I was invited by my friend to join him on a photography session along with his kakis, to capture a fast vanishing art in highly modernised and developed Singapore - Teochew Opera performance.
Chinese opera is the Eastern version of musicals which has its roots in China many centuries ago. It has various versions, depending on the provinces which they came from, eg, Beijing, Teochew, Cantonese and Hokkien etc. The main features of Chinese Opera are a colourful combination of song and dance, costumes, make-up, acrobats,music, acting and martial arts, to present the musical in a very attractive way.
My late grandmother was a fan of Cantonese opera (my family's dialect group is Cantonese) and always brought me along when I was a young girl. Yet, this photography session was the first time in my entire life that I went backstage!
I observed patiently how the artistes waited for their turns to perform, applied make up and even took their dinner, all within a span of a few hours. However, I felt a tinge of sadness and regret as I chatted with them.
The performance was staged by one of the dying troupes in Singapore. All of their artistes and musicians are at least 50 years old, except for a 11 year old boy, whose parents are one of the performers. In the past, there used to be around 5 or more performance invitations per month, but now, they should be lucky if there are even 3. The audience numbers are also fast dwindling and most are middle aged.
The artistes are all part timers, as this trade cannot sustain a even a modest living in Singapore. They would work at their jobs in the day, and rush home to bathe, and then hurry to the performance venue. These aunties and uncles are no longer young, and they revealed that they would stop performing in a few years' time as they are getting old. From there, there would not be anyone to take over their art.....
The uncles and aunties were extremely friendly, and always obliged for a photography pose, and at the same time explained their roles. They seemed so excited and proud, although they fully expected that their art would go the way of the Dodo bird. I could feel their huge sense of pride for their art and profession.
Are we sacrificing our traditional arts in the name of development?