Off Centre by Haresh Sharma

As per our reading schedule, we will be looking at Off Centre by Haresh Sharma for our second Open Roads reading club session on Sat 24 July 2010, 2pm, The Substation Classroom 1. We still have a few vacancies left - email us at admin@inkpotreviews.com to register. (More information about Open Roads is in our first post below - 11 Jun 2010)

The idea behind a reading club is to allow a free-flow of ideas to be shared but, as with our first session, here are some things you might want to think about before the session while reading the play:

1. What are the issues surrounding the topic of mental illness raised in Off Centre? How are these connected – if at all - to the play’s larger commentary about other aspects of Singapore society?

2. To which character – Vinod or Salmoa - are you more drawn? Which character’s journey resonates more powerfully with you?

3. How does your emotional response to Off Centre change at different points of the play? Which specific lines and scenes do you find particularly memorable?

4. How do you feel about the supporting characters such as Emily, Razali, Charlie, Denise and especially Mak? What do they contribute to the play?

5. How do you feel about the unconventional structure of the play, specifically the use of a narrator and the fact that the play's timeline is non-linear? What is your reaction to the way the play opens and closes?

6. To what extent do you think Off Centre is a uniquely Singaporean play?

7. To what extent do you think someone reading or watching the play today will have a different experience from someone in the early 1990s when the play was first written and performed?

8. Why do you think Off Centre was selected as the first local play to be used as an N and O level Literature text in Singapore?