The Star Online: Lifestyle: Arts & Fashion
The Star Online: Lifestyle: Arts & Fashion |
- Kuching homecoming for actor Tony Eusoff
- The sound of music
- Milestone edition of Penang Island Jazz Festival
| Kuching homecoming for actor Tony Eusoff Posted: Sarawakian Tony Eusoff returns to Kuching to play the titular role in P. Ramlee The Musical. THE first time I met Tony Eusoff, he was not himself. He was P. Ramlee and was surrounded by journalists who were persuading him to sing. This P. Ramlee seemed soft-spoken and almost shy, while deflecting – with a certain degree of success – the request to break into song. A few days later, I sat down with Tony for a chat about his role in the award-winning P. Ramlee The Musical that is staged in Kuching, Sarawak, starting today, in conjunction with the state's 50th Independence anniversary celebration. Away from the rehearsal studio, he was just himself – or at the very least, not P. Ramlee. And what a transformation it is! Tony is eloquent, candid, frequently breaks out into hearty laughter, and has an easy ruggedness about him. "I'm working very hard," the 36-year-old says of his demanding role. "I know I look nothing like the man, so this is where makeup has to work its wonders. But for the rest, I'm trying my best to emulate his voice, his way of speaking and his way of singing. He is an exceptional singer and musician, so it's quite a tall order for me. But I'm always up for a good challenge." The Sarawakian has proved himself quite the versatile actor, taking on varied roles in different theatre productions, including La Cage Aux Folles (2012), The Secret Life Of Nora (2011), Rose Rose I Love You (2007) and Tunku The Musical (2007). He also dabbles in movies, TV shows and commercials. But perhaps a lesser-known fact is that before his foray into the world of entertainment, he was an architect. "For all of 10 months," he relates. "I did architecture in university, came out to work, and then went on to sales and marketing. I was even a cabin crew member for seven months!" Tony's break into TV commercials was completely accidental. While having lunch at a mamak stall, he was approached by a casting agent who was looking for someone to star in a TV commercial. "I went upstairs to the casting house, did my casting tape, and a few days later, I got a call saying that I got the job. I didn't have any acting experience. I didn't even know what 'casting' meant. The only kind of casting I knew was iron casting," he relates with a chuckle. He ended up doing about a dozen commercials in the span of six months. "I was representing all kinds of products, left, right and centre. Not exactly the smartest thing to do. But I started from scratch, and it took me a good two to three years to learn enough about production to get by. It was really tough, but it was fun," he says. Having been in the entertainment industry now for a decade and counting, Tony looks back to those early days and recalls how adopting another name has worked in his favour. Born Anthony Joseph anak Hermas Rajiman, the Bidayuh took on the name Tony Eusoff after his adopted mother in Kuala Lumpur suggested it. "I initially used it as a homage to her, but it also turned out to be kind of a boost for my career when I was starting out. I needed a name to propel me in the right direction," he says of his involvement with the Malay entertainment industry. Not that he thinks there's any setback with being considered a minority; he makes the best of it, and at times during the conversation, it even sounds like he relishes it. "You get the upper hand of having to learn everyone's skills, including languages, and to me that's a bonus. I've been getting by pretty well, both in terms of making friends and going places. And there are no stereotypes associated with minorities – you don't hear people saying, 'You are as calculating as a Bidayuh!'" he grins. Playing it real Tony will be following in the footsteps of Sean Ghazi and Musly Ramlee in taking on the role of P. Ramlee in the musical. Concurring that he has big shoes to fill, he says: "Playing P. Ramlee is something quite different from my previous roles, because those were fictitious characters and so were easier to make it my own." He believes that he needs to learn as much as he can about Tan Sri P. Ramlee in order to play him convincingly, which includes capturing that "timeless sense of fun" that the late entertainer projected. Tony describes the beloved entertainer as "very grounded, not up there in the air at all". "All he wanted to do was to keep the music alive, keep the art alive. What he believed in was very universal. But after he left Singapore and came back to KL, his popularity started dwindling. His movies were not cutting it; people had already moved on to The Beatles and liking Western flicks. So he suffered from that, which is quite sad," relates Tony, who used to watch P. Ramlee movies in his childhood. Now, in preparation for the musical, he went back and watched them again with a different purpose in mind. "I try to pick up on nuances; certain gestures, his way of singing, and his body language. I also read up on him and now know all these bits of interesting trivia, which is useful in helping me form an idea of him as a man. You have to put yourself in his shoes, you have to imagine the times and the conditions he lived in. Because the better you can visualise that, the better you can execute," he says. Born and raised in Siburan, a little town about half an hour's drive from Kuching, Tony is all psyched up about P. Ramlee The Musical being staged there. "It's really great to have this opportunity to perform back home. I feel like a homecoming queen!" he laughs. P. Ramlee The Musical will be staged on Sept 9 and 10 at 8pm at Borneo Convention Centre Kuching, Sarawak. Entrance is free, on a first-come, first-served basis. Call 082-415 894 or 082-235 418 for tickets. The musical is part of the five-day Tribute to P. Ramlee (Sept 9 to 13) that includes P. Ramlee The Musical, a concert by Indonesia's violin maestro Idris Sardi (Sept 12 and 13), and an exhibition on the life of P. Ramlee that will run throughout the five days. Related story |
