrating how action, movement, voice, song etc. were fundamental to acting and could take one to great heights as a stage performer.

The conference, overseen by the president of PSPA, Datin Rosalina and the organising chairperson, Doreen Kam, began with an introduction to the theatre by Datin Rosalina. Immediately after that was a ‘Laughter’ session conducted by Jeya who believed that the ‘feel-good effects of laughter’ would help raise energy levels. Through her activities, she taught the participants to laugh at themselves and shed their inhibitions, thus preparing them for what was to come next. Before the session was over, everyone was psyched up and raring to go.

Jeffrey then carried out a session on ‘Exploring with Song’, highlighting how music and song could be an integral aspect of stage performances. The participants clearly enjoyed this session. Chantelle explored ‘Action’ and got the youngsters to understand the significance of movement and action. Sylvia meanwhile got the participants to exercise their vocal cords, with hilarious results. Xavier had ‘stage tips’ for the soon-to-be stage performers, drawing together aspects of imagination, body language and voice projection and demonstrating how these can be exploited for a successful and memorable stage performance.

The intensive two-day workshop culminated in stage presentations by the different age groups who used dance, voice, song and movement to communicate their perception of what ‘Happiness is...’. With merely a couple of hours of rehearsal, it was the moment of truth for the participants when they proved that they were indeed capable of staging fast-paced, highly-charged and enthralling performances. The internal audience of mainly parents were entertained by the riveting presentations.

It was an exciting 2-days for the participants, as evidenced by the laughter and spontaneity during the workshop sessions. Alexander Joseph (13 years) and his brother Adrian (12 years) felt the workshop was fun and enjoyed the new experiences, while Isabelle Leong (17 years) and her friends from MGS were seen giving their all in the activities. Perhaps the question that could be uppermost in everybody’s mind after the workshop is “To be, or not to be (an actor): that is the question:” (Hamlet).


Written by Sandra Rajoo