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.

Off Centre by Haresh Sharma

12 participants turned up for Open Roads on Saturday 24 July 2010 to discuss Haresh Sharma's Off Centre. We were fortunate to have the playwright himself join us for a conversation at the end of the session.

The next meeting for Open Roads will be on 21 Aug 2010, 2pm - 4pm, Substation Classroom 1 and we will be looking at Jean Tay's Everything But The Brain. A review of the 2007 production of the play can be found here.

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

(There will not be a session of Open Roads on 7 Aug 2010 due to the National Day weekend)

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?

Off Centre by Haresh Sharma

Here are four reviews of Off Centre productions that you might be interested to take a look at in advance of our second Open Roads session on 24 July 2010:

1. The Straits Times - original 1993 production

2. The Straits Times - 2007 production

3. The Business Times - 2007 production

4. The Flying Inkpot - 2007 production

Reading Schedule from 24 July 2010 to 27 Nov 2010

We had a group of 13 participants at the first Open Roads session this afternoon (10 July 2010) to discuss Stella Kon's Emily of Emerald Hill and I'm happy to say that the feedback was overwhelmingly positive:

Productive, energetic discussion - loved how much we managed to cover. Time actually seemed too short. Would like to come for more.

Love that it's small and intimate. Love that it's participative and encouraging. Might have to extend beyond 2 hours.

Enriching, thought-provoking, gained some different views. Good session.

Very energizing session - inspired me to really look into reading the oeuvre of Singaporean plays.

We've also settled on the reading schedule for the next nine sessions:

24 July: Off-Centre (Haresh Sharma)
No session on 7 Aug
21 Aug: Everything But The Brain (Jean Tay)
4 Sep: Those Who Can't, Teach 2010 (Haresh Sharma)
18 Sep: The Coffin is too Big for the Hole and No Parking on Odd Days (Kuo Pao Kun)
2 Oct: Three Fat Virgins Unassembled (Ovidia Yu) - available in the collection Fat Virgins, Fast Cars and Asian Values
16 Oct: Homesick (Alfian Sa'at) - available in the collection Alfian Sa'at: Collected Plays One
30 Oct: P.I.E. (Chong Tze Chien) - available in the collection P.I.E. to Spoilt
13 Nov: Mergers and Accusations (Eleanor Wong) - available in the collection Invitation to Treat
27 Nov: Nothing (Natalie Hennedige) - availability to be confirmed

**Please note the change in date for the Kuo Pao Kun double-bill**

Please drop us a line at admin@inkpotreviews.com if you would like to register for any of the sessions.

All sessions are $5 each - Saturday (fortnightly except 7 Aug), 2pm - 4pm, Substation Classroom 1.