Butterfly
Lovers
Butterfly
LoversA contemporary interpretation of a classic love story by the Temple of Fine Arts.
The Temple of Fine Arts ('TFA') is a voluntary non-profit organisation established in 1982 by our founder Swami Shantanand Saraswathi. The TFA conducts classes for about 600 students in various Indian art forms. Apart from Singapore, we have centres in Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru, Penang, Malacca, Perth, Coimbatore and Chennai.
Over the last 20 years, the TFA has staged dance dramas, such as Ramayana, Swan Lake, The Legend of Mahsuri, Lady White Snake, A Mid-summer Night's Dream and Taj Mahal, in Singapore, Malaysia, Australia and India. Likewise, the TFA International Orchestra has presented musical concerts such as Musical Expressions in Harmony, Saptaswara Singapura and Naad Brahma. All of these dance and music performances involve a unique blend of Indian and non-Indian dance and music so that we can learn from and appreciate cultures other than our own.
In celebration of Singapore's 37th National Day, the TFA with the support of the National Arts Council is staging 'Butterfly Lovers' on 13 and 14 August 2002 at 8pm at Kallang Theatre. The TFA also intends to set up an educational scholarship fund, called the SivaGopal Arts Fund, to enable students to pursue an education in the arts, which it hopes to launch in conjunction with the show.
The TFA seeks to rediscover the thread of universality in different artistic and cultural expressions to reaffirm the underlying attributes of humankind: hope, faith, love and desire. The production is a contemporary re-telling of this famous Chinese tale, making use of the blend of dance and music styles unique to the TFA.
This beautiful and tragic love story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai is one of the many literary treasures of the Chinese. It is almost 2,000 years old - brought down by oral tradition after the event and subsequently written down as a romance. There are shrines dedicated to the lovers in various places in China, most of them visited regularly by both local and foreign tourists.
Historical records honour Zhu Yingtai as the 'virtuous wife'; while in some texts, Liang Shanbo is described as 'the sage'. The story has always been an inspiration for poets, painters, playwrights and opera producers. In fact, the Chinese opera has played a large part in spreading the story; it is performed in many dialects throughout the length and breadth of China. Hong Kong movie producers have found it worthwhile to do a remake or a new interpretation once every 20 years. The most recent being Tsui Hark's fresh and highly acclaimed interpretation.
Our interpretation is first of all informed by the outlook of our youth today. Exposed to so much more through television and the Web, they are, in more ways than one, more savvy or street wise than their uncles and grandfathers who belonged to a time of well-defined simplicity and poetic ease! Present-day youth are bombarded with the stress and strain of modern living and too much information! The presentation of an idea or a story, therefore, has to be dramatic, realistic, believable and easily identifiable.
With this in mind, the approach was to make use of contemporary movements - with its free-form rhythms - to give new expression to a classic story. In a sense, it is an attempt to bring the story up to date, or up to the present generation, and to recreate the dramatic and emotional possibilities that might have taken place then, so many, many years ago. And in many ways, it is an attempt to make obvious the underlying struggle between individual desire and social duty that has always plagued the civilised man. In fact, there is no real difference between the story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai and Romeo and Juliet - except for the setting, language, costumes and colourful culture and traditions.
In choreographing for Butterfly Lovers, the challenge was to create something new in terms of dance. New at least where the TFA is concerned. Our dance experience being classical in nature, the use of text and dialogue as music was a totally new experience. The dancer/actor had to discover new movements to express both the spoken word and the subtext. It is the contrasting rhythm between these two layers which makes the scenes between the hero and heroine refreshing and rewarding. For the first time, the dance was no longer an item, nor was the dialogue a separate issue; these were inextricably meshed with the other. Movement became meaning, and text became music and movement.
But over and above this, the main aim was to offer a total theatrical experience to Singapore audiences so that they too can relive the poignant beauty of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai's story.
In line with the TFA's practice of not charging admission fees for its public performances, there is no admission charge for this programme. Your generous donations in support of the show are welcome and tax exempted when made through the National Arts Council.
Admission is through invitations readily available to the public on a first-come-first-served basis from Temple of Fine Arts at 5 Coleman Street, Excelsior Hotel & Shopping Centre, #02-11 after 10 July 2002.
For more information, kindly contact the TFA at 6336 7987 or 6339 0492, or
e-mail at tfasing@singnet.com.sg