Monday, April 28, 2008

I Enjoy Being A Girl

I arrived at Duta Nusantara around 3:45pm yesterday. My call time was at 4:00 PM. Several of our cast members unable to make it for rehearsal due to fever and flu. Yeah, I noticed quite a few of those I know personally are not well too. Perhaps it was due to the wet weather that hit us recently? Or the sudden heat? I dont know. Perhaps the best is just to take more vitamins and sleep well.

Take a look at the girls singing "I Enjoy Being A Girl". This number is from the musical, "Flower Drum Song". I havent watch the show in neither West End nor Broadway but I truly adore the musics from Rodgers and Hammerstein II. My good friend bought me the album for Flower Drum Song from the revival casts featuring Lea Salonga and Jose Llana. Beautifully done and has most of the essence of the original one.

My all time favourite from the musical would definitely be "You Are Beautiful".

"....Along the Hwang Ho river................ You are beautiful.... "

Saturday, April 19, 2008

Sunday... with nothing to do..

Hahaha... for those rehearsing tomorrow.. have a great rehearsal.. Am not needed so I better quickly catch "We Will Rock You" in Singapore over the weekend. I hope I can still make it to purchase tickets at the Esplanade. My flight is at 1025AM, unable to log on to the KLIA-Internet, so have to depend on my faithful Maxis 3G.

Friday, April 18, 2008

Rehearsals

Random Pictures from Rehearsals..

The Producer & Choreographer with her grandniece and future superstar.
















Monday, April 14, 2008

Woo-Hoo...My first blog ever!!!

Ciao tutti!!! 

We had a Great rehearsal today... I'm still feeling a bit shattered from it but nevermind (old age and all creeping up). I enjoyed the chicken rice and catching-up session after best of all...Thanks Soon Yoon and Nicole!

This production so far has been great for me in many ways. It's a fab ensemble piece, movement -wise, and it really tests my versatility with so many vocal character changes in such a short span of time. It keeps me on my toes (no pun intended) literally. To juggle it with my Mozart, Schubert, and Hahn as well as Rumba Walks, Promenade Runs and Cucarachas can sometimes make me feel a bit of a schizo. But I guess that's the joy of this production - I get to really find my limits and try to push them further. And I enjoy learning from the wonderful Farah Sulaiman as well as from all my esteemed cast members, young and younger (old is a noun that I'd like to just erase  ;) ). I've truly picked up lots of various insights and I look forward to growing with the rest of the team to pull off a FABULOUS SHOW!! I've always wanted to venture back into Musicals from Opera and Dance because it is such a wonderful amalgamation of the arts. Now I have the honour of "finding myself" with a cast of such talented people. You guys should really come out and support this show. The potential and talent really has not been seen on a KL stage in this context. And that I can say that I'm working with very dear friends makes the honour an even greater one. Thank you all!! Big bear hugs!!!

Now I shall try to snooze and get a foot rub tomorrow...such bliss...  :)

Sunday, April 13, 2008

Hello from the First Dance Captain :)


Thanks Soon Yoon for creating this blog for DTB! I'll upload videos soon. But for now I'll just upload the current logo for the show. I'm not sure whether it's already finalized. If the graphic designer has a newer finalized one, it'll be up here in no time since he sends me all his designs to show to my mom :D

Rehearsal: 13th Apr 2008


Some of the happy faces that I manage to snap today. This boy (err.. sorry, forgot his name).. is singing in Jolly Holiday (from Mary Poppins)
Peter Ong & Tria Aziz. Remember Tria? Neh, the one who won RTM's Audition reality singing competition.. Hehe... She was also the "Waris Jari Hantu" theme song singer..

Tria will sing an energetic number from "Aida" called, "My Strongest Suit"
Aris Kadir, the lead dancer in the recent KLPAC's "Passion" with Tria Aziz & Peter Ong

Peter sings "Sunday Clothes", "Somewhere" (from West Side Story), "Mooning" (from Greese) while Aris will sing "Sandy" (from Greese)
Nicole Ann-Thomas. Catch her in "Three" in KLPAC, showing till 20th April 2008..

