My niece performing in USA!

My niece, Inch, in Austin USA, performing in the South by Southwest Festival with her partners Mark John Harimon and Leonard Soosay.

So proud of them :)

Words of an Artiste

"People kind of like go..... 'Oh, how can you do this or that...' and it's like... 'You know what? When did this world become a place where there's one way to do something?' I thought we are trying to open ourselves up, creatively, use all sorts of techniques and things and do all sorts of things...." ~ Tim Burton on his latest movie "Alice in Wonderland" by Disney.



I've watched both the 2D and 3D version of this movie.

It is a movie not to be missed.

Go to this link to read more about this production.

Departure | 師叔 李玉仁

 
 

 這是李玉仁師叔。
他是李伯芬師傅的弟弟，也是李家班第五代掌中藝術家 － 善於掌中木偶表演、製作以及彈奏琵琶。

在農曆十二月二十七日，李玉仁師叔因心臟病離開人世。
這世界又少了一位傑出的藝術家。

今早，我打了通電話給伯芬師傅，向他拜个年。但所聽到的是這樣的消息。

我一時不知如何反應。但是，師傅的語氣幫了我一個大忙。

師傅的語氣是平淡的。

師傅的語氣是自然的。

師母去年年頭過世的時候，師傅的語氣也是一樣平淡自然的。

師傅的語氣告訴了我： life goes on.....

很快的，我沈重的語氣轉變成開朗的語氣，繼續与師傅閒聊。



是看開了？

還是麻木了？

一個人活到一大把年紀，眼看著周圍的親朋戚友一個個離開人世，是會看開，還是會麻木呢？

Photo by Beng Tian using Canon Powershot S3IS

Suitcase and Door Mat

After decades of travelling, the Suitcase finally decides to take a rest.

"Hi, I've been travelling non-stop and am now very tired. May I come in and have a rest?" the Suitcase said to the Door Mat.

"Travelling for business?" the Door Mat asks.

"No, for a search."

"What are you searching for?" the Door Mat asks.

The Suitcase freezes at the doorway.

It tries hard to remember.

It had started it's journey so long ago that it has forgotten the initial reason for that journey.

"What am I searching for?" the Suitcase asks itself aloud, frowning.

"Don't fret over this. You're not the only one. Come on in and join the rest," the Door Mat welcomes with a warm embrace.

Photo by Beng Tian using S3IS Nokia 5610

Opening my Suitcase

"A writer writes from his experience, and the more you experience the more you can write."
~ Yusuf Islam (formerly known as Cat Stevens) on his latest songs.


I've always felt secure and comfortable living in my own suitcase.

And now, I think it is time for me to get out and see the world.

Photo by Beng Tian Nokia 5610

The Good Ol' Days | Movie tickets

Haven't seen this type of sign board for ages.

With the kind permission of an Eng Wah (Suntec City) staff, I managed to take this for remembrance.



And to match the above sign board, here is a proud collection of mine......


... with mosaic flooring too!!!!

I miss the hand-written-cinema-seat type of ticket.

These were the good ol' days.


Photo by Beng Tian using Nokia 5610

"A Steady Rain" & Many Steady Phone Calls

NEW YORK - Hugh Jackman knows how to stop the show. He did it recently when a cell phone call interrupted a preview performance of "A Steady Rain," the Broadway play that stars Jackman and Daniel Craig. The moment captured on an amateur video shown by the TMZ.com Web site appears to have been recorded by someone in the audience.

It shows Jackman breaking character to tell the owner of the ringing cell phone, "You want to get that?" as the audience erupts in cheers. As the ringing persists, Jackman pleads: "Come on, just turn it off." He then paces the stage of the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, waits about a minute for the ringing to stop and the play resumes.

Producers of "A Steady Rain" declined to comment.

The interruption occurred during an intense moment in the play, when Jackman's character, a Chicago policeman, reveals haunting memories. A customary loudspeaker announcement reminds theatergoers to turn off their phones. Since the incident, ushers who seat patrons and pass out playbills at Schoenfeld are also instructing patrons to silence their phones.

"A Steady Rain," a taut drama about the relationship between two policemen, opens Tuesday for a limited engagement through Dec. 6. The play by Keith Huff already has proven to be a potent box-office winner, playing to capacity audiences since it began previews on Sept. 10.

Jackman won a Tony Award in 2004 for his performance as Peter Allen in the musical "The Boy from Oz." Craig, filmdom's latest James Bond, is making his Broadway debut.

On Broadway: Wolverine and James Bond Vs. Cell Phones

by Leila Brillson (RSS feed) — Sep 28th 2009 at 5:54PM

James Bond (played recently by Daniel Craig) and Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) are tough guys, but apparently not intimidating enough to silence a cell phone. In a recent production of Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig's 'A Steady Rain' on Broadway, an audience member's phone began ringing, prompting Jackman (without missing a beat or dropping character), to ask the interrupter if they'd like to pick up (video embedded above). As it continued ringing, Jackman even invited the person on stage "if they want to get up and tell their story." Later, another call occurred, and this time Craig retorted.

Despite the rude interjection, it should be noted that both Craig and Jackman -- a Brit and an Aussie, respectively -- kept their accents, and tempers, in check. Also, word to the wise: for the price of a ticket to a sold-out, critically acclaimed show (like 'A Steady Rain'), it's not just the actors that will be annoyed by the cell phone faux pas, but the audience, as well. At least it wasn't a duck. [From: Huffington Post and TMZ]

Hugh Jackman vs. The Ringing Cell Phone

by Elisabeth Rappe Sep 29th 2009 // 4:02PM

Is there anything more annoying than a cell phone ringing in the middle of a movie theater? Yes, there is! A cell phone ringing in the middle of a live play! As you undoubtedly know, Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig are currently treading the boards in A Steady Rain, a gritty Chicago cop drama that just kicked off on Broadway. Now, when you decide to spend the money and see a once-in-a-lifetime performance, you can either give it your full intention and see how genius creates a legend, or you can leave your cell phone on so your friends can call you and find out if Craig's wearing his Bond swimtrunks.

Some jackass decided to do the latter. Perhaps he or she had a death wish to be ripped apart by the bulging muscles that make up Craig and Jackman, or maybe they thought no one would notice if it kept ringing, and ringing, and ringing. Luckily for the idiot, Jackman was a class act. Luckily for the audience, he didn't even break character and practically made it part of the performance. (I would have preferred seeing Craig and Jackman rip the person apart with their bare hands, but I like violence, and the possibility that one or both would have torn their shirt off in doing so.) Check out the video below the jump for a good laugh.

I'd kill to see this play (Gritty 1970s cop drama! Chicago! Hugh Jackman! It's all of my favorite things!) and the fact that some moron has the time, access, and money to just ruin it with a cell phone really irks me. I'm thinking it might be time to require phones be coat-checked before entering a theater, be it at your multiplex or on the Great White Way, because it seems few can be trusted to actually turn them off.

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In character, I've picked up a prop dropped accidentally by a fellow cast during a show.

In character, I've forced opened the set's jammed door - that was not supposed to be jammed - during a show.

But I've never tried - in character - to reprimand a senseless audience who allow his/her mobile to ring during a show.

I'm sure I'll have plenty of opportunity to try this out in future productions because there are just too many self-centred people living amongst us.

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