Front Row

Dubbed as a one-man comedy riot who is taking on the world, comedian and musician Allan Perera takes centre stage once again, set to create more mayhem in this new, post-GE15 world we Malaysians find ourselves living in. Promising pandemonium after the three-year pandemic, Allan joins us to share what's in store for this show, which also commemorates his 40th anniversary in showbiz.   Im...

Two young artists based in Malaysia are collaborating for the first time, set to bring two great works to life - Beethoven's Choral Fantasy and Prokofiev's Third Piano Concerto in a concert called Love and Strength United . We find out what's in store from pianist Dr Poom Prommachart and Conductor Caeleb Tee. Image Credit: Cloudjoi/Love and Strength United See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy i...

The Philharmonic Society of Selangor, fondly known as The Phil , are staging its much-loved year-end concert entitled Songs For The Season 2022. One of the oldest performing arts societies in Malaysia, we catch up with Brenda James, Chairperson of The Phil, to discuss how the group has been keeping busy these past few years, and to find out more about this Christmas inspired performance. Image Cre...

Comedy has been controversial recently, making the headlines for all the wrong reasons. Comedians Harith Iskander, Mad Sabah, Prakash Daniel and Brian Tan are coming together to let you know that - Malaysia, it is still safe to make jokes and laugh! We are allowed to .... Relazz! We catch up with Harith about all the controversy, and what's in store at this upcoming show, Relazz-lah Malaysia . Ima...

Filled with singalong songs you're sure to recognise, Big Men In Town is a revue of the best of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, whose hits include Oh What A Night, Sherry, Big Girls Don’t Cry, My Eyes Adored You, Beggin, and more. Set to be performed by tribute specialists The Jersey Boys, Big Men in Town will bring to life the rise and fall of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, and tells the...

There's a quote by political philosopher Hannah Arendt that goes: “Every generation, Western Civilization is invaded by barbarians. We call them children”. For renowned filmmaker Tan Chui Mui, motherhood perhaps did feel like an invasion, with lots of societal pressure thrust upon "the mother" to conform to certain ideals, coupled with a sense of loss of self that comes along when you are expected...

Irama Rimba is the fourth musical production under the Temple of Fine Arts Kuala Lumpur's ANKUR banner, whose past productions have collectively won several Boh Cameronian Arts awards. Irama Rimba is said to celebrate the Malaysian multicultural experience of sharing and creating through music, and we find out more about it from Jyotsna Nithyanandan Prakash, the production's music director, and co...

Revolution Stage is back with their latest theatre performance, Teater Asrama-RA: Dorm Putra ACT II, which tackles the topic of bullying in a boy's boarding school. A follow up from their previous production, Teater Asrama-RA Act 1, this play is set in a boy's hostel, and also tackles themes surrounding jealousy, friendship and overcoming obstacles. We find out what's in store from cast members An...

Jefree Salim is a self-taught photographer and a fisherman from the Orang Seletar village of Kampung Sungai Temon, Johor Bahru. His photographic work revolves around the lives of the Orang Seletar, capturing the moments of his people as they work, swim, and play in the sea and what remains of the mangroves at the coast of Johor. We speak to Jefree about his current exhibition featuring 11 of his b...

Inspired by Mary Poppins, Inang Popin is a new theatre production for children which blends local Malay theatre influences such as from Bangsawan and Mak Yong, but also with a bit of western influences too. The play explores themes of environmentalism, and aims to foster an appreciation for nature and our lush forests. We find out more about this local Malay-language children's theatre production...

The Retro Glam Malaysian Big Band is back with Viva Tarakucha! featuring vocalists Sean Ghazi and Ida Mariana, the Terrer-Menerrer Big Band led by Nish Tham, and the Bobo Grand, of course. We catch up with Sean, who is an actor, singer and the artistic director at BoboKL, and Ida, also a singer, actor and the Queen at Kebaya Jazz, to find out about their only big show planned for this year, promis...

An exploration of a disquieting human condition, Opium at Closing Time takes us into the often disjointed experiences of those suffering from Alzheimer’s, and also those who care for them. The play is also described as a story of Malaysia, of pivotal history experienced on the personal scale, of the choices that were made, and the consequences we must suffer. Tarrant Kwok, who is the writer and di...

