http://www.happening.com.sg/livehtml/features/0309forbid.html Forbidden City Review: Truly World-class Watching the plot of Forbidden City unfold is akin to flipping through the pages of an evening-edition Chinese tabloid. It really trawls out the obscure dirty laundry, but you just can't tear your eyes away. That said, this has got to be one of the best produced, cast and performed musicals I've seen this side of the equator. I've always eyed SRT's claim of "world-class theatre with an Asian flavor" with a hint of skepticism, but I now stand a convert - who needs Broadway classics when you've got juicy 50-years worth of untold Chinese history hidden in your own backyard (well, almost). I dare say that we can take on the big boys now. So long as Kit Chan takes on the lead role forever, that is. Forbidden City starts off promoting international sisterhood in the most subtle of ways. Taking a little-known fact of the Empress' life, Katherine Carl is a female American painter invited to the Forbidden City and commissioned to paint a portrait of the elusive empress (hence the title). There, she meets with the none-too-warm Dragon Lady (also known as Yehenara) and after feeding her some lines about needing to know her to paint her (well, she is American after all - autocratic Oriental rulers don't stand a chance), gets the ageing matriarch to offer a verbal memoir of her life. And why? The reason given here is because the Empress thinks that someone from halfway around the world would be objective and hence could be trusted to tell the truth. Given a life so mysterious and intriguing, this adaptation cleverly milks the Empress' life for the choicest cuts. Infamous episodes about her apparent murder of her own son and subsequent fight for imperial power get an airing, albeit showing us the "alternate" version. With a somewhat feminist slant that cannot be ignored, what binds these women are the tales of loss and the subsequent struggle to survive. As a musical, Forbidden City is a hit as far as music, costumes and sets are concerned. Kit Chan shines as the young empress, with powerful and controlled vocals that are an absolute joy to listen to. The supporting cast strongly complements her as well, with Blossom Lam's husky singing as the elderly Empress particularly impressive. There seemed to be some technical glitches at the beginning on the night I attended, as the ensemble's sound seemed poorly balanced, but this might have been incidental. Otherwise, high production values carried across to the impressive set. Deceptively simple, yet sophisticated and effective, it was a fine-tuned effort from designer Francis O'Connor. One memorable scene occurs when the open expanse of palace walls with floating floor-to-ceiling curtains transform into a closed-up prison-cell like space and the curtains are ripped off to become bundles of possessions carried by the palace staff as they flee. With the combination of song, lights and movement, it was an inspired moment indeed. The direction was kept so tight in the first half an extra utterance of "your highness" would not have made it. The pacing kept the excitement building up to keep you strung up through the interval, so it was a pity when the second half started off somewhat lagging (as evidenced by the people around me, previously at rapt attention, starting to shift in their seats) and only managed to pick up towards the denouement. But that is just a minor complaint. Forbidden City, like the Empress herself, had grand ambitions and does not disappoint. The story intrigues while your emotions take a roller-coaster ride as Yehenara's life unfolds. The comic duo of Hossan Leong and Sebastian Tan (as record keepers) never fail to bring on laughter, and most of all, the songs run through your head as you leave. ~ Judy Tan -- 幻想你亦很想多謝你 世界有你花都更香 未知道怎麼可多謝你 令我自強 借借你那偉大能量 那怕永不可以遇上 難忘人物未忘掉已值得鼓掌 多謝芭比／彭羚 詞／林夕 曲／黎允文 --

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