Beyond Moving with Artisans (2022-2024)

Saya dijemput ke satu sesi latihan di ruang terbuka di dalam mall, untuk lihat mereka berlatih, sebelum ia dipersembahkan di NERO black box, PJPAC. Saya dipanggil sebagai dramaturg bersama beberapa orang jemputan yang lain, yang pada masa itu ia lebih kepada untuk dengar sudut pandang dari penggiat seni dari bidang selain tari. Saya lebih berat dengan pembawaan diri sebagai director teater, banyak beri komen dari aspek sinografi dan hal-hal selain tubuh. Saya mempertanyakan apa yang penting, sama ada kajian dan subjek temuramah para artisan yang penting, atau tubuh penari yang penting, atau objek yang mewakili artisan itu untuk disentuh penari yang penting, atau hubungan di antaranya yang ada pasang surut yang penting? / I was invited to a rehearsal session in an open space inside a mall to watch them practice before it was performed at the NERO Black Box, PJPAC. I was brought in as a dramaturg alongside a few other guests, and at the time, the session was geared more toward gathering perspectives from art practitioners outside the field of dance. Leaning into my background as a theatre director, I gave a lot of feedback on scenography and elements beyond the physical body. I questioned what truly mattered: was it the research and the interview subjects (the artisans) that were important, or the dancers’ bodies, or the objects representing the artisans for the dancers to interact with, or the ebb and flow of the relationships between them?

Dari sesi ringkas ini, yang tidak silap saya Beh Chin dan penarinya diberi dua minggu untuk beresidensi di ruang mall yang tidak digunakan berdekatan PJPAC, sebelum ia dipersembahkan di dalam black box. Projek ini bukan pertama kali dikongsi dan ia kesinambungan daripada projek dokumentasi Moving with Artisans yang mana lima artisan di Butterworth, Penang ditemuramah, dan malah ada rendisi persembahan yang sudah pun dijalankan. Beyond Moving with Artisans adalah usaha untuk menyambungkan seni yang sudah pudar dan hampir pupus, sunset industry, dengan pempraktik tari muda. Dalam projek ini, tubuh penari muda bertindak sebagai bahan pengantara. / From this brief session—if I’m not mistaken—Beh Chin and her dancers were given a two-week residency in an unused mall space near PJPAC before performing in the black box. This project was not being shared for the first time; it was a continuation of the Moving with Artisans documentation project, where five artisans in Butterworth, Penang were interviewed, and some performance renditions had already been staged. Beyond Moving with Artisans is an effort to connect fading, near-extinct arts—a sunset industry—with young dance practitioners. In this project, the bodies of the young dancers act as a medium of translation.

Selepas pementasan di PJPAC saya syorkan Beh Chin untuk kembangkan hubungan setiap artisan dan penari muda ini satu demi satu agar kita boleh lebih terperinci, dan ada fokus. Ia bermula dengan Petition Typist X Hua Gu Deng (penari: Wong Chi Ying) di Performance Design Exchange di ASWARA pada Disember 2022. Ia diikuti sesi bual bicara yang dimoderator Fasyali Fadzly, dengan panel Bilqis Hijjaz, Jo Kukathas, Dhinesha Karthigesu, bersama Lau Beh Chin (koreografer) dan Ridhwan Saidi (dramaturg). / After the performance at PJPAC, I recommended that Beh Chin develop the relationship between each artisan and young dancer one by one, so we could achieve greater detail and focus. This began with Petition Typist X Hua Gu Deng (dancer: Wong Chi Ying) at the Performance Design Exchange in ASWARA in December 2022. It was followed by a talk session moderated by Fasyali Fadzly, featuring panelists Bilqis Hijjaz, Jo Kukathas, Dhinesha Karthigesu, alongside Lau Beh Chin (choreographer) and Ridhwan Saidi (dramaturg).

Seterusnya pada Mac 2023 Coconut Shell Maker X Ballet (penari: Winnie Tay) dipersembahkan di Muzium Telekom, KL. Disokong oleh The BOH Cameronian Grants for New Productions dan Muzium Telekom. / Next, in March 2023, Coconut Shell Maker X Ballet (dancer: Winnie Tay) was performed at Muzium Telekom, KL. It was supported by The BOH Cameronian Grants for New Productions and Muzium Telekom.

Seterusnya Dancing with the Community: Beyond Moving with Artisans (penari: Lee Bee Hui, Winnie Xuan, Wong Chi Ying; featuring The Chin Student Organization, Shana Lim) dipersembahkan di GMBB pada Jun 2023. Dianjurkan MyDance Alliance, Disokong Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture. / Following that, Dancing with the Community: Beyond Moving with Artisans (dancers: Lee Bee Hui, Winnie Xuan, Wong Chi Ying; featuring The Chin Student Organization, Shana Lim) was performed at GMBB in June 2023. It was organized by MyDance Alliance and supported by the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture.

