Those Who Can't, Teach (2010) by Haresh Sharma

On Saturday 4 Sep, we will be looking at Those Who Can't, Teach (2010) by Haresh Sharma for what will be our fourth Open Roads reading club session. We are happy to announce that our special guest for the afternoon is Alvin Tan, Artistic Director of The Necessary Stage.

The fee is $5 and the session will run 2pm - 4pm, Substation Classroom 1. Email us at admin@inkpotreviews.com to register.

Copies of the text (which you should of course have read before the session) are available from public libraries and major bookstores.

Those Who Can't Teach, was first staged by The Necessary Stage in 1990 but the recent Singapore Arts Festival production in May 2010 was a completely new version re-written by the playwright specially for the occasion. It tells the story of Mrs Phua Su Lin and her colleagues and students at the fictitious Marine Parade Secondary School.

Reviews:

1. Singapore Arts Festival Blog
http://singartsfestival.wordpress.com/2010/05/24/those-who-cant-teach-by-the-necessary-stage/

2. Today Online: For Art's Sake!
http://blogs.todayonline.com/forartssake/2010/05/20/singapore-arts-fest-teachers-pest/

3. Just Watch Lah
http://www.justwatchlah.com/2010/05/those-who-cant-teach-by-necessary-stage_20.html

Here are some things you might want to think about before the session:

1. There are many characters featured in the play. Whose story did you find yourself most attracted to? Were there characters that you struggled with? Did you feel that the play handled the large cast of characters well?

2. "Those Who Can't, Teach is a play about the passion of one's calling ... do we know what the price of dedication is today?" - director Alvin Tan. To what extent do you agree that this is the main focus of the play?

3. Do you feel that the play is an accurate representation of the challenges faced by teachers and students today? Is that important to the success of the play?

4. What do you think the purpose of education is? What about the purpose of a school? Is it different? What do you think the role of a teacher is? Do your views change depending on whether you are a student, teacher or parent?

5. What do you think is the significance of the title of the play?

6. What are your memories of school? Would you ever consider being a teacher?

Everything but the Brain by Jean Tay

Our Open Roads session this afternoon had a very special guest, playwright Jean Tay herself, who joined us for an informal question and answer session at the end of the discussion.






The next meeting for Open Roads will be on 4 Sep 2010, 2pm - 4pm, Substation Classroom 1 and we will be looking at Haresh Sharma's Those Who Can't, Teach (2010) which was staged earlier this year as part of the Singapore Arts Festival.

To register, email us at admin@inkpotreviews.com. The fee is $5 which you can pay on the day itself.

Everything but the Brain by Jean Tay

As planned, we will be looking at Everything but the Brain by Jean Tay for our third Open Roads reading club session on Sat 21 Aug 2010, 2pm, The Substation Classroom 1. We are happy to announce that the playwright has kindly agreed to join us on the day for the last part of our discussion. 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).

Everything But The Brain is about a Physics teacher who, upon learning that her father is dying, devises a plan to turn back time, using her knowledge of the Theory of Relativity. The play won the Life! Theatre Award of Best Script in 2006 and is marked by its poignancy, humour and spirit.

"Jean's adroit handling of themes, from the origins of genius to gene heritage and the tyranny of Time, makes Everything but the Brain one of the best things seen on stage here in a while" - The Straits Times

"One of the most thoughtfully constructed shows to come out of Singapore in recent times." - The Business Times.

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

1. "I believe that Everything but the Brain is fundamentally about the love and desperation of a daughter who does everything she can to keep her father alive" - Jean Tay. To what extent do you agree with this?

2. How do you feel the device of the chorus impacts on the structure of the play? If you were directing Everything but the Brain, how would you stage the shifts in time and present the three bears onstage?

3. How succesfully do you think the playwright employs scientific theory and fairytales to frame the action of the play? How do they enhance our understanding of the play's themes?

A Flying Inkpot review of the 2007 production of the play by ACTION Theatre can be found here.