SIFA 2019 :: 'Dionysus'

I was invited to dance-theater piece 'Dionysus', the opening performance of the Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA). I confess that I didn't buy a ticket for this because dancing and talking and singing all in one performance isn't my kind of show. However, the friends coerced me to attend. "Broaden your horizons!" They said. 😐

Adapted from the story of Euripides's Greek tragedy 'The Bacchae', acclaimed director Tadashi Suzuki weaved dance and languages together in the 75-minute 'Dionysus'—a collaboration between Suzuki Company of TOGA and Bumi Purnati Indonesia. The music was led by Indonesian traditional instruments with pieces composed by Midori Takada.

The actors (11 Indonesians, 2 Japanese and 1 Chinese) spoke in Japanese, Mandarin and Javanese, and I think five other Indonesian languages/dialects of Batak, Rejang, Madura, Manado and Sundanese. The rigorous training of the famous Suzuki method of acting paid off for all the actors. The movements were slow and deliberate, almost emulating the way kabuki and Noh actors move, along with the athletic elegance of silat practitioners. The end result is a creepy, and intentional contemporary interpretation that showcased exactly what a horrifying tragedy the Greek story is.

Imho, Victoria Theatre isn't the best venue for this performance. Carnage, religious devotion to the point of madness, and war. I think the October 2018 show in Yogyakarta at the Prambanan Temple was perfect, with silhouettes of the temples lending it the exact vibes that were missing from the Singapore performance. However, if 'Dionysus' is staged outdoors in Singapore in the evening, I shudder to think of how uncomfortable the searing heat and crazy humidity will be for the actors and the audiences.