Tuesday, February 26, 2013

'Dek Phiset' :: เด็กพิเศษ


Watched a couple of plays in the city, and one stood out. Written by Napak Tricharoendej and directed by Rachaya Limpiyachart, 'Dek Phiset' เด็กพิเศษ (the title literally translates into 'special child') doesn't touch so much on the innovation of the bent aluminium clothes hanger at precisely 6 degrees by 14-year-old Pharon, but puts forth the human quotient in presenting how the family, especially his mother Suda, has been dealing with his autism.

Glad that there were English surtitles, although after a while, I simply gave up trying to match the written words to the spoken and all that was happening on stage. I understood the language fine. This is a contemporary play using modern expressions of the language, so there wasn't a dire need to cling on to the subtitles for every word. There's a twist in the show; not sure if this play will travel out of the country, so I'm going to spill the spoilers.

Thought this play might work best in a black box. But the venue this round is an auditorium. Not too bad. In a talkshow style, we're the audience, no matter what. We still see the mother Suda appearing on the talkshow, being interviewed by the host who asked her pointed questions which she avoided, till the emotions got better of her, and she finally painted the true picture of family life and all that really happened. Towards the end, the audience realized that Suda had been arrested for child neglect and abuse, and was permitted time to appear on this talkshow. The miracle and scientific genius of this much-sought-after invention of the clothes hanger bent at precisely 6-degrees was a result of how Suda had pressed it to beat Pharon, who was autistic and couldn't exactly express his feelings. He played with hangers as a means to communicate with his mother. The mother had hated her life, and how her child had turned out, denying that he was a special-needs child and hence denying him the professional treatment necessary.

Excellent acting. It's a commentary and also a social awareness message to the society to be more understanding of children with special needs. The playwright herself sought inspiration for this play based on her now-deceased autistic brother. First staged in 2010, the re-staging is even better, it seems, with most of the actors rehashing their roles with a more experienced eye. A sombre play somewhat, but it was a great evening.

No comments: