Asia Dance Channel

The Adults Are Missing
TEA Theatre, Shaw Parade
By Elaine Tan Yi Ling
Photographs courtesy of TEA Theatre

The time was 3.30pm when I reached Shaw Parade. Already there were many people gathered on the Ground Floor near the TEA Theatre. There were mostly children below the age of 12 who came with their parents. An entourage of students from Sekolah Menengah Hin Hua attended the event as well.

The show, “The Adults Are Missing” is being performed the second time since December 2009.TEA Theatre was established in 2 October 2001, its predecessor being the Malaysian Theatre Education Foundation (MTEF). After reforming, TEA Theatre expanded its influence into elementary schools, kindergartens, colleges and even overseas associations, promoting theatre education in a more comprehensive way, and demonstrating more effectiveness in cultivating future Chinese theatre talents and audience.

TEA Theatre has been moving towards the goal of establishing a professionalized team, aggressively producing different types of performance annually. In the future, TEA will pay equal attention on both training and producing, with professionalism, to expand and present the illuminating beauty of theatre as a performance art.

At 4pm, the dark red curtains that covered the entrance opened and revealed the TEA Theatre inside. We had to walk down a flight of stairs and into the sitting area, which was a raised platform. Slowly the 100 or so chairs were being filled up with audience. Children were asked to enjoy the show on mats that were provided for them to sit on right in front of the stage.

Soon, it was show time! I watch the lights dim till everything turned pitch black and a voice, which sounded like a chipmunk, could be heard welcoming the audience.

The story in this musical is about Shan, a boy who always depends on his family. One night, he heard a strange voice, whispering slowly to him, “You will put your family in trouble if you keep on being in this way.” Not long after, he discovered a note on the floor. It said that the spirits of the mountain were not happy with his behaviour and wants him to be independent; so they turn his family into animals and said that they will only turn back into human beings when Shan can fully take care of himself.

All the characters were represented in different colours- Shan in yellow, his dad in green, his mum in orange, his maid in black and purple and the narrator in red. The setting was rather creative - they used coloured boxes and combined them into a sofa set; then later in the show it was transformed into a dining table with chairs. The eight long, vertical pillars painted with different patterns created different scenes in the background in a matter of seconds, which I found brilliant.

The performers delivered five songs in this musical. As they sang and dance, their faces were filled with various expressions, which made the audience laughed non-stop. Throughout the show, there were interaction between the actors and the audience. Those who participated were giving a small token of appreciation. The audience even got to try some sandwiches, which were made in the last scene where Shan learnt how to make breakfast. The story came to an end when Shan finally learn how to be more independent and he made his parents proud. The spirits of the mountain lifted the curse returned his parents and maid into human form once.

The show taught us moral values, which is to learn to be independent especially when facing difficulties in life. I had a good laugh throughout the show and left the theatre feeling like a kid once again.