Theatre - DUALITY [2017, October]

What does a gender blind world look like?

DUALITY is an immersive theatre production I've never experienced before.

According to its producers - two Malaysian individuals who are "tired of the moulds society tries to put [them] in", this project was created to challenge the status quo through "unconventional storytelling", in particular, to showcase local performers who struggle to adhere to traditional gender roles and stereotypes.

Due to a busy schedule, I was only able to catch DUALITY's finale show. I'm so glad I didn't miss it!

The Basics

• Title: DUALITY
• Dates: 21 September 2017 - 1 October 2017
• Venue: Pertubuhan Akitek Malaysia
• Co Producers/Directors: Vinna Law & Shane Capri Chin
• Featuring (alphabetical order): 
• Adel Lina
• Alia Kearney
• Helena Foo
• Lee Min Hui
• Marvin Wong
• Nikki Basharudin
• Nik Waheeda
• Nisya Aziz
• Perassath Servai
• Putrina Mohd Rafie
• Rifdi
• Sivagami Selvarajan
• Tania Knutt
• Thong Jia Min

The Show

"How would we act and what would we be if there wasn't a preconceived idea on how a person should be based on what their genitals look like?"

In a conservative country like Malaysia, religion, ethnicity, and other factors have a huge impact on how much freedom one has to live authentically and openly, especially in terms of gender and sexuality. Regardless of the cause of this - fear, misunderstanding, lack of education/exposure - most people are expected to identify/present themselves in a binary way, and specifically as the gender they are assigned with at birth.

This kind of production, therefore, is new and refreshing, especially for someone like me who doesn't get to go to theatres often.

      

Experimental and experiential, DUALITY challenges the notion of cisheteronormativity, serving perspectives on how colorful (and even dark) the world can be, especially for those who have been forced to live in the fringes. 

Note: Some of the images/stories like the ones below can also be triggering - this theatre play is definitely heavy on the heart.

     

Can love conquer all, including discrimination, prejudice, and taboos?

The 'set' is as unconventional as the performances themselves - the performers are scattered all around the venue, and all the performances happened simultaneously: some at the stairways, some in enclosed spaces, some in elevated floors, others in unexpectedly open areas.

The audience is free to roam around and watch each performance for however long they want (if they want). Personally, I enjoyed this but I wonder how accessible all the spaces are to every audience member.

     

The audience needs stamina to watch some of the performers (jk)

I have many thoughts I can't verbalise quite well yet, so I'll just leave a photo of the cast here for now:

My Thoughts

I really liked DUALITY - the overall concept is close to my heart, the performers were amazing, the set design (especially the lighting) was mesmerising, and overall it was an intense experience that was beyond my expectations. I'm glad I was able to witness here in Malaysia.

I do have one small regret, however.

It's hard not to feel a bit FOMO whenever I stayed too long in one spot - "what if you miss out on something important in another story too?" kept going through my mind... but then this might be part of the point of the play - to 'live in the moment' more.

Since the show I attended was their very last one, I couldn't go on another day to confirm my suspicions. I wish I was able to watch this at least one more time.

Last Updated: 2023-02-24