PUBLISHED July 22nd, 2014 04:00 pm | UPDATED March 28th, 2016 10:10 am
Mina Kaye is no stranger to the Singapore theatre scene. She has starred in over sixteen theatre productions in Singapore in the last two years, including the title role in Pangdemonium’s hit production – The Rise and Fall of Little Voice in May this year. Mina is getting ready to leave Singapore to pursue a Masters In Fine Art (MFA) at the prestigious Boston Conservatory in the USA. Before she takes her leave of Singapore, Mina Kaye will be performing in her one-woman cabaret show – The Mina Kaye Show – for one night only on Saturday, 2 August 2014.
Mina will be presenting a mash up of musical show tunes from the various productions she has starred in, a medley of diva impersonations (selections from The Rise and Fall of Little Voice and many more) and musical performances with special guest performers.
Be prepared to be ‘razzled-dazzled’ by Mina’s powerful not-so-little voice as she takes you through a night of merry music making. Mina will be accompanied by Music Director Bang Wenfu. This one-night-only show is Mina’s farewell fundraising concert before she leaves for Boston. It promises to be an evening of great entertainment, in support of a good cause – don’t miss it!
The Mina Kaye Show – Saturday, 2 August 2014 at 7pm at TAB, #02-29, 442 Orchard Road, Orchard Hotel, Singapore 238879
Tickets cost $30 and are available at http://www.ticketmash.com.sg/minakaye
City Nomads had a chance to catch up with Mina Kaye and find out more about her one-woman show:
How did the idea for The Mina Kaye Show come about?
Grad school is crazy expensive so I had come up with different ways to raise funds besides just applying for scholarships and study grants. I started it out with a crowd-funding project where people can pledge an amount and get some perks in return, such as homemade cupcakes baked by me, a social media shout out, tickets to The Rise and Fall of Little Voice (generously sponsored by Pangdemonium during the run), as well as tickets to The Mina Kaye Show! I thought would be nice to put on a little concert for the people who have so generously contributed to my grad school fund and for believing in my dreams!
We are sorry to lose such a wonderfully talented performer. What are you looking forward to at the Boston Conservatory?
“To lose” is too harsh! Singapore will always have a special place in my heart. It’s where I made my professional stage debut and it’s where everything started! Everyone in the Singapore theatre industry has been so supportive and the opportunity I have had here has been beyond incredible! But I’m pretty excited to be going back to school again! I miss the vigorous training, the drive, and the healthy competition to be an even better triple-threat performer! Being immersed in a highly acclaimed performing arts school like The Boston Conservatory that’s recognised for its large number of alumni working on Broadway is not only a privilege, but an honor! It’s a two-year masters program, including one intensive summer semester, so basically I will be in school for two whole years straight if all goes well! Right now I only have enough funds to complete one academic year, so I’m hoping I can find even more ways to raise the rest of the funds for my second year.
What will you miss most?
I will definitely miss all my Singapore friends! I’ll miss the incredible Pangdemonium team, my amazing Dream Academy family, my friends from LASALLE, and I’ll definitely miss doing shows back to back! I have been very fortunate to be working continuously in the past couple of years, and I will definitely miss working!
Which were your favourite productions and roles in Singapore?
I’d have to say the role of Little Voice in The Rise and Fall of Little Voice! It was my first time ever playing a title role. Despite being crazy challenging, and not just mentally, emotionally, and physically, it was vocally challenging to impersonate some very iconic divas! But it was through that process that I discovered that I could impersonate even more divas, which I will be doing in my show! 🙂
Are you planning to return to Singapore one day?
If I get offered a role, of course I’ll be back! I hope people will still remember me when I do come back though!
Mina – we wish you all the best in Boston!