Reflections of Hiroshima

After the long convo week, well not that long anyway. The fact that there were no classes conducted during the week because theater can't be conducted due to our venue were taken for the convo purposes and my Makro lecturer has to attend the convo and could not teach so that much says no class for the week. Weeee. Not much enjoyment, assignments and reviews to do made my week fly fast that you could not realize it.

So at the end of the week on a Sunday where everybody else were evacuating the campus to enjoy the holiday and study for mid terms, some theater students were given the task to watch a theater on the true life of the Dato' Razak our VC's dad. The theater was scheduled at 8.15 on the posters and banners but everybody knows that in Malaysia that doesn't happen. It eventually started at 9.05pm so I was cursing the night because this is an assignment that is for my theater class, If not by 8.30pm I would run to the door and leave. You never let your audience wait and not be given the notice that it will start late. It took a lot to pull out all my patients that night. So by 8.50 there was an announcement that the TYT is coming and that it might start a bit late.

So waiting at my seating place bout the third last row mid section I waited and then when the TYT arrived, the announcement came. The TYT was scheduled to give a speach, the trouble of lack of planning went. So embarrasing, the TYT was on stage and the crew didn't prepare another platform for him to speak. So there he was waiting for all the adjustments to be done. His speach didn't last as long as the wait for him on stage though.

The major planning problem

So the play started to begin and it was a good and funny way to start the evening because I was cursing before that, and luckily that kinda made it worth the wait. I was very happy to see our lecturer Dr. Sam performing. I had never seen him perform on stage before. Well, I did catch him on the early episodes of Mahligai Gading but his scenes didn't last long so I thought that this was a good opportunity for me to catch the talented Dr. Sam in action.

Dr Samad in Action...very funny...hehe

The village people that heard about the japanese occupation in Kelantan

The character Razak was played by En Norhelmi, one of the Dewan Budaya Artiste. His role was more narrated and there were a lot of soliloquy's that he was talking on his own. These seem a bit dragging at some points but I think It was too much to been acted out and that there were a lot more scenes that should be brought out more. Ratna Played the mother and that she too played as like a shadow or a reflection and some parts she talked alone. It was interesting to watch my friends on stage again too.

The Solemn Hiroshima Scene

Razak talking to himself, wondering and reflecting of his past

Razak's mother worried about him leaving to Japan but eventually agrees to let him study there. Ratna as Razak's mother

Razak getting brother's advice

Another funny soldiers scene....the guy cant actually ride the bike so the others need to push the bike.....hehe

The part when he went to Hiroshima to learn was a great scenery and the lighting made the mood of the place more sad and emotional for me. Watching a lot of people suffering during the bombing, students being trapped in caves, well I think it was a cave since there were parts where they were speaking Japanese and I couldn't understand. The part where pangeran wanted to save sensei was too emotional and I would feel the same way If I had to leave some one behind that I cared so much. So as Razak and two of his friends who were still alive went on a train to Tokyo and on the way one of his friends Syed Omar had to stop at Kyoto because he had showed signs of radiation.

Syed Omar seeking treatment in Kyoto by the doctor who donated his blood to save him

An article that shows the downside of radiation due to the bomb. Innocent children suffered badly and many died horribly due to the radiation

This too for me was a sad moment and then, the doctors tried to save him and one doctor donated his own blood to save Syed omar but it was fated that Syed omar didn't make it long enough to see his home land. Those who made it to Tokyo heard about Nagasaki and were all deported back to Malaya. The actual theater ends here but I heard that when he arrived in KL his mother thought he was dead and his mother was really broke in to tears that his son actually survived the devastating bomb that hit his university and mentally affecting Razak.

The bombing

The interesting part of the theater is the fact that the theater incorporates the usage of space in the auditorium. Before the Razak went to Japan, he was thinking what Japan would be like and he automatically imagined the samurai worriers and the sumo wrestlers. So in the Dewan Budaya auditorium there was two places above the stages where they placed speakers and there was the place where the sumo guy went up and the sexy Sylvester the samurai too was acting. Goodness, luckily he wore bicycle shorts underneath. Too bad for me that I didn't get a picture of him on the stage. I was able to get the sumo guy though. Hehehehehe.....

This guy was flashing on stage.....made us laugh like hell

Sumo Guy.....Wished I had Sylvester's picture...haiz..

The director and writer of the play Senibayan had used multimedia shots of the war and that the bomb pictures were also shown on the celling to show that the bomb was flying above the skies in Hiroshima. I did enjoyed the theater and really liked the way the theater was put together. By the way the end there was a dove where Razak let it flew through the hall. We all wondered how the bird went out in the end. I honestly liked the theater, minus the wait before that.

The japanese actors who died on stage

The classes conducted and while it was on sirens were warning to go for shelter. Sometimes false alarms.

The play is in conjunction with independence week, and today is our independence day. I does make you think that will you die for your country or run instead. Well I leave that for everybody to decide. I myself have my doubts but and hope I keep remembering that having independence is only part of our freedom. It is how we portray our country how we preserve its peace, work towards having children that will continue this practice and develop our country to a first world country. Having to think and bring our country to become an example to the rest of the world and be able to compete but think on the effects of the environment will sure be the best birthday gift the country would ever ask for. Happy Birthday my country fellows and hope the fasting month brings more then you can wish for.