| Posted: Traditional Malay performances, contemporary dance, jazz, rock and 18 mini concerts. Watch them all at the DFP Seni Festival. ART and culture. What significance they play in the hallmarks of a civilisation. One can even argue the more imbued a society is in art and culture, the more elevated it becomes in the history of the world. Russia has its ballet, Europe has its opera, Japan has its enigmatic Butoh and we have our asli songs, Mak Yong, zapin, ghazal and the list continues. How unfortunate it is, then, that such beautiful heritage of ours is slowing ebbing away in the high noon of modernisation and as a result becoming less and less important for the younger generation. "When I bumped into a schoolteacher and her group of students at a supermarket, she introduced me as a Melayu asli singer. The students quickly interjected and asked 'What is Melayu asli?' They don't even know. It's a sad fact," shared veteran asli singer Datuk Andre Goh. Goh is regarded as one of the rare non-Malay artistes in the asli music genre, and his career goes backs over four decades. Which is why Goh was delighted when the Dewan Filharmonik Petronas (DFP) contacted him and asked him to be part of their annual DFP Seni Festival, now into its fourth year. In fact, five concerts will be taking the DFP stage from Sept 16 to 22. Launched in 2010, the DFP Seni Festival acts as a platform for local artists and talents to showcase their talents and it seeks to promote, nurture and strengthen Malaysia's arts and culture. In essence, it is for the noble cause of bringing the arts to people and making it accessible to them in the hopes of preserving it from decay or waning into the realm of the forgotten. Malam Melayu Klasik, a concert replete with traditional Malay elements, will kick-start the festival on Sept 16, which happens to be Malaysia Day. It will feature Goh, Haziq, a young generation asli singer and Badan Kesenian Yayasan Warisan Johor, with a soundtrack of zapin and ghazal music. One of the highlights of the festival is Mak Yong Raja Besar Negeri Ho Gading, happening on Sept 20, presented by the Kumpulan Mak Yong Kijang Emas JKKN Kelantan and Rosnan Rahman, touted as the only male Pak Yong in today's Mak Yong performances. The saga revolves around the fight among seven princes for the throne of the Ho Gading Kingdom. Rosnan said that although Mak Yong has been "recognised as a world heritage by Unesco in 2005, it's sad that the younger generation don't know anything about it. And it's also becoming very rare. So, this performance is a good way for the public to get back in touch with the Mak Yong tradition." There will also be a contemporary dance performance accompanied by the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) called Spectrum on Sept 18. But this year, the festival has cast a wider net in that on top of the traditional and cultural performances, there will also be two concerts, in collaboration with the MPO, with a rock and jazz theme: MPO Rocks (Sept 21) and MPO and All That Jazz (Sept 22). These concerts will feature some of the country's top stars such as Ella, Elvira Arul, Atilia Haron and Dina Nadzir. When it comes to the MPO and All That Jazz show, it's a chance to catch these notable songbirds on the big stage as they flip through favourites from the jazz songbook and beyond. DFP and MPO's director, Carl Selvarajah said the festival, besides promoting and nurturing local and traditional performing art forms, also desires to promote and showcase local artistes. He added that local evergreen songs such as Tan Sri P. Ramlee's Getaran Jiwa or Tudung Periuk "will be given a fresh interpretation and new arrangements" in MPO and All That Jazz. The public will also get to enjoy 18 mini concerts, for free, at the DFP lobby for the entire duration of the festival. These fringe performances will be performed as a run up to the five main concerts, from traditional music showcases, dances to modern contemporary music. The DFP Seni Festival concerts will be happening at the Dewan Filharmonik Petronas, KLCC from Sept 16 to 22. For enquiries, call (03) 2051 7007 or e-mail dfp_boxoffice@petronas.com.my. Visit the Box Office to get your copy of the new MPO season brochure or download it from mpo.com.my. |
| Milestone edition of Penang Island Jazz Festival Posted: The 10th edition of the Penang Island Jazz Festival promises all the trademark highlights. A MASSIVE celebration awaits jazz fans as the line-up for the 10th edition of the Penang Island Jazz Festival (PIJF) has been announced. This milestone edition of the festival promises all the trademark highlights of this beloved outdoor event that has been always held at The Bayview Beach Resort Gardens, Batu Ferringhi in Penang since its inception. This year's 10th anniversary edition runs from Dec 5-8 with various jazz-related fringe activities, forums and gigs thrown into the mix. The main concert nights – this year's "Jazz By The Beach" stage at Bayview Beach Resort Gardens – will run on the weekend of Dec 7-8. The line-up includes The Freddy Cole Quartet, ESKA, Jazzkamikaze, Okan Ersan Quartet, Michael Schiefel & Carsten Daerr, Yoon Jeong Heo's Black String, Vinalog, and Hedvig Mollestad Trio. More acts will be revealed soon. From American jazz stylings to cutting edge European jazz and Asian bright lights, PIJF has them all sorted. Supporting musical related activities held during the period of the festival include workshops, exhibitions, a drum circle, Sunrise @ TSG, After Hours Jazz Jam, Creative Malaysia Fringe Stages and The Island Forum Sessions. Some of the speakers for this year's Island Forum Sessions include Ben Mandelson (founding director WOMEX), Peter Schulze (artistic director of Jazzahead) and Jae Jin In (artistic director of Jarasum International Jazz Festival). For more information on the festival activities, visit penangjazz.com. Tickets are available now at www.ticketpro.com.my. |
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