Sunday, April 02, 2006

Drama,Drama,Drama

i'm in charge of the school's English drama this year, along with some other English teachers. the cast is a motley bunch of the veterans and the newbies. the script? too simple....

the other teachers cant comment much on the actors'/actresses' performances, but i was involved in a lot of English dramas...and being easily dissatisfied and that teacher's syndrome of being obsessive with correcting students, i tend to speak my mind. some of them are too stiff, as stiff as cardboard (i used to call 1 girl "the unbendable wooden plank" during my heyday as an actress in seri puteri's Shakespearean play, but then it's a different story), some think they know too much but they fail to see that they're still not perfect, some will be as goofy as ever despite their role as a gangster, some are just too emotional. all in all, i was very upset with their attitude that i just walked off from the school hall last week.

these students, i guess, didnt know the true meaning of being in a drama - and enjoying it. okay, granted, i hate the Shakespearean plays that i had to act when i was in Form 3 and 4, but i enjoyed the TESL dramas that i was involved in during those years in PPP. the most important thing is, we had fun. the tesl 4 had the talent for producing the most hilarious slapstick comedy, and i dare say that we're very talented and creative. i guess that's what made our dramas so memorable until i can still remember them even after more than 10 years. i can still remember blondie as the devil, with his supposedly evil laugh.... joe trying to find a good spot to die...pokcik and asmadi as the policemen trying to arrest the doctor from madras and then "rewinding" themselves in the process, the drama about Malay courting rituals, complete with the direct translation of the poems. try translating "2 3 kucing berlari". and then the drama about sultan melaka mangkat dijulang...with cromok as komeng with the habit of jerking his head to one side...

yes, it was our glorious days...i only wish those kids can learn from us so that they can become as happy and cheerful instead of becoming young grumpies.

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