PUBLISHED November 13th, 2014 04:00 pm | UPDATED July 25th, 2024 03:16 pm
This November, Checkpoint Theatre brings a new work by up and coming playwright, Joel Tan, to life. The Way We Go, directed by Claire Wong, examines the intricacies and expressions of love beyond the usual romantic genre, such as the love for learning, life and language; the love between friends and kindred spirits; even the love for oneself.
The Story
A sensitive meditation on growing up and growing old, The Way We Go follows Agatha Mao, former principal of the fictional Convent of Our Lady of Lourdes, as she experiences the greatest loves of her life – Edmund, her intellectual partner and Violet, her best friend. Sprawling across 12 years, their story also brings into relief the fraught relationship of former students Lee and Gillian, who come to ask the same questions as their elders: What are the costs of love? Why do people need each other? What’s at stake when we reach out?
Joel Tan’s mastery of storytelling deftly captures love in all its simplicity and complexity. This production also marks the return of LA-based actress Lydia Look to the Singapore stage; her last performance was in Action Theatre’s Pillow Talk 13 years ago. The Way We Go is also the debut of well-known Malaysian actor Patrick Teoh and stars Neo Swee Lin, Julie Wee, and Chng Xin Xuan.
We Chat with Joel Tan and Claire Wong
Having made his debut at the 2011 Man Singapore Theatre Festival with Wild Rice’s production of Family Outing directed by Glen Goei, multi-talented individual Joel Tan is a playwright, director, and performer. Not only does his work crosses genres and styles – he’s done poetry, contemporary drama, dance theatre, pantomime and musical theatre – Joel has worked with both young people’s theatre groups like NUS Stage and written for veteran theatre-makers like Wild Rice (Jack and the Beansprout!, 2013) and The Finger Players (The Next Page, 2014).
We were fortunate to catch Joel Tan and Claire Wong, also Associate Artist and Joint Artistic Director at Checkpoint Theatre respectively, to give us their take on The Way We Go.
Joel, what inspired you to write The Way We Go?
J: The teachers I grew up with at Montfort school; the way they spoke, their love of and facility with language inspired me. It’s an element very much at the heart of this play. I was also intrigued by the idea of a late-life romance and how it might play out against a more youthful, contemporary one.
C: We decided to present The Way We Go because the writing beautifully captures a specific cultural milieu and the linguistic musicality of Singaporeans we all recognize. Imagining the private lives of a headmistress, teachers, and students amidst convent school life – the characters and their experiences of unconventional love and loss – is not often seen on the Singapore stage. The play continues Checkpoint Theatre’s commitment to nurturing and staging strong original plays that capture an authentic slice of Singapore life – theatre with head and heart, honesty and humour.
The synopsis mentions that the play ‘celebrates love in all its simplicity and complexity’ – please tell us more.
J: All five characters wrestle with what it means to love. It’s not just romantic. The play is about people juggling romantic love with the nitty-gritty pressures of getting through life. It looks at how we reconcile total, consuming love of someone else with the selfish love for oneself. All of these complexities emerge from what seems like a simple, primal impulse. Loving shouldn’t be difficult, but it really is.
Claire, what will be your biggest challenge when it comes to directing this play? And what do you think will be the biggest challenge for the cast?
C: This is a naturalistic play with a non-naturalistic structure. The story spans several years with the plot revealed in a series of non-linear flashbacks. There’s fluidity in time and space, much in the way that memories from the past can permeate the present unexpectedly. I’m enjoying the challenge of working with my actors and designers to tell the story in a very nuanced yet simple way.
On one level, the cast has to play their characters at different ages and, in the case of one character, in different states of heath. But really the greatest challenge, and satisfaction, comes from playing characters that are multi-dimensional, complex, and real.
What message would you like the audience to take home with them?
J: I think less than a message, I want the audience to have had a satisfying evening at the theatre: I want them to be entertained but also for them to leave enriched and asking questions about the relationships they have with the people around them.
C: Live urgently. Love urgently.
The Way We Go is running 20-29 November 2014 at the SOTA Studio Theatre, 1 Zubir Said Drive, Singapore 227968. For more information and tickets, see SISTIC.