Philharmonic Winds of Malaysia (PWM) was founded by a group of passionate musicians, and is a wind orchestra consisting of professional orchestral musicians, jazz soloists, freelance musicians, music educators and tertiary music students. Their repertoire includes original and transcribed wind band works that cover various types of music genres such as classical, contemporary, film and pop music....

Carmen - the world's most performed opera - is set to be staged again by the Kuala Lumpur City Opera, and will feature a double cast for the leading roles of Carmen, Don José, Escamillo, and Micäela. Perhaps French composer Georges Bizet’s best known work, Carmen expressively features depictions of love, obsession and jealousy, and has become a fixture in opera houses’ repertoire worldwide. We fin...

From humble beginnings of school grounds rehearsal spaces and rented instruments, the HANDS Percussion group grew to be critically acclaimed performers, and also a crowd favourite at both local and international stages. Founded 25 years ago by Bernard Goh, the team have weathered some storms these past couple of years, but are back with a literal bang, and are building back even better than before...

"Jazz Meets the Island" is the theme of the very first Pangkor Island Jazz Festival , set to be held from the 7th to the 9th of October.  Promising music, culture and life under the island moonlight, the festival boasts of headliners like WVC Jazz Trio, Junji Delfino, The Shang Sisters and more. We speak to pianist, composer, arranger and bandleader Tay Cher Siang, who is also the curator and...

The SeaShorts Film Festival was originally founded by award-winning filmmaker Tan Chui Mui in 2017, as an event to screen Southeast Asian short films, and it has since grown into a notable regional film event. With a programme of handpicked and curated short films, as well as forums and masterclasses, it showcases Southeast Asia’s stories and emerging filmmaking talents by bringing together the ar...

In 2020, a video championing social justice by a young Cambodian rapper, Kea Sokun, went viral. Shortly after that, the artist was arrested and accused of inciting criminal activity under an overly broad interpretation of Article 495 of Cambodia’s criminal code, a law that has been increasingly used against citizens expressing political opinion on social media. While the government portrays Sokun...

Grey Scale is a film told through the eyes of filmmaker Evelyn Teh's 79-year-old aunt, who is living alone and growing old in a gentrifying neighbourhood, and whose hardships became more evident because of COVID-19. The story presents the quiet struggles among the elderly in their quest towards independent and dignified ageing, and we speak to Evelyn to discuss her film that is part of this year's...

After a two-year hiatus, the FreedomFilmFest 2022 (FFF2022) returns, with the theme "Pandemik Dua Darjat" or Pandemic of Inequality. The films set to be screened will bring fresh, diverse and also critical perspectives on the theme, and will feature some 34 socially-themed films from all over the world, that were made just before and during the Covid-19 pandemic. We find out more about what's in s...

PESZTA is a one-day music, arts, and culture festival taking place on the 27th August across three venues in the vicinity of Kampung Attap, Kuala Lumpur. Spelt PESZTA, the festival’s title is not a typo, but rather an acronym of the various sites in Kampung Attap that will be involved in the day-long event. We find out more about what's in store from Kg Attap residents, Liza Ho (Co-founder, The Zh...

Gajen Nad is a stand-up comedian, known for his family-friendly material, whose jokes revolve around diversity, family, work, news, movies, relationships & travelling. In 2019, he was awarded ‘Most Promising Stand-up Comedian’ by Top 10 Malaysia - though he's not too sure what he actually promised. Gajen is set to perform a one-hour comedy special titled Professional Mixed Breed , which he joi...

With a brand of music described as a “redefinition of Indian music, laced with Malaysian and world influences” fusion music group AkashA Malaysia are a fan favourite everywhere they go. They are set to perform at Dewan Filharmonik Petronas on the 9th of Sep, and we catch up with two of the group's founding members, sitar player Kumar Karthigesu, and guitarist and composer Jamie Wilson. Image credi...

  掘失 (jue shi) The Hidden Tune is a musical collaboration featuring the folks from Orang-orang Drum Theatre and the Angelika Niescier Trio, and is described as a musical experiment that is hard to categorise, yet filled with possibilities. We find out more about this upcoming percussion and jazz music collaboration from Zyee Leow, the co-founder of Orang Orang Drum Theatre, and Angelika Nie...

Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières) will host its very first film screening of the 2020 documentary Selfish , that offers a rare and moving glimpse into the lives of 40 humanitarian workers. This film, which is about humanitarian workers’ commitment to other people, also explores the question of their 'selfishness' in choosing to do this kind of work. We explore what the film is abo...