Nicole sings in "I Hope I Get It" (A Chorus Line), and "Mooning" (Greese)
Tria Aziz again.. er...
At first she was quite reluctant to pose for a photo..... haha... I forced her to smile!

Tria Aziz & Ho Soon Yoon
Junior Sayang Dancers
More Junior Sayang Dancers..

You must watch them dance! They will be dancing throughout the show for songs from Oliver, Newsies, Chorus Line and many more.











Dance & Sing

This is my second collaboration with Farah Sulaiman. The first one was way back in June last year where she choreographed all our dance steps in "Broadway Parodies Lah". She called for a meeting I think in September 2007 with a few of us to see if we are interested in a charity show and everyone said yes with no hesitation.

I'll be singing a few numbers in DanSing Thru Broadway namely "Last Night of the World" (duet with Alesia Dhana), "All I Ask of You" (duet with songbird Doreen Tang), "On The Street Where You Live" and dance in "Mooning" & "One". The rehearsal process has been really exciting so far. Partly because I know most of the cast members from previous productions. Nicole Ann-Thomas is a long time friend from The Phil , Sabrina Hassan & Peter Ong whom I get to know from the defunct musical "Natra", fellow M! The Opera cast members like Doreen Tang, Tria Aziz, Nicole, Peter. Also Tunku The Musical's Dance Captain Aris Kadir and new found friends TV actor Radhi Khalid, dancers Natasha, NorFarizah, Johan & the Sayang Dancers! Whoo hoo!


I am also enjoying all the light snacks prepared for us during rehearsals. So far my all time favourite are the fish balls! Cant stop eating them! Wanna see how fat I am already? It's all in the video!

Saturday, April 12, 2008

Ho hum.

Well, I was invited by "Boss" Soon Yoon to be one of the bloggers in this site, so I shall blog here then about anything regarding the show or how I feel etc.

As most of you may or may not know, this is the fifth straight show where I'm performing under my mom, Farah Sulaiman, so basically I'm the only person at this point who has been in all five of my mom's shows from the first Dance Hysteria in 2000 right up till Jalan Impian: The Musical in 2005. It's pretty interesting though that a lot has changed over the years. I used to remember back when I was one of those rookie types, the ones who were only given one or two performances or just there to be extras only. Now, at 22 (going to be 23 this coming Friday), I'm one of the adult performers, which is pretty cool if you ask me.

For those new to this site, just to let ya'll know, I'll be in five performance. One of those performances will be my cousin, Sabrina Hassan (whom I shall refer to from this point on as Kak Sabrina) and I performing Jolly Holiday from Mary Poppins and I get to be Bert, the street-sweeper/street artist/chimney sweeper/nasi lemak seller/etc. I remembered vividly watching that show as a kid and I know exactly how wacky Dick Van Dyke's performance was. I did read up on the criticisms regarding his English accent and I've decided to somehow emulate it. Trust me, much like Mr Van Dyke himself, it comes and it goes. Haih.

Well, I am looking forward to doing this show and getting to perform on stage yet again, so it's definitely looking to be a thrilling experience nonetheless. Come late June, we are all gonna do our very best in putting on a great show for everyone. Hope ya'll turn up!

Till then, this is Johan Yusof signing out!

Sunday Clothes

One of our very first rehearsal. Look at Peter Ong, Aris Kadir & Tria Aziz in action! Tria itu penyanyi lagu tema "Waris Jari Hantu". Hmmm who's missing in the dance? Tasha... where are you?

I Hope I Get It

A Song, Played on a Solo Saxophone

Alesia Dhana and Ho Soon Yoon attempting "Last Night of the World" from Miss Saigon.

Thursday, April 10, 2008

DanSing Thru Broadway

Come and watch DanSing Thru Broadway from 25th-29th of June 2008 @ Panggung Bandaraya, Kuala Lumpur!