Fun with musical comedy

Dec 7-17, 8.30pm (3pm matinees on Dec 9 and 16)

9, The Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre, KL

RM38, free seating. Call KLPaC Box Office at 034047 9000

Contains mature content (Parental Guidance is advised)

This nobody hero from a rustic small town goes to New York City and then becomes this really famous or whatever.

“So, I asked what makes their journey, the hero’s journey? I asked the musicians, and according to them, it was music that saved them. So, they have stories to tell too, in

“I was inspired by a classmate who just didn’t like musicals at all but, because of that, was willing to challenge himself (or was it to torture himself?). I am not really a huge fan of musicals myself.

“Yet, I truly liked what Hannan did in her Short+Sweet performance. I really liked the authenticity in her work. She did comedy and actually played music on stage together. It was comedy but it wasn’t all jokes. I knew her as an actor from T4YP, and then she did comedy! It kind of disrupted the formulaic idea of musicals and musical theatre.

“When I wanted to do this so-called ‘musical’, I thought of her immediately,” he says enthusiastically.

That makes the young artiste smile, as she adds: has all these things that I want to express, like the death of a loved one, just to put it into perspective and to get some closure out of it.”

So personal, maybe even autobiographical, you wonder, to which she says: “It’s somewhat inspired by stuff that has happened in my life. In doing standup comedy, it’s kind of like finally saying out something people have been thinking all the while.

“The best part is when I am being real on stage. You know, you can’t recreate jokes, so when you are real on stage, there is genuinely a deeper connection with the audience. Standup comedy is just so wide and offers up a limitless amount of material.”

She adds that one is only limited by one’s imagination.

“You can do anything. I now perform five times a week and I put on shows at 11.30pm. At first I was sure that no one would come. But then I held one session at the Crackhouse Comedy Club (in Taman Tun Dr Ismail), and the room was surprisingly filled!”

The upcoming will be a welcome break for Hannan, as she will be working with an ensemble this time, as opposed to her usual gigs where she is a quirky lone wolf on stage.

The performance space is also vastly different, in that it is tucked away in a corner of the sprawling grounds of KLPaC.

“It feels like a trip, kind of like going on a long walk with us,” she says. “There will definitely be immersive feel and vibe about the whole show with this space that we’ll be utilising,” adds Tung.