Fridae

Winner of both the George and Elisabeth Marton Playwriting Award and the GLAAD Media Award for Best Play, A Language of Their Own was banned in the playwright Chay Yew’s country of birth in 1995 when Theatreworks tried to stage it in Singapore following its success at the New York Shakespeare Festival the same year. The play was only staged in Singapore 11 years later in 2006 in English and in 2012 in Mandarin.

A Language of Their Own stars Paul Wong,
Dominic Lucien Luk, Alfred Loh and Dennis Yeap.

Originally set in the late 1990s in Boston and Los Angeles, the play chronicles the struggles of two gay couples – three of the men are Asian-Americans and one of whom is HIV-positive. The two main characters find themselves emotionally torn as their four-year relationship comes to an end. Of the other couple, one-half tested HIV-positive and decides to initiate a breakup.

The play, which was first staged in Kuala Lumpur in 1999, has been slightly updated by Malaysian director Woon Fook Sen and Singaporean theatre writer Richard Chua of theatre collective Little Red Shop. They have also set Singapore and Malaysia as the two main localities in the play.

Fook Sen, a veteran director, actor, choreographer and dancer in Malaysia (Butterfly Lovers, The Legend of Conch Shell and Ang Tau Mui), tells readers how he came to stage the play and how it's relevant to a Malaysian audience.

æ: The play has been staged across the US and other cities internationally since it was first performed in New York City in 1995. Can you tell us more about the play?

Director Woon Fook Sen

The story of Oscar and Ming, and Robert and Daniel has touched many; the story of how relationship is formed and maintained; how partners communicate; and how they sought closure. Malaysian audiences are not unfamiliar with the play as its 1999 performance run received good reviews. It is timely to bring this wonderful play to new audiences.

æ: What motivated yourself and Richard to stage it in Malaysia?

I had a conversation with the artistic director of Little Red Shop Richard Chua one afternoon, and we both reminicised of a good play. Only after sharing with each other our favourite bits in the play that we realised that we were both talking about the same play! A Language of Their Own. Malaysia is a complex city. Like almost all other Southeast Asian cities, balancing cultural openness versus social harmony is a challenge. Amidst the challenges, we often forget what basic humanitarian love is. Richard and I are motivated to bring this play to Malaysian audiences, for us, thematically, it is not strictly a gay-themed play, but a play that celebrates love between people. It applies to straight relationships too.

æ: Given that the text is 20 years old, how will it resonate with the audience?

Yes, the text is 20 years old. However, it is still relevant and has resonance. Human beings constantly need relationships. It is part of humanity. We work together, love together, die together, hopefully. We did not update it in terms of how its language should be used today, but cultural references (e.g. social media networks) that defines how Chay Yew's language operates these days. Language is usually framed by how they are communicated in contemporary society, albeit on- and off-line. We have also retained Singapore and Malaysia as the two main localities in the play. It brings the play closer to our audiences.

æ: As the play is being staged in Malaysia, are there local parallels to the play's main themes of AIDS and sexuality?

Many HIV positive people have chosen not to talk about their condition. This silence is not just about avoiding personal discrimination by others, but also how he/she chooses to be identified in society. Many gay people are in Malaysia use "PLU" as an identifier. People Like Us "PLU" signifies a need for societal recognition. This is what we need in Malaysia.

æ: Tell us more the cast of the play.

I am glad that my cast members (Dominic, Paul, Alfred and Dennis) came on-board with one positive attitude. This play should not be played like a "gay play", but an important play about humanity, of which the story revolves around gay relationships. Dominic is an accomplished musical theatre talent and practitioner; Paul is a young choreographer with great potential; Alfred is a versatile and professional actor who can take on many different types of roles; Dennis is a energy-filled actor that will touch everyone's heart. In addition, I would also like to introduce our pianist Caleb Lee, who has been "jamming" with us during the rehearsals, providing music that is cadent to Chay Yew's seminal text. Despite being classically trained as a pianist, Caleb Lee is also well-trained in Jazz and Pop.

æ: Why should the gay community watch the play?

There is always a time and place for everything. In every generation, there will be young gay persons attempting to understand love and what it means to keep it going. Every generation of young gay persons will grow and become more mature as years go by, they will have a different take and perspective on the idea of a quality gay relationship. Chay Yew's text poses pertinent questions to gay persons of different generations, in a poetic way. Its poetry allows all of us to ponder and reflect on our state of being, to shape it better. This play speaks every gay person's mind.

Dates/Time: Aug 23-24, 8.30pm; Aug 24-25, 3pm
Venue: Damansara Performing Arts Centre
Address: H-01, DPAC, Empire Damansara, Jalan PJU 8/8, Damansara Perdana, 47820 Petaling Jaya
Tickets: RM48, RM58 (P18+)
Advance booking: dpac.com.my. Call 03-4065 0001