Seterusnya pada Ogos 2023, Beyond Moving with Artisans: Tau Sar Piah biscuit baker X contemporary dance dipersembahkan di Indicine KLPAC dengan penari Low Xin Ping, Winnie Xuan dan Wong Chi Ying, serta creative technologist team FabU, featuring Izzati Shahrin, Jammy Tummy. Disokong oleh Yayasan Sime Darby Arts Festival 2023 Pitch Start. / Then, in August 2023, Beyond Moving with Artisans: Tau Sar Piah biscuit baker X contemporary dance was performed at Indicine, KLPAC, featuring dancers Low Xin Ping, Winnie Xuan, and Wong Chi Ying, alongside the creative technologist team FabU, featuring Izzati Shahrin and Jammy Tummy. This was supported by the Yayasan Sime Darby Arts Festival 2023 Pitch Start.

Seterusnya Beyond Moving with Artisans: Rattan Weaving X Contemporary Dance dianjurkan umpama festival dengan pelbagai aktiviti di The GodownKL dari Mac hingga November 2024 melibatkan workshop, artist talk, public session, class, lecture performance, exhibition/performance bersama ramai artis, tetapi untuk persembahan akhir pada November 2024, penari Wong Sek Li (Xue Li), sound artist Kent Lee, installation artist Li Cheng dan Natalia Tan, featuring Chin Students Organizations (Cheras), Pin Hwa High School Dancing Club, KiTaRi Bodywork Collective, writer-researcher Farahin Fadzlishah. / Next, Beyond Moving with Artisans: Rattan Weaving X Contemporary Dance was organized as a festival-style event with various activities at The GodownKL from March to November 2024. This involved workshops, artist talks, public sessions, classes, lecture-performances, and an exhibition/performance collaborating with numerous artists. For the final performance in November 2024, it featured dancer Wong Sek Li (Xue Li), sound artist Kent Lee, installation artists Li Cheng and Natalia Tan, and featured the Chin Students Organizations (Cheras), Pin Hwa High School Dancing Club, KiTaRi Bodywork Collective, and writer-researcher Farahin Fadzlishah.

Pada tahun 2025-2026 projek Beyond Moving with Artisans (2022-2024) dibawa dalam format lecture-performance ke Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur (dalam foto di bawah) dan Taiwan antaranya. / In 2025–2026, the Beyond Moving with Artisans (2022–2024) project was presented in a lecture-performance format across Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur (pictured below), and Taiwan, among other locations.

Ini projek pertama saya bawa gelaran dramaturg, dan saya cuba praktikkan ia sepenuh hati kerana ia role yang masih baru dalam lapangan seni persembahan di Malaysia (tetapi sudah biasa di luar), maka saya cuba perkenalkan ia dengan memakai gelaran ini. / This is the first project where I carry the title of dramaturg, and I am trying to practice it with all my heart. Because it is still a relatively new role in the Malaysian performing arts scene (though already common abroad), I am trying to introduce it by formally taking on this title.

Posisi saya lebih kepada mata ketiga kepada Beh Chin, dan saya cuba tekankan perspektif audiens yang tidak tau apa-apa tentang seni tari dan koreografi, bagaimana minda mereka proses sesuatu yang abstrak dengan gerakan tubuh? Saya perkenalkan unsur multimedia agar ia mudah hadam, dan dalam masa sama saya cuba gali apa yang membuatkan Beh Chin mendekati subjek industri yang kian pupus ini pada mulanya, dan dari mana ia datang? / My position is more like a ‘third eye’ for Beh Chin. I try to emphasize the perspective of an audience member who knows nothing about dance and choreography—how would their minds process something so abstract through bodily movement? I introduced multimedia elements to make it more digestible. At the same time, I tried to dig into what initially drew Beh Chin to this fading industrial subject, and where it all came from.

Ia memperkenalkan saya kepada arwah datuk Ben Chin di Muar yang mengusahakan kelapa. Saya dan beberapa teman ke kampung Beh Chin untuk Saji Kanji (2023), satu lagi projek bersama Beh Chin tetapi yang itu tentang masakan air tangan orang rumah. / This journey introduced me to Beh Chin’s late grandfather in Muar, who used to run a coconut business. A few friends and I actually visited Beh Chin’s hometown for Saji Kanji (2023), another collaborative project with Beh Chin, though that one was centered around home-cooked meals.