In 1966, James Brown crooned, “This is a man’s world.”

Fast forward 55 years later, and to a certain extent, it still is, despite the painful struggle to arrive at a balance.

Sim Yan Ying aka YY and Nabilah Said’s latest theatrical effort, (un)becoming, explores the painful realities of women in dealing with a past, present, and future that are somehow impacted by the actions of men.

Ironically, this play presented by T:>Works is one that is performed by an all-women cast and its male characters never make an appearance or are hardly ever named.

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Copied and pasted from Eksentrika.

Despite this, it was evident that the women characters and their relationships with each other were significantly shaped by the unseen, yet palpable male presence (or absence) in their lives.

Both directors, YY and Nabilah, through the show notes, shared that they were inspired to write the play from events in their own personal histories.

For YY, it was in observing her mother striving to care for a terminally ill grandmother. Nabilah, on the other hand, revealed that the play served as a medium to reflect and come to terms with her own angsty teenage past.

Due to this, (un)becoming can be categorised as a slice of life take, that is also a culmination of many real-life experiences comprising urban women from Singapore.

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Copied and pasted from Eksentrika.

The play was devised after much research, interviews, and gathering personal stories. The characterisation and portrayal of dramatic struggles were also molded with the help of expert dramaturgs Cheng Nien Yuan and A Yagnya.

Perhaps this is why, despite being a virtually presented performance, screened to a worldwide audience at the 2021 Festival of Women, N.O.W., the play had me gripped to my seat throughout.

This is the first theatre show that I’ve watched on Zoom, where I easily suppressed urges to open a separate tab to scroll on social media or pause for frequent toilet breaks.

I felt immediately transported into the world of the characters and invested in their human struggles.

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The teenager, Rina, played by Arielle Jasmine Van Zuijlen, and her difficult relationship with an overprotective mother, Elaine, performed by actress, Isabella Chiam represented dynamics that were easily relatable.

Their strained mother-daughter tie is largely the result of divorce.

The upstairs neighbor Dewi (Suhaili Safari), at first, came across as tough and brittle but later turned out to be one of the most tender characters in the play.

A mysterious but daring little girl, Eggkeykey, played by Chanel Ariel Chan, is a nod to latchkey children, who are kids taking care of themselves at home as their parents work most of the time.

According to Nabilah, such scenarios were prevalent prior to the pandemic.

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All four characters represent the different stages of life all women experience, navigating through their personal realities while juggling the responsibilities that come with being daughters and caregivers.

I couldn’t help but ponder, that the sufferings inflicted upon all the characters could have been prevented if only the husbands or fathers, in their lives had behaved more responsibly.

I do not mean to imply that men are to blame for all the issues that women face and yet, I cannot help but observe how men, can significantly alter the outcomes, feelings, and even characters of the people around them.

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These stories in (un)becoming shed light on the conflicts faced by modern, contemporary women, that can sometimes be easily overlooked. They are not the typically oppressed or downtrodden female characters yet their narratives are equally compelling.

The ultimate message of the play, to me, is one of solidarity and strength, for women, by women, irrespective of their age and background.

Another impressive aspect of the play is in the expertise of its technical delivery.

There were sequences that involved inter-dimensional travel, in which the character of Eggkeykey could transcend time.

These were brilliantly delivered through the magic of multimedia designer, Jevon Chandra.

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The seamlessness of the play also came through most remarkably as a testament to the superb coordination between the stage manager, Shivani Rajan, and Catherine Ho, the assistant stage manager and transcriber.

My personal favorites include the live performance in the play, in which audience members were given an almost participatory immersion when allowed to switch screens and discover the different characters’ online personas.

It was overwhelming at first, but I gradually understood that I was being shown how each of the characters interacted through their smartphone and other revelations through their laptop activities.

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Copied and pasted from Eksentrika.

When it was shown that Elaine was googling about dildos, it was largely taken as comic relief but I felt it also revealed the character’s needs and unfulfilled desires.

I later learned that these novelty experiences were made possible by expertly joining up pre-recorded and live scenes together.

Johanna Pan is the scenic and costume designer alongside sound designer, Tini Aliman who was also instrumental in the play’s overall authentic feel.

Chimene Khoo is the videographer and editor responsible for bringing the pre-recorded scenes to life and helping to create a cohesive sequence for the play.

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The harmoniously combined efforts of cast and crew make (un)becoming among the most important and revolutionary works of theatre made in the era of the new norm.

If anyone should ask me to suggest an exemplary piece of theatre, performed virtually yet succeeding to retain audience attention throughout, I would urge them to study (un)becoming.

All images in this review were supplied to Eksentrika by T:>Works.  

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